London-based blogger, science-fiction author, and digital-rights champion Cory Doctorow opened Day 2 of the Conference on Privacy and Youth via Skype. “There comes a day when kids have to use their good judgment,” he said, arguing that adults are unwittingly undermining that goal by berating young people to guard their personal information while subjecting them to constant online surveillance. It’s hard enough to impress on teens why they shouldn’t reveal sensitive information anyway, since there is usually a lag between an unwise disclosure and its consequence—not unlike smokers who don’t see the harm in their habit until cancer strikes 40 years later, Doctorow said. The best way to protect young people from online predators and data miners, he argued, lies in network education and making libraries “islands of anonymity and encryption” in which you can learn how to jailbreak every electronic device.
Because librarians speak “with enormous moral authority,” Doctorow sees the profession as “perfectly positioned” to build a body of knowledge about the inefficacy of censorware and uncover through FOIA requests how some surveillance firms commoditize the data they amass. Then, he recommended, present the findings to local governing authorities and get them to spend the money on education and library collections instead. As for teaching young people how to use Facebook responsibly, Doctorow dismissed the idea, characterizing the social network as “terrible, and I don’t use it,” and recommending that the library community instead press for social networking platforms whose default settings are pseudonymity and anonymity. “We can create really powerful social contracts that are more powerful than technology,” he asserted.
A panel of eight young people from the Chicago area made it quite clear that they are keenly aware of the importance of protecting their privacy online, but that many other young people aren’t. Panel members said they rely on peers for tech tips for lack of expert advice, which they would welcome, particularly in the form of personal stories to “make it real.” “Tell us how to defend our privacy,” asked one high schooler.
Several conference participants shared experiences about defending privacy rights online and off. Almuth Gastinger, senior research librarian at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, spoke about growing up in East Germany under the Stasi. You didn’t notice on an everyday basis, she said, unless, of course, you were under suspicion. Young adult author and political columnist Sarah Darer Littman recounted how she secured a public commitment from Rep. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) to fight for Patriot Act reforms by insisting that he explain why, as a longstanding critic of the law, he voted for its three-month extension this year. “If you use your voice, you can hold them accountable,” Littman declared.
“Librarians are like bartenders who listen but don’t pass judgment,” said Frances Jacobson Harris, librarian at the University Laboratory High School in Urbana, Illinois, who explained her personal policy of never initiating a Facebook friendship with a student but always accepting their invitations. Daphne Guerrero, head of public education at the Office of the Privacy Commissioner in Ottawa, Ontario, talked about her agency’s efforts to raise privacy awareness among young Canadians and how that has begun to have a ripple effect among parents and educators. Jeffrey Nadel, president of the National Youth Rights Association, told a cautionary tale to prove that you can’t underestimate the damage that can result from a single invasion of privacy.
Proving the need for constant vigilance regarding your online identity, ALA Strategy Guide Jenny Levine revealed how she learned on two separate occasions from trusted online colleagues that someone was impersonating her in order to discredit her professionally. What saved the day was Levine’s online fame as an outspoken library blogger; although she is known as an avid gaming enthusiast, it was obvious to her virtual community that she did not write the comments posted in her name saying kids don’t need to read books.
