{"id":31,"date":"2024-04-20T16:37:48","date_gmt":"2024-04-20T16:37:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/5045.books.chrisfriend.us\/chapter\/technical-resistance\/"},"modified":"2024-04-20T16:45:44","modified_gmt":"2024-04-20T16:45:44","slug":"technical-resistance","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/5045\/chapter\/technical-resistance\/","title":{"raw":"Technical Resistance","rendered":"Technical Resistance"},"content":{"raw":"[caption id=\"attachment_38\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"648\"]\"A Photo by Compare Fibre on Unsplash[\/caption]\r\n

Main Idea: How to use technology to resist data collection, profiling, and other unsavory and unwanted digital actions by corporations.<\/h3>\r\n
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Pre-chapter Questions<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n

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  1. What sort of information do you know is being collected about you on the internet? What are entities like companies and governments using it for?<\/li>\r\n \t
  2. What steps do you already know you can take to protect your data online?<\/li>\r\n \t
  3. Where, when, and how are you willing to sacrifice privacy for functionality? What are the risks vs. benefits?<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n
    <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

    What is technical resistance?<\/h1>\r\nBroadly, technical resistance is the careful and purposeful use of technology to protect your data and privacy online and can be used to take a stand against today\u2019s ubiquitous data and privacy abuses in the digital world. There are a variety of different places you can focus your attention when it comes to engaging in technical resistance, some very simple and some more complex. In this chapter, we will be focusing on:\r\n
      \r\n \t
    1. Privacy Settings<\/li>\r\n \t
    2. Browsers and Services<\/li>\r\n \t
    3. Obfuscation<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\nIt is important to remember that, though unfettered advances in technology have exacerbated privacy issues through data mining, profiling, surveillance, and even the creation of [pb_glossary id=\"58\"]biased AI systems<\/strong>[\/pb_glossary], with careful use, technology can also be harnessed for protection. Furthermore, in today\u2019s digital age, it is impossible to completely avoid technology and still survive in our society. We rely on our phones and our computers for everything from education, to work, to accessing social services. We may not be able to sever our ties with tech, but we can become smarter about how we interact with these everyday systems and make choices that protect our privacy and, ultimately, the privacy of others.\r\n

      Why is it important?<\/h2>\r\nAs you\u2019ve learned throughout this course, privacy, though often ill-defined, is an essential human right. Appropriate privacy protections support free speech, voting rights, democracy, personal choice, and ultimately, the good of society. Government surveillance can have a chilling effect on our free speech, our willingness to associate with others, and our willingness to voice dissent in our government or other political opinions (\u201c\u2019I\u2019ve Got Nothing to Hide\u2019 and other Misunderstandings of Privacy\u201d<\/a>).\r\n\r\nWe must also remain aware of the concept of [pb_glossary id=\"41\"]information asymmetry[\/pb_glossary]. <\/strong>We, the common people, are never entirely aware of what <\/em>data is being collected about us and what the \u201cbig players,\u201d governments and corporations, are doing with it. Previous U.S. Secretary of State Donald Rumsfield spoke of the concept of \u201cknown knowns,\u201d \u201cknown unknowns\u201d and \u201cunknown unknowns.\u201d This was later developed into the so-called \u201cRumsfield Matrix,\u201d<\/a> a decision-making matrix that maps degrees of certainty and uncertainty. The Uncertainty Project defines the four quadrants as follows:\r\n
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      1. Known knowns: These are facts or variables that we're aware of and understand. They form the basis of our knowledge and provide a solid foundation for decision making.<\/li>\r\n \t
      2. Known unknowns: These are factors we know exist, but don't fully understand. They represent gaps in our knowledge that we must address through research, investigation, or consultation with experts.<\/li>\r\n \t
      3. Unknown knowns: These are elements that we don't realize we know. They're typically buried in our subconscious, overlooked, or dismissed as irrelevant. Uncovering these insights can lead to surprising breakthroughs in decision making.<\/li>\r\n \t
      4. Unknown unknowns: These are factors that we're not aware of and can't predict. They represent the most significant source of uncertainty and risk, as they can catch us off guard and derail our plans.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_50\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"707\"]\"A Graph by author.[\/caption]\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nIn the context of digital privacy and information asymmetry, the \u201cunknown unknowns\u201d encompass the data we are not aware is being collected about us, being put to uses that we do not know. In Obfuscation: A User\u2019s Guide for Privacy and Protest<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>authors Brunton and Nissenbaum give the example of a surveillance camera. \u201cWe know we are being recorded. We know that we don\u2019t know whether the recording is being transmitted only on the site or whether it is being streamed over the internet\u2026we know that we don\u2019t know how long the recording will be stored, or who is authorized to view it\u2026there is a much larger category of unknown unknowns about something as seemingly simple as a CCTV recording. We don\u2019t know if the footage can be run through facial recognition\u2026software\u2026or if the time code can be correlated with a credit card purchase\u2026unless we are personally involved with privacy activism or security, we don\u2019t even know that we don\u2019t know that\u201d<\/em>, (Brunton and Nissenbaum, emphasis mine). For someone not aware of surveillance technology, they may not even know that things such as facial recognition are a possibility; that is a potential unknown unknown to them.\r\n\r\nThe more unknown unknowns, the less power we have, the stronger the information asymmetry. As it is, even if we try to learn all we can about surveillance technology, we still will not know exactly what our data is being used for. Because we do not have the power of the government or large corporations, we are always going to be on the losing side of this information asymmetry. For these reasons and many more, our privacy is important, and resistance to the erosion of that privacy is necessary.\r\n

