Online Privacy Research Articles

Abolish privacy

This is a manifesto to reject calls to “online privacy.” Privacy is an inherently exclusionary liberal entitlement inextricably linked to property, racial oppression, sexual control and class segregation. However online privacy is uncritically promoted by academics, activists and media discourse as a civil right and even a form of social justice. We build on the arguments of feminist, queer, Black Radical traditions and GDPR legal scholars to make three arguments to the contrary. First, privacy is not social justice, but reproduces the ideologies of colonial rankings, policing and norms (racial, sexual, able-bodied and more). Second, online privacy is inextricable from private property as the exclusive legal protection of home-owners from state oversight; a liberal privilege that is easily appropriated into corporate affordances. Third, online privacy is a myth: the Internet works because its infrastructures share knowledge inferred from data, in other words there is no actual possibility of privacy, nor any real corporate incentive to privacy, except as an optic tactic to avoid accountability. Grounded in anti-capitalist social justice, our argument exceeds current liberal civil definitions of safety, such as the Human Rights based approach to Smart Cities inspired by the United Nations, the GDPR, municipal policies and environmental law. Instead we call for public, collectivized data and the complete rejection of liberal property entitlement, gatekeeping and policing known as “privacy.”

Light Body

Light Body is an exploration of embodied space located in the digital realm. Exploring this by way of digital and material failure, celebrating and exploiting those failures rather than avoiding them. A direct followup to What Is It Made Of, an experiment featuring a 3D camera and camera obscura, in Light Body my wife becomes the sun. This play of light’s relationship to both camera and screen are all called upon in my desire to create art of my wife versus my wife’s conflicting desire of maintaining her privacy online. In this way, I am utilizing holes in camera vision to my benefit, recontextualizing what is often seen as failures of medium into necessary elements of my piece.

Investigating students’ awareness of online privacy and cybersecurity: an empirical study with effective cybersecurity training framework

Purpose The main purpose of this study is to assess the level of cybersecurity and social media privacy awareness among college students in Bangladesh and propose a scalable cybersecurity training framework to promote safe online practices. Design/methodology/approach This study used a structured, printed questionnaire survey to collect data from the students of five renowned colleges from the southern part of Bangladesh. Stratified sampling technique was followed and a total of 353 data were collected. Collected data were analyzed using SPSS and Python programming languages. Findings The findings uncovered that most of the students possessed limited knowledge regarding fundamental cybersecurity concepts, though they were using different social media platforms and posting personal information frequently. The study found a significant positive relationship between students’ sharing of personal information on social media and becoming a victim of cybersecurity attacks. Contrarily, becoming a victim of a cybersecurity attack was negatively correlated with their ability to respond in case of cyberattacks. However, most of the students were interested in acquiring knowledge of cybersecurity. Based on these findings, the study proposed a game-based cybersecurity training framework for students named “CyberSAFE”. Originality/value Though several studies have proposed different cybersecurity frameworks in different contexts, this study, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, is the first attempt to explore college students’ cybersecurity knowledge and propose a game-based framework in a developing country setting.

Understanding the mediator and moderator role of digital citizenship on cyber harassment

PurposeDrawing on two competing theories, the online disinhibition effect and communication privacy management, this study explores the antecedents of cyber harassment and the mediating and moderating role of digital citizenship on cyber harassment among adults.Design/methodology/approachTo ensure the quality of the data collected, participant recruitment was conducted using two panels: Qualtrics and Cloud Research. The sample comprised 262 participants who were USA residents aged between 18 and 87 years who use the Internet regularly. Additionally, the survey required a balance of participants across racial and educational levels. The survey was drawn from items for which reliability and validity indexes have been tested and confirmed in prior disparate studies.FindingsResults show that digital citizenship is a significant moderator in the relationships between disposition to value web privacy, perceived online disinhibition and cyber harassment. Digital citizenship behavior mediates the relationship between perceived online disinhibition and cyber harassment but does not mediate the relationship between disposition to value privacy and cyber harassment.Originality/valueThe results of this study broaden the understanding of digital citizenship as a behavior modification for cyber harassment, specifically among adult Internet users. Further, we seek to bring together two streams of research that have previously been studied separately: the literature on the antecedents of perceived online disinhibition and disposition to value web privacy concerns.

