Video killed the radio star and the Internet killed print news. But not necessarily. The French may have an answer to Canada’s print media’s revenue woes. While CRTC regulations about ownership in Canada continue to be challenged by media conglomerates alleging they cannot compete, the government of France is proposing a new tax, a public sector approach, to regain lost revenue through the internet: taxing add sales on websites based outside of France. While the French model is meant to subsidize the lost revenues of their artists due to Internet piracy and copyright infringement, this approach could surely be applied to Canada’s print media woes by providing a much needed revenue stream.
Google threatens to leave China over hacking
No one likes having someone read over his or her shoulder. While it most often amounts to little more than an annoyance and a sour ‘excuse me’, when that reading involves personal information or the information of people at risk, there is need for concern. This past week the BBC revealed that several web addresses and gmail accounts belonging to human rights and political groups were hacked and viewed by third parties in China. The Great Fire Wall of China is well known, as is government surveillance, but a public rebuke from a major search engine company is another – this is what makes this story interesting.
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We have all seen enough spy movies to know that email hacking and third party viewing happens. In fact, call me a cynic but I just assume that someone is reading my emails (we should all get to feel so important). That a government may be one of them listening in is no shock. Google’s threat to shut down their entire China operation, however, is out of the ordinary.
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While at first I thought this might be an act of internet first amendment benevolence, similar to the assurance from most web providers of the principals of privacy, as I reflect further demanding free-of-surveillance web access makes sound business sense in addition to an earnest defense of values. Hacking into gmail accounts is an assault to the gmail brand and the promises of privacy that come with its hearty market share. If gmail cannot assure its users that their emails are not being viewed by third parties (most likely government) on a consistent basis, consumers will go elsewhere. While there are a lot of critiques of Internet ownership being in private hands, in this case the market might be able to provide one solution to one of the Internet’s major concerns, privacy.
Protect Yourself from Data Mining
Are you aware that details of your personal life and habits are being collected through your use of the Internet? “Is data mining by corporate firms and institutions going too far, or is it your responsibility, as an Internet participant, to protect your data?” In this article, Shirley Frazier also reminds us that Archive.org’s WayBack Machine is one good reason to participate online cautiously. To learn more visit the Digital Tattoo’s Protect module.
Stanford University Brings Office Hours to Facebook
This story is not “hot off the press” but worth a mention nonetheless since it demonstrates an innovative and (from my standpoint as a participator) effective practice.
More about this story. More about Open Access Learning
New Tool to Calculate Your Digital Footprint
Most of us are at least aware that we have a digital footprint, but did you know the size of your footprint also includes your “digital shadow”? Digital shadows include all of the digital traces that you don’t see and didn’t have a hand in creating – things like include surveillance camera images, bank records, medical records, etc…
John Gantz, Chief Research Officer and Senior Vice President of IDC points out that:
“for the first time your digital shadow is larger than the digital information you actively create about yourself.”
Read the article published on ReadWriteWeb and dare to download a copy of your personal Digital Footpront Calculator….if you dare!
Death and Dating in the Digital Realm
With Halloween on the horizon and darker thoughts surfacing, have you ever wondered what would become of your online creations after you die? Or, on a lighter note, if your only contact info for last night’s kiss is through Facebook, how do you make the next move? Check out Gadgetwise to ask your questions or get answers for these digital dilemmas. More on Cyberdating or Social Networks.
How Does the Internet See You?
Check out Personas, a component of the Metropath(ologies) exhibit, currently on display at the MIT Museum by the Sociable Media Group from the MIT Media Lab. It uses sophisticated natural language processing and the Internet to create a data portrait of your online identity. Just type in your name and find out how the shoe fits!
What do Facebook Quizzes Know About You?
More than you might think! If you’ve ever spent some time completing a quiz on Facebook – or are thinking about it – check out this American Civil Liberties Union Blog of Rights posting. It will get you up to speed on what FB quizzes are learning about you as you do them and how that info could be used by others.
Facebook at the office…
Ever wonder how the term “Facebook-fired” came about? Adding coworkers and bosses to your facebook profile can be fraught with challenges – check out these examples from Passive Aggressive Notes in the workplace here! Note: some of the language in both the post itself and the comments may be offensive to some people.
How to Read a Privacy Policy
We’ve all clicked “I accept” when we’re in a rush and need to start a new online account – those privacy policies are really long and dry, after all. But what are you really signing up for? The Common Data Project has recently published a guide for how to read privacy policies and what to look for. Check it out here!