Running Head: ONLINE PRIVACY

People of the US May Not Have Online Privacy

Carlos Barajas

ENG 102

Professor Kardell

February 11, 2019

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People of the US May Not Have Online Privacy

“The Land of the Free,” is what the United States is constantly referred to. This is

because its citizens are protected by the US Constitution, which means that they can act, dress,

and speak in any form they want if it’s within boundary of the laws. However, that may not be

the case when its citizens are supposed to be protected by the Fourth Amendment of the

Constitution, which is the right to privacy. The people of the United States may not have privacy

while browsing the internet, but there are many ways to combat the issues such as online

monitoring and online thieves, which can possibly affect their lives negatively.

People on the internet may not be well informed about the monitoring system

organizations have. Websites can have a monitoring tool like a data broker to collect information

about you. A data broker is a business that can “collect all sorts of information-names, addresses,

income, where you go on the Internet and who you connect with online” (Naylor, 2016) One

famously known and trusted search engine, Google, collects data to “create personalized user

experience” (Internet Privacy Issues: Tracking, Hacking, Trading). This is negative because Jeff

Chester, a privacy advocate and director of the Center for Digital Democracy, states that

“because there are no online privacy laws in the United States, there’s no stop sign” (Naylor,

2016) In other words, there is no limit on how much and personal a data broker can collect on a

person. Then, the data broker can sell the collected data of those “being profiled by advertisers”

(Identity Theft Statistics: Online Shopping & Cyber-Intrusion). There are also other

organizations that monitor for public safety means, and that would be the United States

government. The specific governmental organization that deals with online activity is the
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National Security Agency (NSA). During President Bush’s presidential term, he signed a bill that

allowed United State intelligence agencies to eavesdrop on its citizens without a warrant (Tran,

2007). They also were involved in another controversy were Edward Snowden, an NSA

whistleblower, revealed to the world that the “US had placed devices in the two EU embassies

and gained access to their internal computer networks” (Malkin, 2013). This reveals to us that

the US has the power and resources access personal data, even of allies. People on the internet

have to be cautious on what they do on the internet or not the information collected can be used

negatively.

In addition to collecting data, there are people who collect personal data for illegal means

and the effects can be negative. According to Tony Bradley’s survey, “52% aren’t sure how to

secure connected devices and apps” (2018). This can lead them to be more vulnerable while

browsing unsecured websites. Alison G. Johansen states that “identity theft affects millions of

Americans every year and occurs when a fraudster steal your identity.” They can access your

personal information in many ways. One of those methods is by tricking the person to

downloading malicious software, which can reveal your PII. The PII can reveal “Your driver’s

license and back account numbers, as any sensitive personal information that can be used to

distinguish your identity” (Johansen). With this information they can get access to your bank

account, emails, and many more. If the online community is taught about the risks, they can be

cautious of what they post and make sure that the website is safe to use. After acquiring such

sensitive data, the online thieves can negatively alter someone’s life. Again, but stated by Fiona

Marcus, there are “many criminals out there that seek to exploit our life by accessing out data for

their own, illegal means” (2019). These online thieves can do what they want, and it will be

under someone else’s name and possibly bank account. For example, would be filling “out
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employment forms and even file for tax refund-all in your name” (Johansen). These types of

harmful actions may lead to financial distress and a ruin reputation. The online thieves are

possibly attempting to acquire items they may not be able to afford or altering lives negatively

for fun.

However, there are methods to prevent identity theft or invasion of privacy. It was found

that “while people are clearly dissatisfied with the of internet privacy, they feel uninspired or

simply ill-equipped to do anything about it” (Byer 2018). Having this attitude makes one more

vulnerable and they are more likely to neglect their safety while browsing on the internet. When

on a website the first thing to do is to look at the site information. There one will be able to

regulate notifications, camera and microphone use, location, and many other things. Another

thing task is to deny access to activity trackers and by reading policies carefully (Internet Privacy

Issues: Tracking, Hacking, Trading). This prevents the site from seeing what one searches or

adds to the cart, and by reading the policies one can see if the website is collecting data for

means that disagreeable. One effective method for protecting your personal information from

online thieves is to use VPN. A VPN allows one to “connect to the internet through another

server, making it very difficult for online attackers to infiltrate and obtain personal data”

(Marcus, 2019). The online thieves will not know where your location is and what browser

you’re using. There are many more ways to stay protected while online and keeping your

personal information private.

Internet users may not have the same type of privacy that people have in the real world.

There are various of websites that can monitor and create profiles of people. They can either use

for improving their websites or to sell to advertisers. Others do it for illegal means and

negatively impact someone’s life. However, there are many methods like changing a temporary
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password or deactivating the auto fill option. Knowing that there are many options to stay safe

and passing that information may prevent lives from being ruined. There also may be new laws

being established in the future that add more privacy, so the Fourth Amendment of the

Constitution is true to its name. We see this when California passed a law, which takes effect in

January 2020, consumers will have the right to know what personal information companies are

collecting and why, and to direct companies to delete their information and not to sell it (Guynn,

2018).
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References

Bradley, T. (2018). Top 5 Concerns to Focus On For Data Privacy Day. Forbes. Retrieved

January 24, 2019 from https://www.forbes.com/sites/tonybradley/2018/01/27/top-5-

concerns-to-focus-on-for-data-privacy-day/#747ebaec4f3c

Byer, B. (2018). Internet Users Worry About Online Privacy but Feel Powerless to Do Much

About It. Entrepreneur. Retrieved January 24, 2019 from

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/314524

Guynn, J. (2018). California passes nation’s toughest online privacy law. USA Today. Retrieved

January 24, 2019 from https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2018/06/28/california-

lawmakers-pass-tough-new-online-privacy-rules-could-model-other-states/743397002/

Johansen, A. G. (n.d.). Online Identity Theft: What It Is and How It Happens. Life Lock.

Retrieved January 24, 2019 from https://www.lifelock.com/learn-identity-theft-resources-

online-identity-theft-what-it-is-how-it-happens.html

Malkin, B. & Reuters. (2013). NSA surveillance: US ‘bugged EU offices.’ The Telegraph.

Retrieved January 24, 2019 from

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/10150905/NSA-surveillance-

US-bugged-EU-offices.html

Marcus, F. (2019). 13 tips to protect internet privacy. Secure Thoughts. Retrieved January 24,

2019 from https://securethoughts.com/11-tips-to-protect-internet-privacy/

Mineo, L. (2017). On internet privacy, be very afraid. Harvard Law Today. Retrieved January

24, 2019 from https://today.law.harvard.edu/internet-privacy-afraid/

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Naylor, B. (2016). Firms Are Buying, Sharing Your Online Info. What Can You Do About It?

National Public Radio. Retrieved January 24, 2019 from

https://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2016/07/11/485571291/firms-are-buying-

sharing-your-online-info-what-can-you-do-about-it

Tran, M (2007). Bush signs controversial surveillance bill. The Guardian. Retrieved January 24,

2019 from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/aug/06/usa.marktran1

(n.d.) Identity Theft Statistics: Online Shopping & Cyber-Intrusion. Sileo. Retrieved January 24,

2019 from https://sileo.com/identity-theft-statistics-online-shopping-cyber-intrusion/

(n.d.) Internet Privacy Issues: Tracking, Hacking, Trading. Secure Swiss Data. Retrieved January

24, 2019 from https://secureswissdata.com/internet-privacy-issues/