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Oregon Territory

January 13, 2006 — Privacy & Technology

part one part two

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George W. Bush recently admitted the National Security Agency uses secret wiretaps on Americans without obtaining warrants. Bush defends the practice, and says the spying will continue.

Government surveillance was also a hot topic this week during the Supreme Court hearings for Samuel Alito. And it's not just the government snooping into your privacy, businesses use consumer data on spending, personal habits, and even e-mail to try to sell things to us.

This week we explore privacy, technology, and civil liberties with three experts who think a lot about these issues.

Host: Christy George

Guests: Kevin Bankston, staff attorney for Electronic Frontier Foundation in San Francisco; John Kroger, Lewis & Clark Law School professor and former federal prosecutor; and Ethan Benatan, director of computer user services at Reed College.

The Experts Top Ten Privacy Tips:

  1. Stop and think before giving out your personal information. In particular think about the value of the information you are giving out versus that of the service you are getting.
  2. If you really do want to sign up, read the privacy policy first!
  3. Take passwords seriously—don’t share them, don’t use them on multiple sites; consider using one password for all your low security sites (where you don’t divulge personal information) and unique passwords for each high security site (like your bank).
  4. Lie on web forms! If a site demands personal information for something of little value, consider not using the site, or using made-up information. (Personally I register as a cartoon character.)
  5. Opt out of data sharing wherever possible.
  6. Keep your computer and your software up-to-date with patches, antivirus, anti-spyware.
  7. Use software that intercepts web pop-ups, cookies, and web bugs.
  8. Use only trusted, clean computers and reputable sites for online transactions. NEVER click on links in emails to go to secure sites like banks or PayPal.
  9. Use an ISP that offers spam and virus protection.
  10. Consider using encryption tools
  11. Understand that if you encrypt, you may catch prosecutors’ attention, so — don’t commit any crimes!

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