In the early stages of the Internet and social media, it appeared that everyone wanted to get their 15 minutes of fame and rejoice in the opportunities of global recognition and status by posting and sharing information with the online community.
However, once these 15 minutes are up and people start recognizing that they can not only post anything that they want online, but that it is for public viewing. Brian Solis along with Peoplebrowsr have recently posted a study that they did regarding Facebook Privacy from April 2010 to now, and some of the mentions, statitistics, and trends are a must-know for all professionals and students. You can go directly to the Analytic.ly site from Peoplebrowsr to see all of the results from this study.
In other words, there is no privacy on the Internet or on social media – in fact, there never was. I am surprised that people think that this privacy issue is new – but it really isn’t. Even in the early stages of websites and the Internet, corporations and professionals were aware that what was posted online was for the world to see. This is one of the fundamental lessons I learned early on with my website and blog as a track and field athlete, and even to this day as a public relations researcher and professional. I know what I post on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, blog, and my website is for public viewing where my information will be shared.
I do acknowledge the fact that people do have legitimate concerns about their privacy online, especially regarding geo-location applications (Facebook Places) and sites (Foursquare and Gowalla). However, it is not the technology that is causing these privacy issues, it is the people involved. I would say that people who are broadcasting their location every hour need to be aware of the issues and risks that come with that, but I do see this being an issue with Foursquare and Gowalla.
However, regarding Facebook Places, where the power of checking in is not only with you, but your “friends” – what makes them not check you in somewhere when you are not there? Or post something in addition to checking in that might damage your reputation? There are so many ethical, legal, and reputation management considerations with this new technology, and it will only continue to be a hot topic of conversation, both offline and online. The best thing that you can do is make sure you are aware of what is being said about you online, manage your reputation proactively, and always think before you post. These are just some of the good online reputation management practices you can start with to reduce your uncertainty about privacy issues and challenges with social media.
Hope you all are having a great day!
Best Wishes,
Karen
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