1/2/2024 0 Comments Definition obscurityThe obscurity of public records and other legally available information is at issue in recent disputes over publishing mug shots and homeowner defaults. Now, in an attempt to keep pace with diminishing structural barriers, New York is considering excepting gun owners from "public records laws that normally allow newspapers or private citizens access to certain information the government collects." In that prior context, technological constraints implicitly protected privacy interests. After all, how can public records be considered private? What obscurity draws our attention to, is that while the records were accessible to any member of the public prior to the rise of big data, more effort was required to obtain, aggregate, and publish them. The situation left many scratching their heads. Consider the recent debate over whether a newspaper violated the privacy rights of gun owners by publishing a map comprised of information gleaned from public records. Many contemporary privacy disputes are probably better classified as concern over losing obscurity. Consequently, the concept remains under-theorized as courts continue their seemingly Sisyphean struggle with finding meaning in the concept of privacy. Since this decision, discussion of obscurity in the case law remains sparse. In this decision, the United States Supreme Court recognized a privacy interest in the "practical obscurity" of information that was technically available to the public, but could only be found by spending a burdensome and unrealistic amount of time and effort in obtaining it. Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press (1989). Legal debates surrounding obscurity can be traced back at least to U.S. Since few online disclosures are truly confidential or highly publicized, the lion's share of communication on the social web falls along the expansive continuum of obscurity: a range that runs from completely hidden to totally obvious.ĭiscussion of obscurity in the case law remains sparse. Disclosing information in coded ways that only a limited audience will grasp enhances obscurity, too. So does using privacy settings and pseudonyms. Being invisible to search engines increases obscurity. Online, obscurity is created through a combination of factors. Less committed folks, however, experience great effort as a deterrent. Competent and determined data hunters armed with the right tools can always find a way to get it. Obscurity is the idea that when information is hard to obtain or understand, it is, to some degree, safe. Fortunately, obscurity has a narrower purview. Other times they evoke privacy to discuss issues associated with corporate access to personal information. Sometimes, people talk about privacy when they are worried about confidentiality. It grabs our attention easily, but is hard to pin down. This is unfortunate, as "privacy" is an over-extended concept. While many debates over technology and privacy concern obscurity, the term rarely gets used. If we rely too much on them, we'll miss the core problem: the more accessible our Facebook information becomes, the less obscurity protects our interests. Neither framing device, however, is adequate. And, yes, there just might be more stalking ahead. Yes, Zuckerberg appears to be respecting our current privacy settings. ![]() Unfortunately, most of the rapid-fire analysts haven't framed the story properly. Facebook's announcement of its new Graph search tool on Tuesday set off yet another round of rapid-fire analysis about whether Facebook is properly handling its users' privacy.
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