The film Terms and Conditions May Apply tell of the high risk one undergoes when he/she chooses to enter the online arena that is the Internet. The film concerns itself with the consequences one faces if a person ultimately chooses and will click Apply after he/she has “truly read” the Terms and Conditions. The largest consequence- Privacy.
Can we be without a doubt private online?’ was the primary focus of the film. And From watching the movie as well as reading The New York Times post Sweeping Away a Search History by Molly Wood and the First Monday post Facebook Privacy Setting: Who Cares? by Danah Boyd and Eszter Hargittai I can conclude, for myself, privacy will never be synonymous with the internet. The internet and the online users and those who “run” the internet have all allowed the World Wide Web to be an open space. Facebook users- and other social media users- have allowed themselves to share not only their pictures and post about what they ate that day, but their name, email, address, phone, birthday, etc., to their friends and the rest of the world. The internet created this community of share-ers and errors.
The same users that agree to click on the Apply button and have social media sites have allowed this culture to flourish. Sure we can protect ourselves by using tips and tricks Molly Wood suggests in the New York Times post Sweeping Away a Search History but along with seeing the film We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists it tells me, if someone wants to find/get something online there is a capability. Governments, the supposed intellectual advocates of their people, have yet to catch-up with modern times as the film TCMA recounts occasions of governmental mishaps of people misusing social media.
Within the film, the claim is made Which is the larger moral dilemma- you cheated on your wife or that you posted it on Facebook? I think this could be the perfect tagline for the film. It poses the question of morality and privacy as well as the culture that the internet has developed. We would like to think we control our privacy online but ultimately I don’t think that is true. I don’t know who owns it or who should own it, but I know once we permit ourselves to log on to Facebook, Twitter, any website, our privacy is no longer ours.
You're Welcome World,
@iANDRESGOVEA