Free speech is protected for all citizens under the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence declares our "right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." So the question is, when does your right to privacy outweigh the safety of someone else?
For our 1st post of Q3 I thought we would touch on a recent tragedy in the news. Two Virginia Tech freshmen charged with the premeditated kidnapping and killing of a 13-year-old girl who, authorities say, communicated with her murderer online using the messaging app Kik.
1) Please read the article first: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/06/us/social-media-apps-anonymous-kik-crime.html?_r=0
2) Based upon the article take one side of the argument (pro privacy or pro safety) and defend it in your own words. You must also back up your opinion with a statistic from a reliable source and include a link to the source.
Look I'm all about privacy but, safety is absolutely, without a doubt more important. Something really terrible could happen to you and if you didn't let the police go through your private things and accounts they would have no clues, and would never be able to help you. This example is perfect for the situation because this girl was kidnapped and killed due to her having what I would like to call too much privacy. Especially a 13 year old, they should absolutely have some of their apps and messages looked over once in a while and all the time if they are known to frequently communicate online with people they don't even know. Many killers, kidnappers, thieves, and smugglers have been found with just a little less privacy, if these people had complete and utter privacy they would never have been found and caught.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.cgw.com.au/publication/safety-more-important-than-privacy-in-high-risk-industries/
This website shows that many people are caught with just a little less privacy and especially in high risk companies and jobs.
Everybody has the right to privacy, but safety is very important. In certain situations, such as the one mentioned in the article, the police should be allowed to search through your text messages/e-mails or mobile apps for evidence relating to an investigation they're working on. Although this is considered as invading one's privacy, the police have a good reason to do so. In the article, this situation could've been avoided if Kik was able to check the 13-year-old girl's messages and notice that something wasn't right. The link below says that looking through private e-mails can help retrace someone's location, if needed.
ReplyDelete(http://www.huffingtonpost.com/geri-spieler/what-price-safety-over-pr_b_1666772.html)
Although privacy is important, safety is most critical when talking to strangers on the Internet. Kik appeals to teenagers because it offers privacy, but in certain cases it may allow so much privacy that it can threaten their safety. Since Kik does not retain information long enough for police to check for evidence after an incident, it will make the job more difficult or even impossible. If the police had been able to check the records stored in Kik, the situation could have been less serious, or even totally avoided. If too much privacy is granted, the person's safety could be entirely eliminated.
ReplyDeletePrivacy is a major appeal to people, but safety is more important when communicating with people over the Internet. We love our privacy, however if something goes wrong there needs to be a way for people to see what's been happening. Many crimes are committed and not traced because the apps do not save to messages. If they did, it would be easier to keep people safe. If kik had been safer, the girl would not have been murdered and many other crimes would not have been able to be committed. "In 82% of online sex crimes against minors, the offender used the victim's social networking site to gain information about the victim's likes and dislikes." In other words, if they tracked messages instead of worrying about privacy, these crimes could have been prevented.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.internetsafety101.org/predatorstatistics.htm
Nice source Margaret. Lots of statistics.
DeleteEven though privacy is important, I am pro safety. Safety is crucial when talking to people over the internet. In this article, it tells us that Kik gives its users too much privacy which jeopardizes their safety. If Kik was able to access messages between victims and criminals it would make the cases easier to solve, and overall make Kik a safer app. "According to a recent survey of 1,221 federal, state and local law enforcement who use social media, four out of five officials used social media to gather intelligence during investigations. Half said they checked social media at least once a week, and the majority said social media helps them solve crimes faster."
ReplyDeletehttp://www.cnn.com/2012/08/30/tech/social-media/fighting-crime-social-media/
Interesting article Eva: The suspect in this case lost his "legitimate expectation of privacy when he disseminated posts to his 'friends' because those 'friends' were free to use the information however they wanted -- including sharing it with the government," the judge wrote."
DeleteI believe that safety is more important than privacy. Safety is so important especially on the internet. These young girls would be alive today if they didn't have kik. Sometimes too much privacy isn't good. These killers wouldn't of been found if the police didn't search through the messages. Too much privacy causes our safety to be in danger. ''Five percent of teens have admitted to arranging a secret meeting with someone they had met online.'' http://nobullying.com/internet-safety-statistics/ This is very dangerous and could be the teens' lives at risk.
ReplyDeleteGood source Briann. Interesting stats. 5% "admitted". I wonder how many more have and won't admit it.
DeleteAs much as I'd like to be pro privacy, I think that safety is more important than anything on the internet. People can be very deceitful and hide their true identity with a fake picture and name. "Many teens are unconcerned about the dangers of sharing personal info online" http://www.onlinesafetysite.com/P1/Teenstats.htm. This is very dangerous because teens do not realize that once a certain piece of information such as their address is shared, it cannot be taken back.
ReplyDeleteInteresting stats. Great source Liana.
Delete"A majority of teens (58%) do not think posting photos or other personal info on social networking sites is unsafe. They should read the news.
Nearly half of teens (47%) are not worried about others using their personal info in ways they do not want (although that represents a 10-percentage-point improvement over the previous year). About half (49%) are unconcerned posting personal info online might negatively affect their future. (Most employers now do a search for their prospective employees. With some of the information and pictures I have found on Facebook, they should be concerned.)"
Even though pro privacy is very important, I think that safety is more important. Teenagers these days have to take what they put out into social media cautiously. You never know who is really hiding behind the phone or computer screen. In the article, it states that apps like "Kik" offer too much privacy when chatting with others. It lead to a problem which could have been easily resolved for the safety of others. Privacy is great and can be appropriately used but don'the get carried away with it.
ReplyDeleteIn the link below, it talks about the safety rules you should consider before putting yourself out on the internet.
http://www.safesearchkids.com/a-teens-guide-to-social-media-safety/#.VtOcn6hOmf0
Nicely done ladies. Interestingly all of you are safety advocates.
ReplyDeleteSafety is more important than privacy. As children, we have to take more precaution of our surroundings and protect ourselves from outside strangers. Ultimately, protecting ourselves can lead to better circumstances that will not harm our privacy in any way. The article describes how even in the eyes of adults, safety is more valuable than privacy and can make the enviornment more ideal for children.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3751958
Safety is definitely more important than privacy. I am all about privacy, but too much privacy can lead up to something bad. If we are safe with what we do on social media, we will become more skilled in protecting ourselves. In the article, it states that police officers have the right to search through your texts, emails, etc. Yes, I do feel like this is an invasion of privacy, but it can help in solving major cases, such as terrorism. The article in the link below states, "But Karen Handley, a psychologist from California, has no qualms with the administration doing what it needs to do to keep American citizens safe.“My national security is more important than whether I made a phone call to somebody,” she said. “If you have nothing to hide, you probably don’t care.”"
ReplyDeletehttp://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/06/06/18802435-privacy-vs-protection-public-wrestles-with-whats-most-important?lite
Safety is more important than privacy because, criminals would take advantage of the anonymity to get in contact with kids and teenagers. Many criminals could use kik and other apps like kik to make sure the police can't monitor them and can commit crimes without the police knowing for a long time. Privacy shouldn't get to the point where it threatens everyone else's safety.
ReplyDeleteSafety is more important than privacy, because without using the internet safely, people can access for your private files such as credit card information or your home. Criminals can disguise themselves using ,messaging apps such as kik.
ReplyDelete