tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/digital-footprint-48462/articlesDigital footprint – The Conversation2023-07-19T03:54:55Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2086692023-07-19T03:54:55Z2023-07-19T03:54:55ZThe hidden cost of the AI boom: social and environmental exploitation<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/537673/original/file-20230717-233077-93bviy.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=50%2C43%2C4742%2C2651&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Mainstream conversations about artificial intelligence (AI) have been dominated by a few key concerns, such as whether superintelligent AI will <a href="https://time.com/6273743/thinking-that-could-doom-us-with-ai">wipe us out</a>, or whether AI will steal our jobs. But we’ve paid less attention the various other environmental and social impacts of our “consumption” of AI, which are arguably just as important.</p>
<p>Everything we consume has associated “<a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/externality.asp">externalities</a>” – the indirect impacts of our consumption. For instance, <a href="https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/fandd/issues/Series/Back-to-Basics/Externalities">industrial pollution</a> is a well-known externality that has a negative impact on people and the environment.</p>
<p>The online services we use daily also have externalities, but there seems to be a much lower level of public awareness of these. Given the massive uptake in the use of AI, these factors mustn’t be overlooked.</p>
<h2>Environmental impacts of AI use</h2>
<p>In 2019, French think tank The Shift Project estimated that the use of digital technologies produces more carbon emissions than the <a href="https://en.reset.org/our-digital-carbon-footprint-environmental-impact-living-life-online-12272019">aviation industry</a>. And although AI is currently estimated to contribute less than 1% of total carbon emissions, the AI market size is predicted to <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/1365145/artificial-intelligence-market-size">grow ninefold by 2030</a>. </p>
<p>Tools such as <a href="https://openai.com/chatgpt">ChatGPT</a> are built on advanced computational systems called large language models (LLMs). Although we access these models online, they are run and trained in physical data centres around the world that consume significant resources.</p>
<p>Last year, AI company Hugging Face published an <a href="https://arxiv.org/pdf/2211.02001.pdf">estimate</a> of the carbon footprint of its own LLM called BLOOM (a model of similar complexity to OpenAI’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GPT-3">GPT-3</a>).</p>
<p>Accounting for the impact of raw material extraction, manufacturing, training, deployment and end-of-life disposal, the model’s development and usage resulted in the equivalent of <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/11/14/1063192/were-getting-a-better-idea-of-ais-true-carbon-footprint/">60 flights from New York to London</a>. </p>
<p>Hugging Face also estimated GPT-3’s life cycle would result in ten times greater emissions, since the data centres powering it run on a more carbon-intensive grid. This is without considering the raw material, manufacturing and disposal impacts associated with GTP-3. </p>
<p>OpenAI’s latest LLM offering, <a href="https://openai.com/gpt-4">GPT-4</a>, is <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2023/03/openai-gpt-4-parameters-power-debate/673290/">rumoured to have trillions of parameters</a> and potentially far greater energy usage.</p>
<p>Beyond this, running AI models requires large amounts of water. Data centres use water towers to cool the on-site servers where AI models are trained and deployed. Google recently <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/11/uruguay-drought-water-google-data-center">came under fire</a> for plans to build a new data centre in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/15/drought-leaves-millions-in-uruguay-without-tap-water-fit-for-drinking">drought-stricken Uruguay</a> that would use 7.6 million litres of water each day to cool its servers, according to the nation’s Ministry of Environment (although the Minister for Industry has contested the figures). Water is also needed to generate electricity used to run data centres.</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2304.03271">preprint</a> published this year, Pengfei Li and colleagues presented a methodology for gauging the water footprint of AI models. They did this in response to a lack of transparency in how companies evaluate the water footprint associated with using and training AI.</p>
<p>They estimate training GPT-3 required somewhere between 210,000 and 700,000 litres of water (the equivalent of that used to produce between 300 and 1,000 cars). For a conversation with 20 to 50 questions, ChatGPT was estimated to “drink” the equivalent of a 500 millilitre bottle of water.</p>
<h2>Social impacts of AI use</h2>
<p>LLMs often need extensive human input during the training phase. This is typically outsourced to independent contractors <a href="https://doi.org/10.1145/3555561">who face precarious work conditions</a> in low-income countries, leading to “digital sweatshop” criticisms. </p>
<p>In January, Time <a href="https://time.com/6247678/openai-chatgpt-kenya-workers/">reported</a> on how Kenyan workers contracted to label text data for ChatGPT’s “toxicity” detection were paid less than US$2 per hour while being exposed to explicit and traumatic content. </p>
