Discussions about how Facebook operates have been high on the agenda over the past week as the US Congress investigates the platform’s impact. At the core of these discussions are questions of how Facebook uses data that …<\/b>
\nOctober 22,2021 Discussions about how Facebook operates have been high on the agenda over the past week as the US Congress investigates the platform’s impact. At the core of these discussions are questions of how Facebook uses data that we, as users, generate. Similar questions can be asked of all the digital services we use, whether run by companies, governments, or other organizations. These platforms use our data to determine what content we see or which services we’re offered. Whether we realize it or not, this can affect our lives in a variety of ways. But how well do people understand these issues? Do they have a handle on the ways their data is being used? Do they know how to protect it from being used in ways they disagree with? If you feel your knowledge in this space is lacking, you’re not alone. We explored these sorts of questions in our \u00a0\u00bb Me and My Big Data \u00a0\u00bb project and found UK citizens’ \u00ab\u00a0data literacy\u00a0\u00bb to be quite low. Even for people with greater digital skills and broad digital engagement, their understanding of data issues might be best described as patchy. When we’re talking about data, this can encompass anything from data we \u00ab\u00a0share\u00a0\u00bb on Facebook, to data covertly extracted from us such as our location and the device we’re using. The concept of data literacy has multiple overlapping components, from basic skills inputting data and sharing information, to thinking critically about data, to engaging with data issues. In a survey of 1,542 UK citizens, we measured data literacy by collecting information on more than 100 behaviors and attitudes, and asking questions to ascertain participants’ knowledge of how digital platforms work. Using a model we developed for a previous research project, we split our respondents into six different groups, ranging from \u00ab\u00a0extensive\u00a0\u00bb users who undertake a wide range of internet activity, to \u00ab\u00a0limited\u00a0\u00bb and \u00ab\u00a0non-users.\u00a0\u00bb We’re not as digital a nation as you might think. Both our prior work and this survey indicate that limited and non-users account for about 50% of the UK population. As you might expect, extensive users scored highest on our data literacy measures, and limited users lowest. Having a post-18 education was a key predictor of higher data literacy too. But on average even extensive users were not fully aware of the main uses to which platforms put their data, or how it’s shared and sold. Very few people proactively managed their privacy settings to protect their data. Almost none of our respondents had read the terms and conditions detailing what platforms can do with their data. Only the more extensive users were likely to actively engage with data issues, such as by helping a friend with their privacy settings, or taking part in debates about the use of data. People feel disempowered In addition to our national survey, discussions with 14 focus groups allowed us to explore people’s experiences and perceptions in greater depth. Three key themes came out of these discussions. First, many limited users struggle to articulate, or are not aware of, the types of data being collected\u2014especially those who primarily use social media. Second, people often blame themselves for a lack of skills, rather than arguing for improvements in the platforms’ operations. As one participant (a 21-year-old female with post-18 education) noted: \u00ab\u00a0It is horrible the fact that they’re taking all your data, all your data’s out there [\u2026] but then that all comes down to the terms and conditions as well which I don’t really read [\u2026] so I guess that’s my own fault.\u00a0\u00bb Finally, most people are very aware that their data is being harvested and used, even if they are not sure of which data and how. But they are quite uncomfortable with this being the \u00ab\u00a0price\u00a0\u00bb of access to services. One participant (a 24-year-old male with no post-18 education) said: \u00ab\u00a0[Facebook] is useful, and it is creepy at the same time because it’s kind of like they’re spying on you.\u00a0\u00bb Overall, we would describe our respondents as feeling disempowered\u2014unable to proactively control what is done with their data. Being a data citizen We see stronger data literacy as necessary to support \u00a0\u00bb digital and data citizens \u00a0\u00bb who can make meaningful claims about their own and their community’s digital and data rights. For example, asserting what constitutes acceptable use of their data by big tech, government and organizations. If you’re looking to improve your own data literacy, take the time to do the following things: It’s very important that the state should play a key role in this. Through both school and post-school education, all citizens must be equipped with the core digital and data literacy\u2014not just basic digital skills\u2014to be able to critically engage with and challenge those who use their data. Meanwhile, legislation should ensure that tech companies, government bodies and organizations using our data make the uses clear and enable the public to challenge these uses. Current policy and practice are a long way from this ideal. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. 22 hours ago 0 22 hours ago 0 Oct 20,2021 0 Oct 20,2021 0 Oct 20,2021 2 53 minutes ago 1 hour ago 1 hour ago 1 hour ago 6 hours ago 16 hours ago 17 hours ago Mar 17,2020 Mar 30,2021 Nov 28,2017 Dec 16,2020 Apr 27,2021 Apr 16,2021 Oct 19,2021 Oct 13,2021 Oct 13,2021 Oct 11,2021 Oct 07,2021 Sep 30,2021<\/p>\n