A dimensionalised privacy behaviour model: an empirical test of a conceptual proposition

ABSTRACT Privacy research struggles with modelling how individuals value and enact privacy, and faces challenges in explaining apparent contradictions such as the privacy paradox and manifestations of privacy-related disempowerment. Such uncertainties arise from the use of unidimensional privacy constructs or through assumptions that privacy-related decisions are rational or intentional. Addressing these lacunae, we present and empirically test the Dimensionalised Privacy Behaviour (DPB) model, which simultaneously examines the relationships between privacy concerns and privacy-protecting behaviours (PPB) along privacy’s horizontal and vertical orientations, and introduces online privacy literacy and privacy self-efficacy as additional explanatory mechanisms in PPB modelling. Using data from a representative sample of 618 US social media users, we demonstrate that the privacy concerns/privacy behaviours dynamic is better understood along its vertically – and horizontally-oriented dimensions, and that each dimension interacts differently with explanatory elements. Furthermore, while affirming the established logic between privacy concerns and PPB, these results highlight privacy self-efficacy as a significant factor for explaining PPB, with differing effects in each dimension.

Youth's Online Privacy Concerns: An Examination of Social Media Platforms' Data Protection Policies

Social media platforms have become a central part of youth culture in India, offering avenues for communication, social interaction, and self-expression. However, these platforms also pose significant risks related to data privacy and security, leading to growing concerns among young users about how their personal information is collected, stored, and used. This study examines youth’s online privacy concerns in the context of social media platforms’ data protection policies, focusing on the effectiveness of these policies in safeguarding user data. By employing a mixed-method approach that includes content analysis, surveys, and interviews, this research explores the awareness, perceptions, and concerns of Indian youth regarding data privacy on popular social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and WhatsApp. A sample of 600 participants aged 13-19 from urban and semi-urban areas across India provided data through structured surveys and interviews. Statistical tools, including regression analysis, ANOVA, and thematic analysis, were used to evaluate the relationship between privacy concerns and perceptions of data protection policies. The findings reveal that youth are increasingly aware of data privacy issues but lack trust in the platforms' ability to protect their information. This study highlights the need for enhanced privacy policies, greater transparency, and educational initiatives to improve digital literacy among Indian youth. Future research should focus on evaluating the effectiveness of specific data protection measures and the role of policy enforcement in mitigating privacy risks.

Mastering boundaries: differences in online privacy boundary phenomena across digital devices and years

ABSTRACT Multiple digital communication devices provide varying capabilities and processes for self-disclosure, surveillance, and privacy management, therefore eliciting a variety of user privacy perceptions and behaviours. Drawing from the media mastery framework and the comparative privacy research framework, this study investigates similarities and differences in online privacy outcomes associated with computer and mobile phone use via content analysis of 12 focus groups conducted with US college students in 2006 and 2016. Findings reveal similarities and differences across device type and time and their combinations among selected privacy-related codes from the media mastery framework. Cluster analysis of the codes reveals several general themes such as crossing the boundary from private to public, and safety and trust. Contributions include the use of a reliable conceptual foundation for categorising online privacy boundary phenomena, the generation of discussions about these phenomena from a goal-free evaluation approach, and comparisons across devices and time. The discussion provides theoretical and practical implications.

A GAME OF PRIVACY TUG OF WAR: A HISTORICAL ANALYSIS OF PRIVACY SETTINGS

Privacy settings are a critical mechanism for platforms to manage, control, and impact user privacy online. The policies of social media platforms and their technical design—including the choice architecture of privacy settings—"serve as a form of privatized governance directly enacting rights and regulating the flow of information online (DeNardis & Hackl, 2015). Many platforms use a rhetoric of “choice and control,” relying on privacy settings to shoulder the burden of responsibility for user privacy (Horne, 2021). Another challenge to privacy on social media platforms is that there is a wide disparity of settings choices across different platforms, with varying defaults (Horne, 2023). Additionally, the interconnection and the technical importance of privacy settings has a clear and well-established history. This paper examines this history via a historical analysis of Meta’s changes to privacy settings. The analysis focuses on Meta as it is one of the oldest and largest of social media platforms; it also hosts a comprehensive archive of news articles, which tracks critical updates to Meta products. The study seeks to determine what privacy settings changes Meta has made, when the changes were announced, as well as analyze how these changes were framed in news articles.

