Talking about digital privacy is already vintage
When using gadgets such as cell phones, a footprint is generated in the network that can be crossed with a general or personal database; we must act accordingly, says Matías Carrocera.
The online/offline frontier ceased to exist several years ago in both our personal and professional lives. This situation, in the context of a knowledge economy, calls on society to raise awareness of the importance of people’s privacy, why it should be protected and how organizations should treat data.
Simply as a reference, the knowledge economy is governed by information as the most important asset of people and organizations, both public and private. It is from it that value is generated, both for business and education, new technologies, telecommunications, scientific research, along with the industries and social areas that mark our era.
Therefore, it is essential that people keep in mind the following points to take care of our privacy and generate culture:
1. We talk about holistic privacy, both in the physical and digital world. Accepting terms and conditions for the use of data without knowing what they will be used for is the same as living in a house with glass walls. That’s how exposed people can be in the digital world.
2. If an application or service is “free”, the payment is the user’s data. This point is of vital importance because once we understand this, our conception of what we download on our cell phone, tablet, or laptop changes radically in favor of protecting our personal integrity.
3. We must keep in mind that we have much more personal information (bank accounts, passwords, email, social networks, contacts, etc.) on our mobile devices than anywhere else. To know how valuable the information we have is, let’s think about what would happen if we lost our cell phone, what would be the economic or family impact of a third party gaining access to that information?
4. It is advisable to protect data traffic through digital protection solutions that protect people, search engines, and applications that encrypt messages and emails. At this point we can find multiple VPN (virtual private networks) solutions; however, always bearing in mind that there is nothing free on the Internet. On the other hand, it is also important to know how a VPN protects point-to-point data traffic, but this does not include the information that the user gives to companies or social platforms with his registration and what he stores or publishes.
New technologies are moving towards an increasingly digital world, from a mobile device, wearable or the Internet of Things (IoT), which means that we must continue to move towards this culture and integral conception of our security and care of personal data. Because, without being dramatic but realistic, cybercrime is also advancing, such as identity theft, or possible misuse of information.
Editor’s note: Matías Carrocera is a communication and business analyst. Follow him on LinkedIn. The opinions expressed in this column belong exclusively to the author.
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