One of the biggest issues you will face with any foray into online publishing is privacy.
For newcomers and even experienced bloggers, it can sometimes be difficult to fully comprehend the notion that anything you post online is available to anyone at any time in any place in the world.
Over the past two years I like to think that I have become a pretty experienced blogger, but watching the recent CNBC documentary on Google (“Inside the Mind of Google”) was still an eye-opening experience.
I know that I sometimes get lulled into a false sense of security online, but I think it is important to always stay vigilant of the fact that the term “online privacy” becomes more and more of an oxymoron every day.
Here is one particular excerpt from the CNBC special on Google, which the folks over at Valleywag find rather ironic:
Video: Google CEO Eric Schmidt on Online Privacy
In response to these comments by Schmidt, as well as Google’s general privacy policy, Mozilla (the stewards of the web Firefox, among other products) director of community development Asa Dotzler has actually taken the bold step of encouraging people to switch from Google to Bing. As Stan Schroeder at Mashable points out, this is definitely a big deal because Google has always been Firefox’s default browser and Mozilla’s own financial well-being has long been dependent on Google.
I point this out not necessarily to make a judgment one way or the other, but rather to highlight just how important and hot-button of an issue this is. When a person of stature at Mozilla is willing to publicly admonish Google for its privacy standards, you know that the issue is something to keep an eye on.
So what’s the takeaway? It’s really quite simple:
Don’t put anything online,
or do anything online,
or search for anything online,
that you wouldn’t be comfortable with the whole world one day seeing.
No one is telling you not to use Google (I still do, all day/every day), or not to start to blog, or that you should be shaking in fear every time you click your mouse. Quite the contrary, in fact. Do all of those things…and more! The Internet opens up a spectacular world of possibilities for almost any endeavor that can be imagined.
But what creates these amazing possibilities is the speed and interconnectedness of it all, and there is no way for that speed and interconnectedness to keep growing without privacy being reduced.
Do not rely on third parties to protect your privacy and never be lulled into the false sense that you are “anonymous” online. YOU are the only one who can protect your privacy, and you are (for the most part) in control.
So browse, blog, and build online until your heart’s content and your objectives are met. Just follow the bolded advice above while you do it.