<p>LLMs can also be used to generate <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/mar/03/fake-news-chatgpt-truth-journalism-disinformation">fake news and propaganda</a>. Left unchecked, AI has the potential to be used to manipulate public opinion, and by extension could undermine <a href="https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/how-ai-puts-elections-risk-and-needed-safeguards">democratic processes</a>. In a <a href="https://hai.stanford.edu/news/ais-powers-political-persuasion">recent experiment</a>, researchers at Stanford University found AI-generated messages were consistently persuasive to human readers on topical issues such as carbon taxes and banning assault weapons.</p>
<p>Not everyone will be able to adapt to the AI boom. The large-scale adoption of AI has the potential to worsen global <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/feb/08/ai-chatgpt-jobs-economy-inequality">wealth inequality</a>. It will not only cause significant <a href="https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2023/">disruptions to the job market</a> – but could particularly marginalise workers from certain backgrounds and in <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/cea/written-materials/2022/12/05/the-impact-of-artificial-intelligence/">specific industries</a>. </p>
<h2>Are there solutions?</h2>
<p>The way AI impacts us over time will depend on myriad factors. Future generative AI models <em>could</em> be designed to use <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/robtoews/2023/02/07/the-next-generation-of-large-language-models/?sh=1fdc66518dbc">significantly less energy</a>, but it’s hard to say whether <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-022-01377-7">they will be</a>.</p>
<p>When it comes to data centres, the location of the centres, the type of power generation they use, and the time of day they are used can significantly impact their overall <a href="https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3531146.3533234">energy</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2304.03271">water</a> consumption. Optimising these computing resources could result in significant reductions. Companies including <a href="https://www.deepmind.com/blog/deepmind-ai-reduces-google-data-centre-cooling-bill-by-40">Google</a>, <a href="https://huggingface.co/blog/carbon-emissions-on-the-hub">Hugging Face</a> and <a href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-au/explore/global-infrastructure/sustainability">Microsoft</a> have championed the role their AI and cloud services can play in managing resource usage to achieve efficiency gains.</p>
<p>Also, as direct or indirect consumers of AI services, it’s important we’re all aware that every chatbot query and image generation results in water and energy use, and could have implications for human labour. </p>
<p>AI’s growing popularity might eventually trigger the development of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainability_standards_and_certification">sustainability standards and certifications</a>. These would help users understand and compare the impacts of specific AI services, allowing them to choose those which have been certified. This would be similar to the <a href="https://www.climateneutraldatacentre.net">Climate Neutral Data Centre Pact</a>, wherein European data centre operators have agreed to make data centres climate neutral by 2030.</p>
<p>Governments will also play a part. The European Parliament has approved draft legislation to mitigate the risks of AI usage. And earlier this year, the US senate heard testimonies from a range of experts on how AI might be effectively regulated and its harms minimised. China has also <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/china-issues-temporary-rules-generative-ai-services-2023-07-13">published rules</a> on the use of generative AI, requiring security assessments for products offering services to the public.</p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/eu-approves-draft-law-to-regulate-ai-heres-how-it-will-work-205672">EU approves draft law to regulate AI – here's how it will work</a>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ascelin Gordon is employed by RMIT University. He receives funding support from the Australian Research Council, the NSW Department of Planning and Environment, and the NSW Biodiversity Conservation Trust. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Afshin Jafari is employed by RMIT University.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Carl Higgs is employed at RMIT University and receives funding support from National Health and Medical Research Council grants.</span></em></p>In a preprint study, researchers estimate training the model behind ChatGPT would have required somewhere between 210,000 and 700,000 litres of water.Ascelin Gordon, Senior research fellow, RMIT UniversityAfshin Jafari, Research fellow, RMIT UniversityCarl Higgs, Research Fellow, Centre for Urban Research, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1999522023-04-04T12:17:19Z2023-04-04T12:17:19ZYou can’t hide side hustles from the IRS anymore – here’s what taxpayers need to know about reporting online payments for gig work<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518802/original/file-20230331-14-y6616v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C206%2C5620%2C4022&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Dog-walking income is taxable.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/professional-dog-walker-holds-the-leashes-for-13-dogs-april-news-photo/670072734?adppopup=true">Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Do you rent out your home a few weekends a year through Airbnb? Sell stuff on Etsy? Get paid for pet-sitting? If you, like many Americans, make at least US$600 a year with a side hustle of any kind, the way you pay taxes may soon change.</p>
