Oky Dor(i)

INF2196 - Children Online Privacy

2009-11-23T21:14:00.000-08:00

Hi,

Thanks to my course requirements I can now say that I am an active member of the participatory web, and here is my contribution, enjoy.

In this post I will discuss two online sources of two different organizations that deal with children privacy (from different angles). The first: ParentalRights.org focus on the parents 'role' and the potential legal danger of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. The second: Privacy Rights Clearinghouse Fact Sheet 21 is a Children’s Online Privacy Resource Guide for Parents, which provides tips and resources for parents on how to be pro-active in protecting their children privacy online.

ParentalRights.org (PR) is an American NGO, which advocates for parents’ right to direct the upbringing and education of their children. PR sees the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) as an International law that seeks to empower the government to intrude upon the child-parent relationship.

According to PR although, the UNCRC seems like a harmless treaty, it has dangerous implications for American families. PR argues that treaty empowers the government to intervene in any child's life. Therefore, it poses a serious threat both to parental rights and to US sovereignty, as the UNCRC dictates "not only that the federal government must intrude into the family sphere to an unprecedented degree, but also how the federal government is to monitor and govern the actions of our families. Parental rights would be replaced by ‘the best interests of the child’ as defined, ultimately, by an international committee of 18 people in Switzerland” (PR website).

Article 16 of the official UNCRC document has two sections: (1) “No child shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his or her privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to unlawful attacks on his or her honour and reputation”. (2) “The child has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks”.

Although some of the links on PR’s website are broken, the American NGO’s examination of the UNCRC comprehensively explains why article 16 invokes the power of the government in ways that the America’s legal and political history has never seen.

PR explains that the US Supreme Court has been trying to balance between the privacy rights of the child and the role of parents. However, in contrast to UNCRC’s article 16 the Supreme Court never stated that children have an absolute right to privacy (even from their parents…). Therefore, the article presents a conflict between the parents’ responsibility to guide and direct their children and the children right for privacy (ParentalRight.org – article 16).

Since Somalia announced its plans to ratify the UNCRC (as reported by Reuters a few dats ago). The United States is about to become the only country at the UN that does not ratify the UNCRC. Canada however, was one of the first nation to sign the UNCRC and a leader in its development.

Another interesting American NGO that deals with privacy issues is the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse (PRC), which is a nonprofit consumer organization that focuses on consumer information and consumer advocacy. PRC aims to raise consumers' awareness of how technology affects their personal privacy, and empower consumers to become proactive in matters concerning their personal information by providing practical tips on privacy protection ('about us' page).

PRC’s Fact Sheet 21 - Children’s Online Privacy: A Resource Guide for Parents (the guide) deals with children related online privacy issues. The guide goals are to “provide resources for parents to maximize the benefits of cyberspace for children and minimize the dangers”. As PRC explains many web sites collect significant amounts of personal information from the large percentage of American’s school age children, which use the World Wide Web.
[A "warning" about that kind of marketing-practices can be seen on this youtube video].

The guide privacy tips section focuses on a number of pro-active activities for the parents, and it explains that there is no technology-based solutions since there are no substitutes for “parental involvement in children's exploration of cyberspace”. The guide articulates the importance of knowing and understanding the site’s privacy policy statements, and provide parents information about the American laws and other “web seal programs” such as TRUSTe.

The guide mentioned the importance of establishing a contract between the parents and the child. Such an action may encourage the child to take responsibility for his or her online activities. The guide provide a couple of links for templates of such contracts (however, one of those links are broken).

The guide discusses the main items that should be included in the “family rules for online computer use”. Such as: protecting identifying information; not sharing passwords; online credibility; what to do when child encounters a threatening message; setting limitation for the child usage of the computer; making the online use a family activity; and 'knowing' the children online ‘friends’.

As the guide articulates, “the interactive world of cyberspace is a highly seductive and potentially manipulative environment for children". Therefore, in order to protect children form that kind of manipulative online marketing, the guide discusses the browsers privacy settings adjustments and the US Congress Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which dictates the requires from web sites and online services directed to children under age 13.

