Transcript Privacy – what do they know about you?

Privacy – what do they know about you?
Skills: none
IT concepts: logging, privacy, proxy server
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 License.
Where does this topic fit?
• Internet concepts
– Applications
– Technology (communication)
– Implications
• Internet skills
– Application development
– Content creation
Background survey log
Logged without the user’s knowledge
Some uses for log information
• Start and end dates and times
– Used to grade the assignment
• Linked-from URL
– Useful as market research
• IP address
– Find your approximate location
– Clue as to your identity (time plus IP address)
Sites can offer “opt in” or “opt out” privacy – would you opt
to share your background survey responses?
Location for 155.135.1.1 (CSUDH)
from Geobytes.com
Localization is approximate – we are in Carson, not
Torrance. It uses databases which in some cases are
inaccurate.
Spoofing your IP address with a proxy server
Normal
connection
With
proxy
Localization can be defeated by a proxy server, which can be
in any nation or location.
Storage is cheap and getting cheaper
• Every response to every survey is logged
• Search engines like Google log every search
• Localization is used to target ads and rank
search results
• Log information is used in applications like spell
checking and speech recognition (1-800-GOOG411 )
Google mines logs for spell checking
When I correct “Presss” to “Press” it learns this is a common
misspelling and correction, improving future accuracy.
Google mines logs for speech recognition
Dial 1-800-goog411 to reach Google’s voice driven business
telephone directory or watch a demonstration at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cN0q8SvlQAk
Google knows which words are likely to be used together in general as
well as things about you like what words you have used and your
location. They also have a “yellow pages” database.
Google mines logs for “statistical” translation
Translation remains imperfect
A few questions
• What is Google’s motivation in logging your searches?
• Does Google offer you the option of opting out of their
logs?
• Are you worried by the fact that search engines track
your online activity?
• Which services other than search engines track your
online activity?
• Are there any advantages to you to have Google track
your searches?
• Are there any applications for proxy servers beside
covering up shady activity?
• Do we need laws to limit logging?
Privacy – what do they know about you?
Skills: none
IT concepts: logging, privacy, proxy server
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 License.