By Tori Simmons
Students at Bowling Green State University can mostly agree that privacy on the Internet no longer exists.
Students use the World Wide Web daily for various tasks that include social media sites, online periodicals, or researching information on search engines. What most students don’t know is what they search on the Internet is monitored and shared among multiple services to view, according to an article in The New York Times.
Private companies have developed sophisticated technology to monitor and track online users, and sell their personal information to other services, according to Privacy Rights Clearinghouse.
BGSU students were quick to demand more privacy from companies while they use the Internet. Some students thought that a company’s ability to access online user data as invasive and unethical.
“Just because companies have the ability to access it, doesn’t mean they have the right to,” Stephan Haluska said a senior music composition major from Strongsville, Ohio.
Jessica Stephens, a junior middle-childhood education major from Lyndhurst, Ohio, said that there is no reason for private companies to compile information about online users.
“It is a complete invasion of privacy for companies to have this information about people who use the Internet,” she said.
Some students refrain from using social media sites, such as Facebook, because of their fear of their personal information being exploited on the Internet.
“Personally, I wouldn’t like to be on Facebook. It’s annoying because everyone can see your personal information,” said Allie McHugh, sophomore gerontology major from Centerville, Ohio.
Another issue that some students have with social media sites is the overflow of advertisements on the website. McHugh said that the constant advertisement on social networking sites is annoying, and they invade the privacy of people who are just trying to enjoy social media websites.
Some students are divided over the idea of potential employers using social networking sites for more information on students.
Kathryn Sprague, a sophomore marine biology major of Hebron, Ohio, said that employers need to know what kind of person they are hiring. Sprague believes that employers have the right to search social media sites when looking for employees.
“If I was an employer, I would do it to all of my employees,” Sprague said.
Ryan Evarts, a junior middle-childhood education major of Rossford, Ohio, disagreed with the idea of employers using social networking sites to gather information on potential employees.
“Social networking sites are private, and it should not be used against a future employee,” Evarts said.
Some employers are even asking for potential employees’ usernames and passwords for social media sites according to a story in The Huffington Post. Although, some students believe that having the user names and passwords for social media sites aren’t necessary for employers to find information online.
“It’s too easy for people to access information online, but I think users should be more careful about what they post online,” said Sprague.