Date: 6 February 2015
Exercise: Getting The Most Out of Academic Texts
Reading response based on the article "The perils of over-sharing in social networks":
(Emm (2014))
addresses the various consequences of over-sharing in internet. With the
advance in technology, internet has become important in our lives. We become
more relying on internet services beyond communication. For instance, we use
internet for shopping, banking and socializing. Sometimes, we might need to
share our personal information with the service providers to gain access to the
services. For example, Facebook requests the permission to read SMS and MMS
messages of application installer for two-factor authentication. Some of us
might even share some personal information in the social media openly without knowing
that it might cause security issues to ourselves and the organization that we
work for. Emm suggests that we have “false sense of security” when using a
mobile device such as smartphone and tablet because they are not “traditional target
for cybercriminals”. He also argues that every internet account holder has a
risk of data leakage due to losing of mobile devices.
I think that
I am very fortunate to be benefited from the development of internet since it eases
and enhances my quality of life by providing all sorts of services. For example, I am able to buy apparels from
overseas and transfer the payment to the seller via internet; the process from
buying to payment can be done within 10 minutes. Besides, it entertains me with
social media and music website. For example, social media is an important
platform for me to stay connected with my friends in Malaysia and I used
it as a music player while doing my homework. As such, I appreciate the existence of internet.
However,
there are some drawbacks for using the internet and I am aware that I am
bearing some risks. Most of the developers of application would be asking for
permission to control or access to some device’s function. Undeniably, some
personal information is needed for the service provider since it directly
relates to the service. For example, a courier company which provides online
service needs the address of recipient, so that it could complete customers’
requests. However, some of the service providers require access to sensitive
user information although it might not be relevant to the service provide. This
information includes precise location, text messages, phone call, contacts and
hardware control. The reasons for companies to acquire this information remain
unclear. It is possible that this information is used for advertising and sharing
with third parties. From my point of view, accessing to this information is
invasion of privacy. One must remember that companies will have to obtain the
prior consent before installing the application. Hence, we must read through
the permission or terms and conditions carefully before engaging with their
services.
Apart from
this, having control of the device might cause economic losses. For instance,
the unauthorised controller of the device could transfer money via SMS. This
situation might be worsening with the growing trend of “mobile wallets”, which causes
the transaction of money becomes easy and prevalent; hence we might overlook
its potential risk.
Oversharing
is also a problem with internet users. The internet is a good platform for us to
express our emotions and thoughts. Nevertheless, we start to share some
personal details which might make us a target for criminals. For example, the
criminals can get information about their victims’ whereabouts, workplace and even
who is in their circle of friends from the internet and utilise it to do harm to the internet users in real
life. So, we have to be cautious with the information that we share and avoid
sharing details that may allow someone else to stalk us.
In
conclusion, I agree with the author that the internet brings advantages and disadvantages to our
life. It is definitely a powerful tool that brings convenience. However, we
should know that as users, we have the right to decline any risky application and also avoid sharing sensitive
information that should not be revealed.
Source:
Emm, D.
(2014, March 21). The perils of over-sharing in social networks. Huffpost
Tech. Retrieved from
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/david-emm/the-perils-of-over-sharing-in-social-networks_b_5005276.html
