Sometimes, people put their privacy at risk just because they do not know how to protect it. The use of GPS technology has really helped people to find places and locations more easily. When driving through an unfamiliar location, finding a restaurant or an ATM in town, GPS is needed. Recently, several concerns have been raised concerning privacy issues in the use of tracking technology. Many phones and cameras are now fitted with GPS, and users enjoy its functions from simple photo taking to uploading on the internet.
The issues center on the risks involved with anybody being able to locate a user by accessing his or her cell phone data. At the present time, phones can store data on the whereabouts of a person, in particular location. The phone owner's location data can be easily mapped - where he or she had been for a period of time - with the help of Google maps.
GPS-enabled phones or cameras save photos using EXIF data which means Exchangeable Image File. The EXIF annotation is used in almost all new styles of digital cameras. This enables storage of photos to consist of shutter speed, F number, exposure compensation, ISO number, date and time the image was taken, etc. The foregoing does not pose problems on privacy, but are just information about qualities of the stored data. What stirs concern is that some cameras are capable of storing GPS information on the photo so that one can easily isolate where it was taken.
On the part of Apple and Google, they say that users have to be accountable for shielding their own privacy. Users cannot put the fault on technology just because it is made accessible. Users are the ones who can choose whether or not to use it. To get around privacy risks, users can switch off location tracking features in their phones. Google also said that the identification numbers of each phone signal cannot be traced to a specific handset. Google sets a policy of assigning a unique signal for each handset.
Some groups do not back the idea of switching off GPS features. GPS technology has been applied in many practical applications. New phone models are designed to handle lots of new apps that are location enabled. Not taking advantage of the benefits of this feature will make one's phone "useless".
One useful way of resolving the matter is to set limits on the use of GPS data. Phone users and manufacturers can also trust that the government can do as much to catch up with the fast-changing technology. Meanwhile, users have to make certain that they can protect their own privacy.
One way of doing this is by limiting data sharing, especially when using GPS enabled phones and cameras. One should take time to understand what happens to data that they upload to any website, particularly social networking sites. Most sites always ask the user whether he or she wants to share the information before posting. This makes privacy the full responsibility of the user.
The issues center on the risks involved with anybody being able to locate a user by accessing his or her cell phone data. At the present time, phones can store data on the whereabouts of a person, in particular location. The phone owner's location data can be easily mapped - where he or she had been for a period of time - with the help of Google maps.
GPS-enabled phones or cameras save photos using EXIF data which means Exchangeable Image File. The EXIF annotation is used in almost all new styles of digital cameras. This enables storage of photos to consist of shutter speed, F number, exposure compensation, ISO number, date and time the image was taken, etc. The foregoing does not pose problems on privacy, but are just information about qualities of the stored data. What stirs concern is that some cameras are capable of storing GPS information on the photo so that one can easily isolate where it was taken.
On the part of Apple and Google, they say that users have to be accountable for shielding their own privacy. Users cannot put the fault on technology just because it is made accessible. Users are the ones who can choose whether or not to use it. To get around privacy risks, users can switch off location tracking features in their phones. Google also said that the identification numbers of each phone signal cannot be traced to a specific handset. Google sets a policy of assigning a unique signal for each handset.
Some groups do not back the idea of switching off GPS features. GPS technology has been applied in many practical applications. New phone models are designed to handle lots of new apps that are location enabled. Not taking advantage of the benefits of this feature will make one's phone "useless".
One useful way of resolving the matter is to set limits on the use of GPS data. Phone users and manufacturers can also trust that the government can do as much to catch up with the fast-changing technology. Meanwhile, users have to make certain that they can protect their own privacy.
One way of doing this is by limiting data sharing, especially when using GPS enabled phones and cameras. One should take time to understand what happens to data that they upload to any website, particularly social networking sites. Most sites always ask the user whether he or she wants to share the information before posting. This makes privacy the full responsibility of the user.
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