 |
 May 1998
|
Irresistable forces v.
In
the next decade or so, we are going to see the dramatic increase in two
apparently contradictory behaviors, networking and anonymity-seeking. These
phenomona will be seen especially among educated and techno-literate citizens
of Western industrialized democracies. They will occur because of their
increasing need to be conneccted and their desire to retain a certain amount
of privacy.
Networking will grow as a concentrated and highly efficient interaction.
As the products accomplishing it become more and more user friendly they
will invade our personal lives as easily as it has our businesses. Many
of what are now face-to-face business, social and political interactions
will go on-line. Increasingly sophisticated Netconferencing, chat rooms,
and good old-fashioned (i.e. 20th Century) email will all contribute to
this change.
This anonymity-seeking will be essentially the assertion of the Right
to Privacy. Aright which may well ascend to the rank of importance now
given the right of free speech because of the increasing current and future
data warehousing, analysis, and manipulation. WWW "cookies" the recording
of your computer and IP information on certain Web sites is a prime example
of this.
The right to privacy is not found directly in the Constitution, but
has been "read into" the Constitution by legal scholars. This "right" was
developed in numerous Supreme Court decisions in the last century. The
first major enunciation of the right was stated in an 1890 Harvard Law
Review article by Louis Brandeis and Samuel Warren entitled, appropriately
enough, "The Right to Privacy."
The right has been derived from the 4th and 5th Amendment protections
from unreasonable search and seizure, and due process considerations.
For a more modern view and a fairly scholarly legal analysis of the
current status of the right to privacy, see "The Right to Privacy", by
Caroline Kennedy [ yes, THAT Caroline Kennedy], Knopf, 1995, wherein she
writes:
"Even if you do not own a personal computer and never intend to, you
are part of the revolution.
From a privacy point of view, we are in the midst of the most unsettling
period in this revolution. For many the technology itself is unfamiliar
and frightening. Most important, the privacy problems are so different
from those that have come before, there is no framework to deal with them.
Technology is fast. The law … is slow."
There is now vast amounts of information about individuals available
on-line. Information collected legally and illegally by people and companies
trying to collect, warehouse, analyze and manipulate the data for commercial
or political purposes. So much information that a strong, almost Luddite
backlash is almost inevitable. People are unlikely to emulate Ted Kascinski
en masse. However, we are most certainly going to see more unlisted phone
numbers, personal P.O. Box numbers, and anonymous E-mail addresses.
E-Who ?
Just how easy is it to drop off the radar screen? When asked about the
disclosure policy of Microsoft's free E-mail service, HOTMAIL, [ www.hotmail.com
] Randy Delucci had this to say regarding personal identifying information:
"Here is Hotmail's disclosure policy: In order to honor our users' privacy,
cooperate fully with law enforcement, and comply with the Electronic Communications
Privacy Act (ECPA), Hotmail enforces the following information disclosure
policy:
Hotmail will confirm to any interested party whether or not an account
exists, and if so, if it has been closed for violating the Hotmail Terms
of Service (HTS).
When served with a search warrant, subpoena, or equivalent document
enforceable in Santa Clara County, CA, Hotmail will disclose certain registration
ID information, and the IP login history. The ECPA governs when stored
email messages will be released. For most requests, a criminal search warrant
will be required to divulge the contents of communications."
In other words, other than if you are being pursued by law enforcement
personnel or involved in some other legal process, you can pretty much
be ensured anonymity with Hotmail. When you fill out the application at
Hotmail, it asks for a number of items of personal information, which it
states will not be given out to anyone without your permission. It is interesting
that no specific identifying information, such as date of birth, SSN (Social
Security Number) or a telephone number is even requested, let alone required.
If you fill out the form with a pseudonym, or a generic name like mine
[David Anderson], you have pretty much disappeared.
Most people seeking anonymity are more concerned with creditors, merchants
or ex-spouses finding them than the legal system. Everyone should, realize
that the IRS, FBI, and the like will always be able to track you down,
given the right set of legal circumstances. For example, even a cel-phone
number's owner information can be subpoenaed. Also, private PO Box rental
companies such as Mail Boxes Etc. are required to keep identifying information
on file.
If you have a driver's license, own a vehicle in your own name, or vote,
good luck disappearing without changing one or all three of thosse curcumstances.
The same is true of your date of birth or SSN. You would be amazed at how
much retailers can guess about you based on your sex, age and zip code.
Try this exercise to determine what "they" can learn about you. Log
into www.cdt.org , the Center for
Democracy and Technology, and click on the CDT Privacy Demonstration. There,
you'll find out what can be learned about you when you visit the site once.
Now go on with your day and then return. The page recognizes you. The same
information is available to the owner of ANY website you visit. And you
thought you were just casually browsing anonymously? They know more than
you think and they accumulate information regarding your every visit to
the same Website.
Now, many people will find this kind of customer interaction almost
"magic" and welcome. After all, it's a pain in the you-know-what to have
to repeat certain information every time you contact a merchant, and if
you're ordering, say running shoes, its nice that they remember you like
light and cushy shoes instead of firm, strongly supported shoes. Others,
however, will find this extremely troublesome and intrusive. Especially
if the information is shared, sold or manipulated by other merchants or
businesses. It's one thing to tell someone who you are and what you like.
It's another when they tell all their friends. And they tell their friends.
And. . . you get the picture.
The solution? There may not be one. None of wants to make the choice
to stay off-line completely and/or refuse telephone and mail service. But
remember, even Super-Dropout Ted Koscinski committed all of his federal
crimes via mail-bombs, and HE retained the use of a mailbox outside his
cabin.
Turn on, Tune in , Drop Out [ but first "Find Yourself"]
Perhaps the best way to determine if you need to DISappear is first
to find out if you actually APPEAR.
Check out the following websites to see if anyone who WANTS to find
you, actually CAN:
www.four11.com
If you strongly desire privacy, and really want to completely avoid
the hackers, spammers, stalkers, and harassers, you must actively guard
your privacy. The most important information to protect is your actual
home address and phone number, as well as your SSN. Obviously, also make
sure all on-line credit card transactions are securely encrypted, and create
a personal Web page only if you really want to invite a lot of commercial
solicitation.
For more complete and exhaustive discussion of privacy rights issues,
go to www.privacyrights.org
, or check out The Privacy Rights Handbook, Beth Givens,Avon,1997. [It
contains an excellent foreword by Ralph Nader.]
David M. Anderson is an
attorney practicing in the areas of business law and commercial litigation
with Anderson Law Office, 701 Fourth Avenue South, Suite 500, Minneapolis,
MN 55415. 337-9504. E-Mail: dma@visi.com |
