Privacy is Not Important
Ok, my headline is deliberately provocative. Privacy is important. But, often it is not. I think we are being very silly over issues of privacy.
It is stupid to spend hours typing information on public websites and to then worry about keeping it private. Facebook was designed to share information. The Web was designed to make information widely available.
Deleting your Facebook account over issues of privacy is like boycotting the local grocery store because people gawk when you pull down your pants. Are you going to tell the grocery store owner that you refuse to return until he or she provides a means to control who sees your bum when your pants are down around your ankles? Or, are you going to refrain from pulling your pants down in public? Which makes more sense?
Facebook is a public place: govern yourself accordingly. Don’t be stupid! If you are having an affair, don’t talk about it on Facebook. If you lied to the boss, said that you were sick, and went golfing instead, don’t put the pictures on Facebook.
Of course, there are real privacy issues, but do not assume that nobody is watching you on the Internet. Break the word down: “Inter”, which means between, among or within; and “net”, which means to catch and ensnare. If your neighbors are laughing behind your back because they saw you naked in front of your window, it is silly to blame that on your landlord. The Internet is a public place. There are better places to be private.
Having said this, there is information that you share online, with a legal understanding that it will not be shared for any other purpose than the purpose you ascribe. That is a contract. Still, sometimes you need a contract, but other times, all you need is common sense.
‘Zactly.