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How much privacy do you need on social media?
Social media seems like the last place where you need privacy. You're talking to the world, right? In reality, people need different types of privacy to feel safe, even on social media.
We're already pretty aware of some privacy needs.
- Search engine privacy – content should be accessible to individuals, not scraped by machines (via Google or other routes). I know a guy who scraped everything off Facebook in 2008 and sells it to political campaigns.
- Friend privacy – content designated for friends should not go to strangers. I don't want Joe Random to know too much about my kids.
- Context privacy – comments on a friend’s post should not be automatically displayed to my other friends. One time, I got sucked into a really stupid spat with a friend with different politics because I read something I never should have seen.
- Corporate/government privacy – platforms and governments may have legitimate reasons for access, but should not abuse the privilege. No thanks on the NSA reading my thoughts.
Most people have never considered other important aspects of social media privacy. I think these might be even more important.
- Opinion privacy – controversial opinions should not be associated with identity unless the recipient can be trusted. I don't like losing friends for no good reason.
- Enhanced opinion privacy – opinions on some topics should not be associated with identity unless the recipient is specifically trusted for that topic. I might be good talking with a buddy about pretty much anything, but only pretty much. What if I want to talk about mental health?
What do you think? Does privacy matter to you?
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1 Reply
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You’re asking this on a platform where the vast majority of people sign up anonymously.
I think your answers are going to be pretty one-sided.
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I’ll take as much privacy as I can get.
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Thank you, I actually came here to search for answers on lower points 1 and 2. It’s not clear how one can be on social media like Threads and have controversial or political views without those public views having some negative impact on one’s professional or personal life.
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Absolutely, privacy matters to me. It’s essential to have control over who sees what to feel safe and comfortable on social media.
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