[LINK] [PRIVACY] SMH: 'Social media exploitation is gravest risk'

[Stephen Wilson]

Thanks Roger & Jan ...

On 5/03/2012 10:04 AM, Jan Whitaker wrote:
>  At 09:44 AM 5/03/2012, Roger Clarke wrote:
> > [Steve WIlson:] "We only need the determination now to uncover the depth
> > of their exploitation and to enforce our existing legal rights."

>  Good letter, Stephen. Problem: 'we' have no ability to enforce
>  anything. The current law doesn't allow us to. That is the shame of
>  the situation. And as long as those with the power (various
>  commissioners) continue to avoid enforcement, we are sheep led to the
>  slaughter. Our only protection is to 'not play' or play as little as
>  possible and only when we can't get the result in alternative ways.


I deliberately used a progressive & inclusive royal "we".

I think it's really vital more people realise how our information 
privacy law has the right definitions, perspectives and principles 
needed to bring the infomopolies to book.  Many decry the law as not 
having kept up with tech -- but in most respects the existing law could 
redress the imbalances in OSN.  And many technocrats continue to 
under-estimate what existing law has to say about their activities.  
Legally, technocrats are not in fact free to harvest PI from the public 
domain, nor to synthesise new PI like deductions about womens' 
pregnancies from their vast datamines, nor to create biometric templates 
from photo tagging and then run thoese templates over all the photo 
albums people have uploaded over the years for fun.  These sorts of 
activities are technically all controlled by the NPPs.

So there is room for optimism.  "We" as a community -- including 
regulators and elected politicians -- could do a whole lot more with the 
legal tools we have.  I appreciate that our enforcement mechanisms are 
limited.  But part of my mission is to at least bring it to attention 
that what the social media companies are doing today is clearly wrong 
under the law of Australia and many other countries.  So many 
technologists don't even know it.

Cheers,

Steve.


Stephen Wilson
Lockstep

Phone +61 (0)414 488 851

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