Evaluation of social media privacy, internet addiction in adolescents who are victims of sexual abuse and digital awareness in their parents.

Childhood sexual abuse is the exploitation of a child by an adult for sexual purposes. Many cases go undetected and can occur across all socioeconomic levels, ages, genders, and regions. With the rise of internet use, abuse is increasingly occurring online, with some online relationships escalating to in-person sexual contact between the victim and offender. Our study hypothesizes that adolescents with high internet addiction and difficulty protecting their privacy online may be at greater risk for abuse, and that their parents may have low digital awareness. Adolescents completed the Sociodemographic Data Form, Social Media Privacy Protection Scale, and Young Internet Addiction Scale (short form), while parents completed the Digital Parent Awareness Scale. Statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS version 26. The case group showed higher internet addiction and social media use, while the control group had better social media privacy protection skills. Although not statistically significant, parents in the case group had lower digital awareness. A negative relationship was observed between internet addiction and parental awareness. Parental mediation of young people's social media use significantly impacts their privacy management.To prevent abuse, parents must understand the risks of the digital environment and the necessary precautions. The primary limitation of this study is the limited sample size, which may restrict the generalizability of the findings.

The Impact of Digital Transformation on The Digital Literacy Skills of Dayak Adolescents In Central Kalimantan

Aim: This study aims to explore the impact of digital transformation on the digital literacy skills of Dayak adolescents in Central Kalimantan, focusing on key aspects such as social media usage, internet information search, information evaluation, online privacy, and content sharing ethics. Method: The research employed a quantitative approach with a survey method, where data were collected through a structured questionnaire based on demographic variables such as gender, age, education level, and ethnicity. A total of 300 Dayak adolescents were selected using purposive sampling techniques. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 26 to identify significant factors influencing digital literacy. Result and Disscusions: The results indicate that gender is the most significant demographic factor affecting digital literacy, with females outperforming males in terms of digital skills (r = -0.154, p = 0.007). The study suggests that females tend to use technology more effectively for searching and evaluating information. However, age (r = 0.102, p = 0.041) and education level (r = 0.043, p = 0.365) did not show a significant influence on digital literacy, as evidenced by the ANOVA tests (F = 1.562, p = 0.211 for age; F = 1.003, p = 0.368 for education). This finding implies that access to and experience with digital technology is relatively uniform across different age groups and educational backgrounds.Furthermore, there was no significant relationship between social media usage and digital literacy (r = -0.054, p = 0.211), which may be due to the predominant use of social media for entertainment rather than educational or informational purposes. Conclusion: The study concludes that gender differences must be considered in designing digital literacy programs, and there is a need to encourage more purposeful and critical use of digital technologies among adolescents.

Security and Privacy in Healthcare Applications Using Federated Learning - Review

This review explored data security and privacy in Internet of Health Things (IoHT) networks, focusing on local training for AI models and Federated Learning (FL) to ensure privacy and integrity. This highlights the importance of leveraging technological advancements for disease prediction and data exchange. Functional programming can be used in various industries and applications under real-world scenarios. In the medical industry, safeguarding the confidentiality of patient records and medical status is essential. This is where collaborative or federated learning becomes relevant. On the other hand, creating an intelligent system that helps medical personnel without exposing data can result in a Federated Learning concept. An example is an AI-based intelligent system for diagnosing brain tumors, which can effectively operate within a teamwork setting. Advancements in smart devices and applications designed for the Internet of Healthcare Things have created an ideal setting for implementing Machine Learning techniques. Nevertheless, conventional ML solutions work by collecting and processing data in a centralized manner. Federated Learning (FL) offers a potential solution for training machine-learning models on numerous separate devices without the need to share private data. As a result, FL provides a secure framework for managing extremely sensitive data in the context of the IoHT. This survey provides a detailed overview of new data security and privacy tools for Federated Learning in Internet of Health Things networks. Initially, we introduced the fundamental concepts of Federated Learning (FL) as it is applied to the IoHT.

