Trade off between Connectivity and Privacy

While some people consider that the internet is a threat to human civilization and refuse to use social media due to their fear that their privacy would be violated, many others take benefits of its wealth.

I have always enjoyed connecting with people whether in real life or “virtually.” At work, I enjoy my advising part of my job and use social media to connect with my advisees and friends. Of course the Internet is like a glass house where everything is transparent and there is no place to hide. The multitude ways we give away information about ourselves has not only increased our social visibility and made it easier for us to find each other, but also to be examined in public.

Remaining disconnected can bring blessed privacy and comfort to some. Conversely, it can be a sad and loss of many wonderfully joyous moments and important opportunities. We want nothing more than to connect, and the companies that are connecting us electronically want to know about us especially that we are handing in an enormous amount of data about our daily life, much of which we might not trust our friends with. So what am I really gaining from being part of this giant new world? 

Social media for me is just like a meditation session, it allows me, after a long day of work, to reflect on my day and the world. Maybe all of us like to have our personal moments, a little private corner created over the Ether where we could go off alone without fears. To day-dream and speak out our mind. To realize who we are and the extents of the good we are capable of. 

“Using the Internet as a vehicle to work with people is fascinating. It's sort of a Pandora's box of energy for me.”―Jon Anderson

We are all aware that the advances of social media applications constitute a greater danger to our privacy as individuals. Privacy by definition is that there are things that belong solely to us and should not be open to the scrutiny of others because the root of privacy is that not everything belongs to everyone.

However, social networking survives on connectivity and sharing of information. Indeed, social media is dependent on the disclosure of our personal information and if this is valued more highly than privacy, then the protection of our individual data over the Internet might become unconfirmed.

“To be left alone is the most precious thing one can ask of the modern world.” ― Anthony Burgess

On the one hand, many of us fear what others read and know about us. And on the other hand, we fear that what people miss about us (after reading), could be filled with assumptions. We might assume that they care so much about us, by what they do or don’t read about us. Then, the mixture of our own worries and egos overshadows that what other people think of us is their problem not ours, to worry about.

Finding a balance between privacy and connectivity is complicated, and there is a trade-off between more security and the benefit of being active on the net. Furthermore, gaining trust in social media is essential and needs time to be built up:

• Know your strengths and weaknesses, and be open about them. Being vulnerable shows that you are human.
• Tell the truth. Don’t lie. “When in doubt, tell the truth.” – Mark Twain
• Distinguish facts from personal opinions. Using our imagination to fill in the missing bits could distort the reality of things.
• Do now what you say you would do. Procrastination could kill your credibility.