Web Privacy Wiki

<hero title="Web Privacy Wiki" description="This is a wiki about data privacy, anonymity, tracking, and its implications as Web 3.0 edges closer." imagename="Wikia-hero-image" cropposition="0.18860510805500982"></hero>What information about me is known?

There are over 4 billion indexed pages on the World Wide Web today. With that many pages, there is just as much information about anything and everything imaginable. Since 1986 there has been upwards of 295 Exabytes, or 295 billion gigabytes, on the internet to date.  With all this data online, there is data on nearly every human being on the planet whether or not they have an online presence.

## What methods exist to improve privacy?

### Cloud Storage Encryption

Storage of anything private and personal in the cloud should use the strongest form of encryption possible. Strengths of encryption come in various standards. {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:RSA\_(cryptosystem) | RSA 2048-bit }} key encryption provides the best possible strength when used with public key infrastructure. The chance of cracking an RSA 2048-bit private key is not nil, but it would take so long that attempting it is not practicable using today's raw computing power. A strong {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:Cipher | cipher }} is the most important consideration.

Close behind, however, are the questions of where you should use encryption and with what method. If you have any data stored on the Internet that you would like to ensure never gets seen by anyone other than yourself, then this is a good candidate for encryption. The strongest and safest method today for encryption of cloud data is {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:Zero-knowledge\_proof | Zero Knowledge }}. Zero knowledge means that your cloud ISP will have no knowledge of what is being stored on their site. The private key to unlock your data will be created by you on your local drive. Thus only you will have the ability to unlock the data -- not even the cloud ISP will be able to do so.

### Two-Factor Authentication

With {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:Two\_factor\_authentication | two-factor authentication }}, in addition to entering a password, the system will send to your phone a unique ID number that must be input for authentication as well. Using such a method means the "man-in-the-middle" cannot and will not know what is on your personal phone and so cannot intercept such information. Google Gmail now offers a free two-step authentication service. The goal is to avoid having your login stream (which includes your password) from being intercepted by a "man-in-the-middle" attack. Criminals equipped with programs called {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:Packet\_analyzer | packet analyzers }} (also known as "sniffers") can see your streaming data and steal your password.

### Encryption for Chat and Email

With Google Talk and Google Hangouts, one can set the chat session to {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:Off-the-Record\_Messaging | "off the record" }} (OTR) to ensure that the chat session is never permanently stored on Google's chat servers. Also, installing {{#NewWindowLink: https://www.pidgin.im/ | Pidgin }} for both Windows and {{#NewWindowLink: https://www.linux.com/ | Linux }} -- it's a popular multiprotocol messaging software application -- along with its "off the record" plugin will ensure that your chat session will remain encrypted and private. This ensures that an additional encryption layer is added to the stream using OTR, regardless of what the underlying protocol provides.

The same encrypted vs. nonencrypted concept applies to email. If you don't want your email read, then it is imperative that you encrypt it. The good news is that encrypting email is technically feasible using {{#NewWindowLink: https://www.gnupg.org/ | GnuPG }}, {{#NewWindowLink: http://www.symantec.com/products-solutions/families/?fid=encryption | PGP }} or {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:S/MIME | S/MIME }} standards, for example. The bad news is that few software applications are in circulation that make preparing and sending encrypted email "drop-dead" simple and foolproof in terms of usability by the general public.

### Surf the Internet Anonymously

Lastly, you may consider using a {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:Proxy\_server proxy }} for your Internet surfing -- though even that won't guarantee complete anonymity. A more difficult-to-trace method for surfing the Web is called Tor. Essentially, when you install Tor software, you log onto a {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:Peer-to-peer | peer-to-peer }} (P2P) network representing millions of people, much in the way {{#NewWindowLink: http://www.bittorrent.com/ | BitTorrent }} works. It is encrypted and fully decentralized, meaning not only that it is self-sustainable but also that there is no central server which, if shut down, will stop its Internet activities. What happens in the Tor scenario is that your {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:IP\_address | IP }} travels in a random path along the Tor encrypted tunnel and reaches a random endpoint, where your traffic then jumps on the Internet using one of the P2P computing devices as its proxy. That endpoint proxy could be a node anywhere in the world.

## How does increased privacy effect Web 3.0?

In the emerging Web 3.0 world, privacy will likely become a principal feature on which consumers base decisions about which products and services to use. Here’s why: Web 3.0 technologies will be able to understand your likes, dislikes and preferences based on your online activity, and proactively offer you information and services tailored to your interests; it will develop an online identity by which information is delivered to you.

For example, as the weekend approaches and on the basis of your prior activity, an application may suggest a movie based on reviews you read, and, if you want, purchase tickets for you and take steps to identify restaurants that you (or the friends in your social network) have “liked” and book a reservation, calculating the time it likely will take for you to enjoy your meal using previous data it may have about whether you eat early or late.

As the companies that provide these kinds of services gain access to more data and have the ability to know even more about us, we anticipate that the traditional division between {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:Competition\_law | competition law }} and {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:Consumer\_protection | consumer protection law }} (which includes privacy) may begin to erode. As privacy becomes a principal feature on which consumers base decisions regarding search, browsing, social media, mobile and other services, we expect to see the {{#NewWindowLink: wikipedia:Information\_technology | IT }} ecosystem provide a variety of approaches to privacy. Indeed, this already happens today. In some cases, privacy might be thought of as a proxy or form of “price” (especially when the underlying product might be free to use). In other words, consumers might decide to “pay” for certain “free” or subsidized products, services or features with their privacy, which in turn can translate into dollar revenue for the product or service provider.

## Privacy Nightmares!

1. ↑ De Kunder, M. (n.d.). The size of the World Wide Web (The Internet). Retrieved April 1, 2015, from http://www.worldwidewebsize.com/
2. ↑ Mearian, L. (2011, February 24). Scientists calculate total data stored to date: 295 exabytes. Retrieved April 1, 2015, from http://www.computerworld.com/article/2513110/data-center/scientists-calculate-total-data-stored-to-date--295--exabytes.html
3. ↑ Johnson, B. (2013, July 24). How can I find out what information exists about me online? - HowStuffWorks. Retrieved April 1, 2015, from http://computer.howstuffworks.com/internet/tips/information-about-me-online-.htm
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Schmitz, D. (2013, July 30). 5 Ways to Improve Your Privacy Online. Retrieved April 1, 2015, from http://www.technewsworld.com/story/78590.html
5. ↑ Passman, P. (2011, March 31). Competition and Consumer Protection in a Web 3.0 World. Retrieved April 2, 2015, from http://blogs.microsoft.com/on-the-issues/2011/03/31/competition-and-consumer-protection-in-a-web-3-0-world/