To conclude, the guide names a few parents-control software and applications that block advertisements, and provide further resources for parents to learn about the privacy laws and other related organizations.

I believe that the PRC’s guide can be very useful tool\resource for parents. Personally I really like its new-media literacy approach, especially the Internet Use Agreement (contact) between the parents and the child. Even if the child will not follow the contact completely (as I would expect), establishing such a form provides the opportunity for both the parents and the children to discuss together the issue online privacy. I believe that the activity of working together in order to articulate the contract enables a space for discussion and mutual understanding between the child and his or her parents.

As I was watching the “Privacy and Social Networks” youtube video, which explains the way corporate uses personal information from the social web, I was concern about how much of those marketing-practices are known to the average social networking users. I believe that providing that kind of New-Media literacy and the tools\skills for 'critical consumption’ of the social web is CRUCIAL as learning to cross the street is...

Thank you for reading.

2007-09-16T23:58:00.000-07:00

Happy New Year!!!

2007-09-11T02:56:00.000-07:00

There's no place like Castro, there's no place like Castro, there's no place...

2007-09-04T00:11:00.001-07:00

Hey everybody [Abu (form "the Simpson's") style]
It's been a while - but it's feels good to be back :)
"Labor day weekend" 2007 (my second) is all most over, not that you care so much - but we (well I) need some kind of a reference for the time and space.

[A short preview; I got back to the States on Jul.31. I spend a night in Malibu and 2 night at a conference out side of LA. I Got back to SF on Aug.1st - I was homeless for about 3 weeks, but it wasn't bad at all. I Moved in to my new Apt. (which you will hear more about very soon) on Aug. 25. Exactly a week and 2 days ago. It took me a month to settle down and to realize that: I AM BACK!!!]

It has been a great long weekend, we (SFHillel) had our 1st. Shabbat dinner and it was fun, after words I went to a "frat house style" party (with Asaf and many others USF students) it was very interesting - God help those American kids (I guess he should help Israeli kids too) but that party was something else...
I had to listen to some drunk 18 or 19 y/o explaining me why "if you can't fight your friends, you can't fight anyone", this kid watched "fight club" one time too many. I (naively) asked "why to fight, anyway?" but his answer was nonsense, like his previous statement...
At least I could joke on his behalf with the Syrian guy from the grocery store near by.
After trying (too hard) to "save" the night, at another "house (wanbe) party" I finally took a cab home.

Home - this is another great story - are you ready?
So my Home (Dori's current definition is: "the place where you feel comfortable at, and where most of your underwear are) is in The Castro District (literally 90 sec. from Castro st.)
[in case you do not know what "The Castro" stand for, you can read it's Wikipedia page]
Which make every thing in my life now - much more interesting.
I define this area as "Gender-Identity Challenging" meaning that now (and every time- after telling someone where I live) I feel like I need to say "No, I'm not gay"- stating my straitness (if you will). I find that fact\feeling fascinating.
Because sometime or to some people I don't want\like to say that. I rather say - "I'm a gay guy who does not find men attractive". Some people would say that this is a "deep stage of denial" so to them I will answer: "I'm trans-gender" or "queer" and that is so much fun here - that gender discourse...
It's just that I see "strait" as more than just "heterosexual", It's more than just a preference of sexual orientation. And as I became a very "semantic" person (thanks the Academy), I can say that in some aspect of life I don't think I have a strait line-of-thought. Hence the fun word-definitions games.
People here love it, and everyone mix those gender-terms everywhere. I think that most of them do not know or understand what they mean, I don't know either, that's why, it is so much fun. And that's what I mean by "Gender-Identity challenging".
I hope I made my self clear - so you understand what I meant.
If that's not the case, but you are my friend (meaning - you know me) than at least you're not surprised :) Love you!

