This series of posts are thoughts and responses to the Designing for Usability course at Parsons School of Design.
On Building Consentful Tech
The analogy of consent over our digital bodies with consent over our physical ones is a very pertinent one, to the extent that I question if digital consent has even more far reaching consequences over our physical consent.
In our first year at MFADT we studied the far reaching impact of data collected from our digital selves, some of them mentioned on page 3 of this reading. Collection of data online is pervasive, some of its effects are obvious (targeted ads) and some are impossible to detect (ie banks approving loans). The extent to which data is collected can make it seem hopeless to counteract, so thankfully this reading provides possible actions we can take, from technical to communal safeguards.
I wonder how amenable Big Tech would respond to this, and what methods they have to circumvent these safeguards. How might lawmakers and policymakers provide structure and oversight as well?
I am reminded of a recent talk by Rob von Kranenburg on Internet of Things in smart cities, the concept of connectivity zones and disposable identities, which aims to balance the need for data collection for civic functions in smart cities, and the need to safeguard human digital rights. Many of the ideas in the image below are great examples of the F.R.I.E.S set of definition of consent:
On Dark Patterns
Having lived through the early days of the Internet, I’ve come across many of the patterns listed in this reading. While it’s heartening to see many of these taken down, I’ve noticed other “innovations” rising to take their place.
For instance, I visit a lot of football (soccer) related websites, and a pop up would ask for consent to access/share my data:
In quite a large number of cases, the many options have been pre-selected for me. Or the other alternative is to burden me with a deluge of options in which I have to go through each and every one of them in legalese. I cannot proceed to the content otherwise.
Some, like the one above, has made it easier to deselect options and access info. I wonder if there are any incentives for a privacy popup company to make it easier for users to opt out of data tracking?