<p>New rules are going to <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/23/investing/irs-delays-threshold-increase-for-business-transactions/index.html">make sure the Internal Revenue Service gets more information</a> about payments made to Venmo and other apps often used for informal work. And this new system will enhance the agency’s ability to detect any underreported taxable income.</p>
<p>I am a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=m-piTBwAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">tax researcher</a> studying the IRS’ use of technology and how that affects taxpayers. I think it’s important that everyone understand why this may matter to them now or in the near future.</p>
<h2>Why you should care</h2>
<p>For people who earn most of their income through steady jobs, these changes probably don’t make much of a difference. The IRS has received the same information from employers about the income that goes on <a href="https://www.finance.senate.gov/download/1946/03/04/legislative-history-of-the-current-tax-payment-act-of-1943">W-2 and 1099 forms since the 1940s</a>.</p>
<p>However, that’s not true of income from other sources. If you make money cleaning houses, catering out of your own kitchen or through another informal side hustle in exchange for cash, chances are this work has been “<a href="https://www.investopedia.com/articles/markets/032916/how-big-underground-economy-america.asp">under the table</a>.”</p>
<p>It’s been up to you, not your customers, to report any income earned this way to the IRS for tax purposes. And there is a good chance that you didn’t, given that the underground economy makes up <a href="https://www.dickinson.edu/news/article/3136/understanding_the_shadow_economy">at least one-tenth of the overall economy</a>. </p>
<p>That’s changing, in part because of how informal transactions happen. It’s far more common these days for <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/09/08/payment-apps-like-venmo-and-cash-app-bring-convenience-and-security-concerns-to-some-users/">customers to make these payments through apps</a> like Venmo, Stripe and Square or online platforms such as Etsy, Poshmark, Rover and Upwork than to use cash or checks.</p>
<p>This can even include illicit activities, like drug dealing. And believe it or not, even when you make money through illegal transactions, the IRS still requires these <a href="https://taxfoundation.org/irs-guidance-thieves-drug-dealers-and-corrupt-officials">payments to be reported for tax purposes</a>.</p>
<p>The IRS has long identified informal payments as a significant source of the “<a href="https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/the-tax-gap">tax gap</a>” – the difference between what taxpayers owe and what they pay.</p>
<p>Modern technology makes it easier to get paid for side hustles and odd jobs without having to keep track of stacks of bills and piles of coins. It also better equips the agency to collect taxes on those underreported sources of income. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518803/original/file-20230331-24-zkce9c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A person hands another person a stack of cash under a table." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518803/original/file-20230331-24-zkce9c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518803/original/file-20230331-24-zkce9c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518803/original/file-20230331-24-zkce9c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518803/original/file-20230331-24-zkce9c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518803/original/file-20230331-24-zkce9c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518803/original/file-20230331-24-zkce9c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518803/original/file-20230331-24-zkce9c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Unless you’re getting paid in cash for your ‘under the table’ gigs or make less than $600, the IRS is going to find out about them.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/bribery-corruption-collecting-money-from-business-royalty-free-image/1436894263?adppopup=true">Jirapong Manustrong/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span>
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<h2>What’s changing</h2>
<p>The amount of information that the IRS will receive about traditionally “under the table” work is growing.</p>
<p>That’s because the <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/1319/text">$1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package</a> President <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-us-delivers-1-9-trillion-jolt-of-economic-relief-4-essential-reads-156930">Joe Biden signed in March 2021</a> lowered the threshold for what third-party payment companies like Venmo will report to taxpayers and the IRS. </p>
<p>Individuals, businesses and nonprofits that earn more than $600 through various online merchants will receive a summary of that income data on a <a href="https://www.irs.gov/businesses/understanding-your-form-1099-k">Form 1099-K</a> – as of the 2023 tax year – and importantly, the IRS will too. </p>