Anyhow, I was saying - getting back home, post alcohol selling hour (2am in most of SF) was very interesting.
I did spend some time in The Castro night scene before (with some gay friend) but I never came here that late, and I never saw that scene in a "going back home to sleep, after a stupid drinking night" mode.
And in this mode the Castro night scene is amazing - I'll say: "En Makom Kaze" (there is no such place, anywhere).
You hear and watch all those drunk-loud-flaming gay guys (off course you only notice the loud ones) and it is "something else"...
You do not see that anywhere in the city and I guess that neither in most of the world.
It's NOT because ALL of San-Francisco is full of gay people that hung around Castro st. at night.
[A very critic-gay-friend of main once told me that, there are more gay men in Tel-Aviv, percentage wise (according to the gay-networking-sites), than here in SF].
So my explanation is that it's because this is AMERICA, where every thing is about the "IMAGE" (logos, Icons, Trade-Marks and etc.).
Here, in The Castro, is where you'll find the biggest Rainbow flag hanging, all year long (except during Folsom st. fair, than you'll find a more special flag).
The same goes to the Jewish communities here (you did not think I will forget about that did you?). Here, in America, the J-Community will make sure that the "Menura" (Hanukia) will be placed near the Christmas tree all the time (even when Christmas is not exactly parallel to Hanuka). Here, my students will ware an IDF shirts and will risk them self with getting into an argument (sometime even hostile) but won't saw up of my programs\speakers - dealing with the IDF.
I guess I'm frustrated about that. it's not new to me - we all think we know that about the US but it's different when you experience that. I find it absurd sometime.
Tell me - since when a camel is such an important Israeli's symbol - because that what Hillel int. and next week Dori (SF Hillel) will use to promote and recruit students for Birthright (at least it's a pink camel). And during the tip the kids loved it - and every one is taking pictures on a camel. COME ON this is what Israel is to you... It's not like I have idea about better symbols - I ask Who said we need symbol any anyway? (you know my answer. AME...).
I don't want to sound like I think that the American culture is the source of all the problems, (most of our enemy says that - so it's isn't fun to repeat JK) I just say that this culture is FASCINATING from it's drunk-loud-flaming gay guys to the American Jewish community.

Another great thing that happened this weekend - on Sunday I went with friends for the 40th anniversary of Summer of Love. Apparently exactly 40 years ago, here in San-Francisco in Golden Gate park the peace-and-love movement had a HUGE celebration (of Love...)
It was amazing to see and be part of.
But some part of it was pathetic in some aspect - specially when some old guys was "lecturing" the crowd with some 60's slogans with funny adaptation to our times (meaning Vietnam=Iraq and so on) he might be right - but I doubt it - that what been said 40 years ago is still valid today. specially when the crowd is full with young "Britney-Spears-girls" (dresses as "J'lo") jumping around exited to see people smoking weed. And when on Haight-Ashbury (famous cross-roads), where "everything" started ("Grateful Dead" and all) you can buy souvenir of that "time" - meaning the Peace-and-Love movement-symbols "FOR SALE" and here I go again AMERI...

Well I guess that enough for tonight.
I just wanted to share some thoughts and experiences with you - my dear friends and family.
I hope (and plan on) that next time I'll post a post here will be soon - and shorter.
Keep in touch,
Love you all!

Starting the Blog

2006-11-29T16:35:00.000-08:00

Hi all,
I decided to start a web-log (it was actually my brother suggestion, thanks Eitan)
I guess after writing a full (seminar) paper about that phenomena, it is the least I can do.
So, First I will apologize for all my future miss-spelling and grammar mistakes (I hope it won't be too bad thanks to "Spelling check"...), and you all love me so F#@*$ it.

Today I spoke to a bunch of elderly people - in a Jewish retainment hoome (a very nice one) in the city of San Francisco. my co-worker asked me to give an Israeli Update... So I talked about Olmart and Sde Boker...
They were so funny - I love old people - One of them is turning 100 in 6 months!
I told them all about my grandparents and they were exited - after that I could say prety much what ever I wanted :)

And a more exiting thing: on Friday I'm flying to China - to Honk Kong, for a ICT (Information Communication Technology) conference.
This is actually the main reason for stating this Blog I will try and update it often - from now on.

So I hope you will stay tuned,
Good bye for now,
Dori