        Is it resistance?<\/h2>\r\nChanging your online behavior, even the products you use, might seem like an exceedingly small move. It is unlikely, after all, that Google is going to care if one person restricts cookies and trackers, or even stops using their products all together. Aside from protecting some of your online data, from slightly limiting the stream that gets sent to the Big Data corporations, is it even worth it? Can this small form of resistance do anything?\r\n\r\nThink of it this way: one person doing these things may not make a dent on big corporations\u2019 profits\u2026but if a lot of people start doing it, they\u2019re sure to notice. If a lot of us start showing our discontent with current privacy practices by switching settings, changing products, and encouraging our friends and family to do the same, we have the power to work in a collective movement and spark a change.\r\n
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        Check Your Understanding<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n

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        1. Why is it necessary that we continue to use technology but use it in a way that protects our privacy?<\/li>\r\n \t
        2. What are some of your known unknowns about online data collection?<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

          Privacy settings<\/h1>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_55\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"637\"]\"A Photo by PhotoMIX Company on Pexels[\/caption]\r\n\r\nAs you begin to get more privacy-minded, one of the first things you should do is check your privacy settings. Everything from your browser to your email to the websites you use should have some sort of privacy settings. By default, these settings are usually not <\/em>tuned to your favor, but there are choices you can make to have your data be a bit safer.\r\n

          Browser Settings<\/h2>\r\nTo begin with, you can look at your browser settings. The way to access these is different for each browser, but there\u2019s usually a gear icon somewhere, or even a text-menu option most clearly labeled \u201csettings.\u201d From here, you\u2019ll want to find the \u201cprivacy\u201d and \u201csecurity\u201d options.\r\n\r\nPay attention to settings that mention \u201cthird-party cookies.\u201d You\u2019ll want to block these if your browser allows it. These [pb_glossary id=\"42\"]cookies[\/pb_glossary] <\/strong>follow you around on the web, tracking you and helping advertisement corporations build a profile on you, so you\u2019ll want to avoid these as much as possible. You\u2019ll also want to turn off targeted\/customized\/personalized advertisements if you can, or at the very least, limit them as much as your browser allows you to. Check your security settings and permissions; you will probably want to turn off location-tracking and any option for the browser to send usage data back to the parent company (this is usually spoken of in terms of improving the service by sending usage data, crash reports, etc). If your browser gives you the option, check the boxes that say things along the lines of \u201ctell websites not to sell or share my data\u201d and \u201csend websites a \u2018Do Not Track\u2019 request.\u201d\r\n\r\n\u201cDo Not Track<\/a>\u201d is a privacy preference available in many web browsers that has been likened to to the \u201cDo Not Call\u201d registry for telemarketers. It communicates to servers that a user does not want to be tracked\/is \u201copting out\u201d of cookie collection and other details being shared with a website. Unfortunately, there is no law requiring that advertisers comply with users\u2019 \u201cDo Not Track\u201d signals. Some sites do <\/em>honor the request, so it\u2019s\u2019 worth setting up \u201cDo Not Track,\u201d but keep in mind it\u2019s not a foolproof protection and you should still take other steps to manage your privacy (Lifewire<\/a>).\r\n

          Email settings<\/h2>\r\nLike browsers, your email account will have some settings that you can tweak to better protect your privacy. This is especially important if you\u2019re using Gmail, which, like all Google products, is notorious for collecting large amounts of user data, as discussed in a Wired article<\/a>. No matter what email service you\u2019re using, and whether it\u2019s for work, school, or personal uses, be sure to check out your settings. And keep in mind that if you are <\/em>using Gmail, the privacy settings are housed not on Gmail itself but on your Google profile. This takes a few extra steps to navigate to from your Gmail, but it\u2019s worth the effort.\r\n\r\nLike in browser settings, you\u2019ll want to stop things like \u201cweb & app activity,\u201d \u201clocation history,\u201d and perhaps most importantly, personalized ads. Something that feels particularly egregious on Google accounts is the option to \u201cdecide whether Google search shows you personal results based on info in your Google account.\u201d This may sound innocuous, until you remember discussions of filter bubbles, and biases in search engines based on location, race, and a variety of other factors.\r\n

          Website settings<\/h2>\r\nOf course, every website is going to have different settings, so a true rundown would be impossible. One point to remember to look out for, though, is cookies. Reject any cookies that you can, only allowing those that are essential <\/em>for a website to run (you won\u2019t be allowed to turn these cookies off, even if you can reject the others.) Some websites and applications may have more in depth privacy settings like those discussed above. Pay special attention to any settings that allow you to control what data gets shared with third parties.\r\n
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          Check Your Understanding<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n

          \r\n
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          1. What is the \u201cDo Not Track\u201d signal?<\/li>\r\n \t
          2. What\u2019s the importance of managing cookie settings on websites?<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

            Switching Services<\/h1>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_76\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"679\"]\"A Photo by Towfiqu Barbhuiya on Unsplash[\/caption]\r\n\r\nGoing a step beyond changing privacy settings in the services you\u2019re already using, you might consider changing services altogether or, at the very least, installing some plug-ins to help protect your privacy.\r\n

            Browser Extensions and VPNs<\/h2>\r\nA browser extension<\/a> is a small \u201cadd-on\u201d that you can access via your browser\u2019s built-in extension \u201cmarketplace\u201d and install. Extensions can perform a variety of tasks, but here we are focusing on ones that are intended to protect your privacy. Keep in mind before downloading any extension that extensions themselves and present security and privacy concerns! Extensions are granted a variety of permissions when you install them, and a malicious extension may do things like steal your passwords or sell your data to third parties, exactly the kind of thing we are trying to avoid. Always do your research before you install any extension to make sure it is trustworthy. That said, some well-known and well-vetted extensions<\/a> that protect your privacy include:\r\n