Effects of Cultural Factors at the Individual Level on Online Privacy Among Vietnamese University Students: An Empirical Study Using a PLS-SEM Approach

The research investigates how Hofstede’s cultural dimensions at the individual level influence online privacy among Vietnamese university students. The previous research findings, APCO model, Hofstede’s theory of cultural dimensions and the protection motivation theory were adopted to conduct the study hypotheses. Data from a sample of 386 students at a private university in Hanoi was analysed with the Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). Findings show that collectivism, long-term orientation and uncertainty avoidance had a positive impact on privacy concern but they did not directly influence privacy behavior. Instead, they could affect privacy behavior through privacy concern. Masculinity had no significant impact on both privacy concern and privacy behavior. Power distance positively influenced privacy behavior, but it did not have any effects on privacy concern. Regarding the relationship between privacy concern and privacy behavior, the findings suggest a potential two-way connection between privacy concern and behavior, requiring longitudinal research to examine it thoroughly.

Emerging Trends in Online Privacy and Cyber-Security: A Comprehensive Review

The digital era has ushered in extraordinary advancements in generation, observed through a simultaneous surge in challenges referring to online privacy and cyber security. This comprehensive review paper navigates via the dynamic landscape of those vital domains, unravelling emerging trends that form the future of safeguarding digital interactions and records. The exploration spans modern encryption technology, the mixing of synthetic intelligence in cyber security defences, the evolving regulatory frameworks surrounding privacy, and the intersection of rising technologies with safety risks. By scrutinizing the cutting-edge cyber chance panorama and foreseeing destiny trajectories, this review offers a nuanced understanding of the multifaceted dimensions surrounding on line privacy and cyber security. It is a valuable aid for individuals, corporations, and policymakers looking for to navigate and give a boost to their positions in an increasing number of interconnected and digitally-dependent worlds.

A novel framework for privacy and data protection in internet of things-based energy management systems

A novel framework for privacy and data protection in internet of things-based energy management systems

Using Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) with Chronic Diseases: Trend Analysis Towards Online and Offline Factors Associated with Patient Utilization

Electronic medical records (EMRs) are associated with higher-quality healthcare; however, they also raise concerns about patient information privacy and security. Existing studies have strongly linked these privacy concerns to patients withholding their information, indicating perceived risks with EMRs. Furthermore, studies devoted to EMR usage in hospitals are lacking, particularly those on the EMR system in the contexts of clinical and privacy concerns based on multi-criteria perspectives. The proposed framework is based on how clinical factors and security and privacy determinants influence the use of EMR, utilizing data derived from chronic disease patients in the USA as a frame of reference. In this study, information forage theory is adopted. This research not only objectively analyzes the information privacy aspects of EMRs but also investigates the perceptions of patients with chronic diseases regarding online health information technology and offline patient–provider interactions. These are considered as clinical factors to understand the frequency of EMR adoption across Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) data from 2014 ( N = 2,415), 2017 ( N = 2,253), and 2018 ( N = 2,443). The study finds that the rate of information withholding, as a manifestation of information privacy and security concerns, has decreased over the three waves. In contrast, the frequency of EMR usage is found to have continually increased at the three assessment points. Additionally, factors such as confidence in EMR safeguards, electronic medical information maintenance, and the frequency of visiting healthcare providers are significant predictors of EMR utilization over time. The study concludes that addressing online privacy concerns over EMR as part of health information technology and considering offline clinical factors must occur together in order to achieve higher-quality healthcare among patients with chronic diseases and to transform the healthcare system overall.

The Legal Dilemma Of Deepfakes: Ai Liability And The Challenges Of Digital Identity Theft

The European Union's Artificial Intelligence Act (EU AI Act) defines a "Deep Fake" as an “AI-generated or manipulated image, audio, or video content that mimics existing persons, objects, places, or other entities or events, creating a false appearance of authenticity or truthfulness to viewers.” In other words, Using machine learning algorithms, the bogus videos are transformed into realistic videos. Several AI-related catastrophes, including automated car accidents that resulted in physical injuries, robots causing harm to labourers, AI-assisted online privacy assaults, AI-assisted fraud that involves face, speech, or signature imitations, AI-assisted digital fingerprints falsely classifying innocent people as criminals at airports, and AI-assisted fraud in elections, have made headlines. Cryptographic signing and the hashing of a video into a fingerprint are used to confirm and reconfirm whether a video came from its original source. Many strategies for detecting deepfake videos have been developed over the last decade as a result of the rising threat of these videos. However, the fundamental issue with such procedures is that they are inaccurate and time-consuming. It also brings additional concerns such as misinformation and disinformation. The deep fakes raise concerns regarding digital identity theft. Identity theft, a criminal offence under the laws of most countries, including India, is addressed in the digital context under the Information Technology Act. However, as deepfakes are generated using artificial intelligence, the issue of fixing liability becomes increasingly complex. Commentators have argued that existing legal liability concepts may fail to address future conflicts involving AI systems. The challenge with the current legal system is primarily posed by AI systems that function without human interaction, but also by AI systems that operate with minimal human assistance. The current legal framework does not clearly define whether artificial intelligence can be regarded as a legal person, which complicates the issue of determining the extent of AI liability for the creation and dissemination of deepfakes. This ambiguity presents significant risks to the protection of digital identities, highlighting the need for a thorough review of existing laws to ensure they are adequately equipped to tackle the unique challenges posed by AI-generated content.

