READ privacy policies

Recently I read an article on Huffingtonpost.com
about an interview TechCrunch did with Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg.  Zuckerberg claims privacy is no longer the social norm.  The topic of privacy has been quite a controversial one over the past few years.  Last December Facebook drastically changed its privacy settings so a majority of information was public.  In the interview Zuckerberg said if he had created the number one social media site today rather than five years ago, he would have made all of the settings public. How do you feel about this?  Is he right, is privacy no longer the social norm?  Rather than just scratching the surface, let's dig a little deeper.

How many of you honestly read the privacy policy of Facebook or Google or your email?  For me, up until recently, privacy was not even a thought on my mind.  Do you think it is right for the people to collect data on your as you search the internet?  What if you are searching for something personal; for example, a disease?  Is it fair that companies track when you use the internet, how you use the internet, how long you are on Facebook for, what size shoes you wear to what size deodorant you use?

For me, my answer is based on two words: Free Enterprise.  I know it is a bit of a stretch, but it kind of relates to this.  Mark Zuckerberg created a social media website where people choose to create an account and choose to put their information on it.  If you are agreeing to use the site, then you are agreeing to let the world know your information.  Not only do I want to talk about Facebook, but to hit on a bunch of the questions I asked in regard to privacy in general, all I have to say is life is not fair.  The internet kind of gives us a big brother is watching us feeling, but you are not forced to use the internet.  Just as anyone can go out there and create a business, which is essentially what the internet is too. 

Although I do feel we ultimately make our own decision, I think the statement "privacy is no longer the social norm" is a bit over the top.  I do not think this statement supports his discussion as well as it should and I think it automatically makes people deffensive.  No one wants to actually admit that they do not read the privacy policy and I think that makes them embarrassed.  Privacy and the internet is not going away, but I do think it is important for everyone to pay attention and READ privacy policies for everything they are using online, or anywhere for that matter.