How Facebook Invades Privacy and Security Information

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Potential uses of data gathering
Its effect on society
Thesis
Body 1
Body 2
Body 3
Conclusion
Works Cited

Introduction

Describe the Cambridge Analytica scandal
Focus on the fact that the users technically consented to the data gathering without realizing it
Describe the concerns voiced by the users after the discovery of the breach
Highlight the broader context surrounding privacy in the digital age
Specific areas my research will tackle
The mechanism of data gathering and analysis in the scandal

Potential uses of data gathering

Political
Marketing
Manipulation

Its effect on society

Erosion of privacy
Increased manipulation by powerful entities

Thesis

The Cambridge Analytica scandal is a sign of potentially much more problematic future developments

Benefits of the research

Increase the publics understanding of the threat of data gathering and selling

Body 1

Data gathering mechanism

Source of the information

Online businesses:

Many online businesses gather and store their customers data, which they can then make available to third parties

Methods of processing the information

API-based research:

Datasets provided by companies such as Facebook can be analyzed for specific traits, producing detailed information on large groups of people (Venturini and Rogers 532)

Uses

Improved targeting:

By determining the preferences of a user group, marketers can tailor advertisements to their targets and target narrower groups with more specialized ads

Body 2

Potential uses

Positive uses of the technology, such as research, exist

Potentially malicious or unethical applications

Political:

Cambridge Analytica was accused of designing ads that would subtly influence peoples voting preferences in favor of one candidate (Hinds et al.)

Marketing:

Companies can create advertisements that appeal strongly to their target audiences, spurring further consumption

Manipulation:

Peoples lack of understanding of how modern manipulation techniques based on API data work leads them to be vulnerable to deception due to a belief in their immunity to such efforts (Hinds et al.)

Body 3

Effects on society

Erosion of privacy:

More and more products require the users to submit their data because of the benefits that this practice confers to the manufacturer
People are starting to accept these policies as normal, valuing the convenience more than they are concerned about the risks (Fast and Jago 44)
While the Cambridge Analytica scandal led to an outcry, few people left Facebook as a result (Brown)
Eventually, even those concerned about their data may have to surrender it to participate in society fully

Increased manipulation:

Democratic systems are notoriously prone to manipulation via public opinion, as history shows
API research gives organizations with sufficient funding and power the tools to subtly influence people
Such manipulation would be extremely challenging to detect or counter with the current mechanisms in place

Conclusion

The gathering and processing of millions of users data is invaluable for research, particularly in the fields of sociology and public health.

However, in its current state, it enables public and private actors to access and use it for malicious purposes.

Users are either not aware to what extent their information is being gathered or apathetic to it due to acceptance.

The Cambridge Analytica scandal is a single incident that indicates the existence of a much larger, likely still-unknown field or potential for one to emerge.

Measures to counter this issue, such as increased transparency, greater promotion of privacy, and promoting understanding of the implications of mass data collection, are necessary.

Works Cited

Brown, Allison J. Should I Stay or Should I Leave?: Exploring (Dis)continued Facebook Use After the Cambridge Analytica Scandal. Social Media + Society, vol. 6, no. 1, 2020, Web.

Fast, Nathanael J., and Arthur S. Jago. Privacy Matters& Or Does It? Algorithms, Rationalization, and the Erosion of Concern for Privacy. Current Opinion in Psychology, vol. 31, 2020, 44-48.

Hinds, Joanne, Emma J. Williams, and Adam N. Joinson. It Wouldnt Happen to Me: Privacy Concerns and Perspectives Following the Cambridge Analytica Scandal. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, vol. 143, 2020, Web.

Venturini, Tommaso, and Richard Rogers. API-based research or How Can Digital Sociology and Journalism Studies Learn from the Facebook and Cambridge Analytica Data Breach. Digital Journalism, vol. 7, no. 4, 2019, 532-540.