GEOPRIVACY KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDES, AND BEHAVIORS in CONTEMPORARY CHINA

ABSTRACT China has an Internet penetration rate of over 70 percent and a massive user base of social media. However, the topic of privacy attitudes among Chinese individuals remains understudied. We analyzed geoprivacy concerns in China through an online survey and regression analysis. Our findings suggest a positive relation among privacy knowledge, attitude, and behavior, consistent with related literature. Declarative knowledge (such as privacy rights), on the other hand, was found to have a negative relation with privacy concerns, which has not been reported previously. In terms of demographic moderators, females had less privacy knowledge but more privacy protection behaviors, while the impact of age on privacy concerns was inconclusive. A notable discovery was the regional difference in privacy concerns within China, suggesting the potential geopolitical influence on individuals’ values and beliefs. Combined with the uncovering of behavioral change in response to involuntary location disclosure, the results of this article challenge the conventional notion that Chinese individuals are indifferent to their online privacy, thus reintroducing an underexplored perspective from the Global South into geoprivacy studies.

Managing Digital Transformation: Analysing Digitalization of How Firms Attract, Retain, and Develop Digital Skills

Businesses' and people' online activities are made possible by the continuous and widespread digitisation of today's society. Businesses sell their goods and services, and people deal with them and with each other. Online interactions between businesses and consumers (documented in digital trail data, or the digital footprints users leave on different digital platforms that contain information about their activities) have the potential to generate significant innovation for the businesses involved. Reaching this kind of value creation is no easy feat, since it is hard to even gather digital trail data due to its massive volume of generation. Furthermore, a company's ability to process and appropriate information rather than the quantity of information produced in their environment limits how innovative they may be. As a result, businesses require methods for managing the vast amounts of digital trace data and other types of accessible data, including collecting, screening, processing, analysing, and utilising the data. It is evident that every type of digital trail data serves a purpose. For instance, a post on social media shares some information with a larger audience, and a user who posts a request for assistance in a forum participates in a conversation with a group of professionals who have the same interests. Digital trail data, however, can also offer thorough logs of online activity, which could promote creativity and novel approaches. Businesses must proactively develop plans for making the most of these resources.

Minors’ online privacy disclosure and protection behaviors: a systematic review

ABSTRACT The invasion of minors’ online privacy has become increasingly prevalent in recent years. Examining the disclosure and protection behaviours of minors about online privacy provides a theoretical basis for the development of educational activities aimed at safeguarding minors’ privacy. This study utilised visual analysis tools and content analysis of literature to systematically map out the research hotspots and evolution in this field. The findings revealed that (1) research in this area is thriving and interdisciplinary, (2) existing studies primarily focus on minors aged 12–18 and their active privacy disclosure behaviour in social media and other scenarios, as well as key influencing factors, (3) these studies not only examine the influence of minors themselves but also the influence of parents and peers on minors’ online privacy behaviours, and (4) most minors adopt avoidance strategies such as privacy settings and alternative websites to protect their online privacy. Further research could expand the research context, resolve controversial factors, use multiple methods, and explore additional privacy behaviours. This literature review plays a crucial role in generating academic discourse and provides valuable insights for developing privacy protection policies tailored to minors.

DaE2: Unmasking malicious URLs by leveraging diverse and efficient ensemble machine learning for online security

DaE2: Unmasking malicious URLs by leveraging diverse and efficient ensemble machine learning for online security