The Concept Of Privacy In A Modern Context

I am the youngest of three siblings. Growing up, whenever someone had to make a private phone call, one would announce to the whole household that you did not want to be interrupted, we then went into a room that had a phone, and closed the door. Today, it's much different.


The Differences and their Nuances


Bob Dylan wrote a song in the sixties called "The Times They-Are-A-Changin." The song has become the ballad for change and a warning to those determined to live in the past for they will "sink like a stone." No matter what I may do each day, I am amazed at how quickly technology changes and legislation penned around it grows.


A Slight Tangent


I attended a conference on Thursday in which a panel of experts discussed the concerns, potential, and history of data security and privacy. Why, today, while speaking with my oldest child another aspect of privacy crossed my mind--texting. I asked him, "If you can call someone by telephone at any time and, basically, from anywhere without interruptions, why do you text?" As a person that uses a Blackberry to review e-mail messages while riding as a passenger in a car, I should be more enlightened, but I asked him with an open mind and got an answer that I had not anticipated..."Dad, there are too many times when people around me are listening in on what I may say. If I text someone, I know that others will not be aware of my 'conversation,' nor do I have to seek a quiet location to communicate--it's more private that way."

Okay, so I now have a little more insight into his mindset. Why did I share that with you? As I mentioned, earlier this week, I was at a conference discussing the modern day concerns of privacy. How many newspaper articles have you read in the past few months in which it was discovered that someone stole a list, or lost a computer with a list, or simply had their network breached (and then the list was stolen)? Between the measures taken to comply with Sarbanes-Oxley (SOx), Graham-Leach-Bliley, Personal Credit Information (PCI), Private Identifiable Information (PII), and Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP), one can get overwhelmed with security and privacy concerns. What can be done?


A Great Concept To Address The Situation


Imagine the position of a lawyer or a doctor. You have a client or patient that you have been communicating with online--there are extensive threads of e-mails that have gone out with private details and confidential information. Perhaps, you have sent a copy of an X-ray or an MRI to another doctor on his/her behalf. During one of your "sends," you inadvertantly click on a wrong addressee, press SEND and off it goes. Some choice four letter words exit your mouth and the thought registers, "How can I UNDO this?"

In most instances, you can't UNLESS you have a special service or mechanism in place. The service would allow you to send the message to your correspondent without actually sending them the content. What exactly does this mean? Think of a visit to a website. You click on a hyperlink and are directed to a controlled URL that not only may restrict your access via password/login, but may control the extent of information that is revealed to you based upon your authentication level. A simple example would be an e-mail is sent to your client/patient. You realized, after the fact, that your diagnosis of the situation was "off" due to incomplete details. You want the client/patient to ignore the message, but you KNOW that it never works that way. As soon as it arrives, the recipient will read the message and become distraught based upon your content. How can you cover your butt? If you had this service, you only need to revoke the message. After you revoke it, the client will not be able to access the content BECAUSE the message is never sent, only VIEWED. The service allows you to break the LINK to the message content, so it is severed the moment you give the command. Pretty cool, eh? (No, I am not a Canadian.)

The other valuable aspect of this service is the fact that you cannot delete the messages, only break the links. So, if under FRCP, you were required to disclose under court order the message originally dispatched or a message relayed to a colleague, there is an audit path. Mind you, it is not something to be taken lightly, you have sent personally identifiable information, so you must take appropriate steps to protect the privacy of those concerned. Can you see how a lawyer, doctor, or financial advisor could benefit from such a product? If you do, please feel free to have them contact us for more information. This is a reasonably priced service that can be implemented in 24 to 48 hours from the moment the order is placed. Based upon the penalties and civil damages that could amount from inadvertant disclosure, any price spent on such a service may be reasonable. This one, however, is well within reason for most. If you would like more information on this subject, please contact us at (201) 797-5050 or fred@tech4now.com. It's better to be safe than sorry!