Concerning Issues
This page aims to pique your interest towards concerning issues surrounding your data privacy. It further stimulates your knowledge on your data rights.
Food for thought
How do AI models gain access to your data?
Where are they harvesting it from?
What intrinsic value does your data hold, why does AI choose private data over open datasets?
Where are they harvesting it from?
What intrinsic value does your data hold, why does AI choose private data over open datasets?
Source: Crowjack
Concerning Answers
Potter Clarkson, a reputable law firm, introduces how AI Models gain access to your data. This can occur in a plethora of ways in your day to day life, likely just by listening.
Advanced forms of data mining include web scraping and cookie usage; websites you use may be collecting your data to sell, so be sure to read privacy policies. Learn more about cookies and privacy policies here.
Web scraping refers to when a company or individual seeks out information on the web through a crawler, which finds relevant data, and a scraper, which extracts it from a website. This method of data mining provides an abundant amount of information which can be used in a variety of methods.
Routledge provides reasoning of the capabilities private data offers which open datasets do not. Simply put, private data is more nuanced. This enables better customer segmentation and targeting, personalized marketing, and chat-bots.
How else does your data affect AI?
Advanced forms of data mining include web scraping and cookie usage; websites you use may be collecting your data to sell, so be sure to read privacy policies. Learn more about cookies and privacy policies here.
Web scraping refers to when a company or individual seeks out information on the web through a crawler, which finds relevant data, and a scraper, which extracts it from a website. This method of data mining provides an abundant amount of information which can be used in a variety of methods.
Routledge provides reasoning of the capabilities private data offers which open datasets do not. Simply put, private data is more nuanced. This enables better customer segmentation and targeting, personalized marketing, and chat-bots.
How else does your data affect AI?
Uses of Web Scraping
- Price Monitoring
- Market Research
- News Monitoring
- Sentiment Analysis
- Email Marketing
Above is a video further detailing the basics of web scraping and its uses. The video can also be found here.
Real World Example
With a user base of over 180.5 million, OpenAI has become a common tool for many. Yet, the lawsuit behind it remains less publicized. Last June, OpenAI was claimed to have "stolen private information, including personally identifiable information, from hundreds of millions of internet users, including children of all ages, without their informed knowledge or consent."
What rights were violated?
How were said rights violated?
- Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
- Many state consumer protection laws
- Electronic Communications Privacy Act
- Web-Scraping (though in itself not illegal, data sourced from it can be used in illegitimate ways)
- Recording of phone calls without consent
- Invasion of privacy, intrusion upon seclusion, unjust enrichment and receipt of stolen property.
Direct Threats To You
Issues that may arise if your personal data gets leaked.
Source: Xorlogics
Unsolicited Marketing/Unwanted Advertisements- Infamously, Forbes tells a news story of how a man was informed via Target advertisements his daughter was pregnant.
Identity Theft- Criminals may create fake social media accounts posing as you, or if you allow your SSN to be leaked, even as far as taking your name and personal information and attaching their likeness to it.
Deepfakes- Pivoting off of identity theft, modern AI now enables untrained individuals to create misleading content (such as fake pornography), which can then be used for blackmail or harassment.
Fraud- Criminals may use saved credit/debit card information, said information can easily be stolen if the server your information is stored in is hacked.
Data Spillovers- In reference to the chat-bots aforementioned, there is always the concern that your data (such as your voice or likeness) is used in an uncommunicated/unintended way.
Identity Theft- Criminals may create fake social media accounts posing as you, or if you allow your SSN to be leaked, even as far as taking your name and personal information and attaching their likeness to it.
Deepfakes- Pivoting off of identity theft, modern AI now enables untrained individuals to create misleading content (such as fake pornography), which can then be used for blackmail or harassment.
Fraud- Criminals may use saved credit/debit card information, said information can easily be stolen if the server your information is stored in is hacked.
Data Spillovers- In reference to the chat-bots aforementioned, there is always the concern that your data (such as your voice or likeness) is used in an uncommunicated/unintended way.
Things to know before you go
Your Data Rights
Source: Gdpr-info
Additional Image Source: Freepnglogo.Com, freepnglogo.com/openai-logo-png. Accessed 9 May 2024.