<p>That means companies like Venmo, Etsy and Airbnb will be required to issue these tax documents to anyone earning more than $600 on their sites.</p>
<p>Through 2022, the threshold for these companies to report income to the IRS was $22,000. The much lower cutoff, starting in 2023, means that many Americans who don’t make much money on these sites – and possibly didn’t feel the need to report it on their tax returns – will be forced to change their ways. Taxpayers were, in fact, always required to report this income, and now the IRS will also receive a summary of these earnings that should show up as well on tax returns.</p>
<p>The change to a $600 threshold was supposed to occur for taxes owed on 2022 income but was <a href="https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-announces-delay-for-implementation-of-600-reporting-threshold-for-third-party-payment-platforms-forms-1099-k">delayed at the federal level by a year</a> because of <a href="https://www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/news/nta-blog-heard-loud-and-clear-irs-postpones-implementation-of-600-form-1099-k-reporting-by-a-year/">taxpayer confusion and a lack of clear guidance</a>.</p>
<p>Companies like Venmo are getting ready to make the change by withholding taxes from business payments as soon as <a href="https://help.venmo.com/hc/en-us/articles/4407389460499-2023-Tax-FAQ">June 2023</a>.</p>
<h2>What taxpayers need to do</h2>
<p>If you use an app like Venmo for both personal and business use, creating a <a href="https://help.venmo.com/hc/en-us/articles/4407389460499-2023-Tax-FAQ">separate business account may ease record-keeping</a>. That way, you can separate the non-taxable money you received from relatives who were chipping in for that group gift you bought your grandma for her birthday from the <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/12/27/what-to-know-about-the-1099-k-tax-reporting-change-for-venmo-paypal-.html">taxable payments you got</a> for mowing your neighbor’s lawn. </p>
<p>Anyone earning more than $600 from a side hustle through an online platform in 2023 should be on the lookout for a 1099-K in early 2024. That form may make record-keeping easier, just like getting a W-2 from an employer does. </p>
<p>If you are a taxpayer with earnings not currently reported to you on a tax form like a W-2 or a 1099, one of the most helpful things that you can do to ensure compliance with tax law is to keep good records of all your income. The <a href="https://www.irs.gov/publications/p525">IRS and other sources publish excellent resources</a> to help you understand what income is and is not taxable.</p>
<p>From now on, as before, you should record all of your earnings from every source – and keep in mind that the IRS is getting more access to data regarding transactions than it used to have.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/199952/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Erica Neuman does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>An accounting expert points out that income Americans previously thought was invisible to the IRS will now be tallied up and reported by Venmo and similar apps.Erica Neuman, Assistant Professor of Accounting, University of DaytonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1771232022-04-08T12:32:21Z2022-04-08T12:32:21ZYour digital footprints are more than a privacy risk – they could help hackers infiltrate computer networks<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456703/original/file-20220406-10870-70z4p3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=17%2C0%2C1920%2C1195&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Your digital footprints can give hackers clues about you that they can use to trick you.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/47476117@N04/50705422738/">Ivan/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>When you use the internet, you leave behind a trail of data, a set of digital footprints. These include your social media activities, web browsing behavior, health information, travel patterns, location maps, information about your mobile device use, photos, audio and video. This data is collected, collated, stored and analyzed by various organizations, from the big social media companies to app makers to data brokers. As you might imagine, your digital footprints put your privacy at risk, but they also affect cybersecurity.</p>
<p>As a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=pvxc54kAAAAJ&hl=en">cybersecurity researcher</a>, I track the threat posed by digital footprints on cybersecurity. Hackers are able to use personal information gathered online to suss out answers to security challenge questions like “in what city did you meet your spouse?” or to hone phishing attacks by posing as a colleague or work associate. When phishing attacks are successful, they give the attackers access to networks and systems the victims are authorized to use.</p>
<h2>Following footprints to better bait</h2>
<p>Phishing attacks have <a href="https://apwg.org/trendsreports/">doubled from early 2020</a>. The success of phishing attacks depends on how authentic the contents of messages appear to the recipient. All phishing attacks require certain information about the targeted people, and this information can be obtained from their digital footprints.</p>
<p>Hackers can use freely available <a href="https://osintframework.com/">open source intelligence</a> gathering tools to discover the digital footprints of their targets. An attacker can mine a target’s digital footprints, which can include audio and video, to extract information such as contacts, relationships, profession, career, likes, dislikes, interests, hobbies, travel and frequented locations.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Your online activities may feel fleeting, but they leave traces.</span></figcaption>
