Practical Data Privacy

Foreword

Given the multitude of benefits that come with digital connectivity, it is not always apparent that waves of futuristic tech have also brought an undertow of drawbacks. Instant messaging, biometric scanning, real-time motion-tracking, digital payments, and more, were, after all, the stuff of sci-fi fantasies.

For those of us who work in technology (or just consume it), the “cool factor” of integrating digital tools into our daily routines is difficult to deny. But the other side of digitally connected living is the right to unplug. To hear some first-generation tech millionaires tell it, preventing their kids from going online at home and at school is highly desirable. That may sound strange, especially if you’re used to hearing about the digital divide as a chasm between people with multiple Apple products versus have-nots who lack 24/7 high-speed internet. In fact, with so many of our everyday interactions having gone digital, it’s a challenge for most of us to function without unlimited online access.

Using digital tools and accessing online spaces is sold to us today the same way it was at the dawn of the internet: as a drop-in experience that’s completely voluntary and fun. But nothing is fun about an internet experience that feels like a stay at the Hotel California—“you can check out any time you want, but you can never leave.” Nothing is fair about an online world that restricts your offline life in terms of what you can see, what you can do, and how you might ...