Negotiating digital rights: Public attitudes on online privacy and targeting, at home and at work

Wednesday 25 April 2018, 4.00PM

Speaker: Professor Ariadne Vromen, University of Sydney

Sociology Open Lectures

There is a burgeoning discussion theorising our rights to privacy in an age when we use social media every day, but are increasingly subject to data collection and targeting by corporate advertising, government agencies, and workplaces. Understanding, negotiating and maintaining digital rights to privacy is an issue of concern for both social justice, and individual, civil rights.

This lecture analyses an original online survey of 1600 broadly representative Australians that asked them about their attitudes towards digital rights and governance. The University of Sydney analysed attitudes towards privacy in the online environment; how people navigate the shifting boundaries between what data is considered private, and what is considered public, and how people view the development of more fine-grained targeting of content. They also focused on attitudes toward current and prospective employers looking at public and private social media accounts of employees. The survey data was complemented by an online discussion group with 14 participants designed to qualitatively understand attitudes to real world digital rights scenarios. Overall, they found that most believe they are still entitled to privacy in the digital context but that this is nuanced in online spaces where data is both collected and targeted at them every day. Many of their participants are concerned by their privacy being increasingly encroached upon by governments and employers. Their research suggests that data justice discussions need to include citizen viewpoints on how access to digital privacy at home and at work is shaping everyday digital rights.

Location: Room W/222, Wentworth College

Admission: is by free ticket only. Please book below.

Email: sarah.shrive-morrison@york.ac.uk