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<p>They can then use this information to <a href="https://www.knowbe4.com/spear-phishing/#RealWorld">craft phishing messages</a> that appear more like legitimate messages coming from a trusted source. The attacker can deliver these personalized messages, <a href="https://www.mitnicksecurity.com/blog/spear-phishing-targeted-email-scams-what-you-need-to-know-about-this-hacking-technique">spear phishing emails</a>, to the victim or compose as the victim and target the victim’s colleagues, friends and family. Spear phishing attacks can fool even those who are trained to recognize phishing attacks.</p>
<p>One of the most successful forms of phishing attacks has been <a href="https://www.fbi.gov/scams-and-safety/common-scams-and-crimes/business-email-compromise">business email compromise</a> attacks. In these attacks, the attackers pose as people with legitimate business relationships – colleagues, vendors and customers – to initiate fraudulent financial transactions.</p>
<p>A good example is the attack targeting the firm <a href="https://krebsonsecurity.com/2015/08/tech-firm-ubiquiti-suffers-46m-cyberheist/">Ubiquity Networks Inc. in 2015</a>. The attacker sent emails, which looked like they were coming from top executives to employees. The email requested the employees to make wire transfers, resulting in fraudulent transfers of $46.7 million.</p>
<p>Access to the computer of a victim of a phishing attack can give the attacker access to networks and systems of the victim’s employer and clients. For instance, one of the employees at retailer Target’s HVAC vendor <a href="https://www.zdnet.com/article/anatomy-of-the-target-data-breach-missed-opportunities-and-lessons-learned/">fell victim to phishing attack</a>. The attackers used his workstation to gain access to Target’s internal network, and then to their payment network. The attackers used the opportunity to infect point-of-sale systems used by Target and steal data on 70 million credit cards.</p>
<h2>A big problem and what to do about it</h2>
<p>Computer security company <a href="https://www.trendmicro.de/cloud-content/us/pdfs/security-intelligence/white-papers/wp-spear-phishing-email-most-favored-apt-attack-bait.pdf">Trend Micro</a> found that 91% of attacks in which the attackers <a href="https://csrc.nist.gov/glossary/term/advanced_persistent_threat">gained undetected access to networks</a> and used that access over time started with phishing messages. <a href="https://www.verizon.com/business/en-gb/resources/reports/dbir/">Verizon’s Data Breach Investigations Report</a> found that 25% of all data breach incidents involved phishing. </p>
<p>Given the significant role played by phishing in cyberattacks, I believe it’s important for organizations to educate their employees and members about managing their digital footprints. This training should cover how to <a href="https://www.techjunkie.com/track-identity-internet/">find the extent of your digital footprints</a>, how to <a href="https://www.howtogeek.com/228828/7-ways-to-secure-your-web-browser-against-attacks/nternet">browse securely</a> and how to <a href="https://www.digitalgrads.com/social-media-footprint/">use social media responsibly</a>.</p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ravi Sen receives funding from Texas A&M university. He is affiliated with Association of Information Systems (<a href="https://aisnet.org">https://aisnet.org</a>). </span></em></p>One of a hacker’s most valuable tools is the phishing attack, and you might be unwittingly making the hacker’s job easier by leaving useful information about you online.Ravi Sen, Associate Professor of Information and Operations Management, Texas A&M UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1795852022-04-06T10:04:31Z2022-04-06T10:04:31ZYour forgotten digital footprints could step on your job prospects – here’s how to clean up<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456569/original/file-20220406-18-d2yyu6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=211%2C70%2C6327%2C4396&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/shocked-afraid-worried-young-indian-girl-1606120423">fizkes / Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Applying for a new (or first) job can be time consuming. The job application process, particularly for graduate schemes, involves multiple steps: tailoring your application, psychometric testing, interviews and participation in a day or more of assessments online or in person.</p>
<p>The process can also involve intrusive scrutiny of your digital footprints. Behind the scenes, up to 80% of employers and recruitment agencies use social media content as part of their assessment of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0022185617723380">candidate suitability</a>. Being open online about health conditions, addiction issues or pregnancy can adversely affect an applicant’s chances of success when <a href="https://doi.org/10.1145/1556460.1556499">applying for jobs</a>, as can a profile which shows polarised views, non-mainstream lifestyle choices, or excessive partying.</p>
<p>Once in post, employees can face disciplinary action or dismissal for their conduct on social networking sites, <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1773049">even when posting</a> outside of working hours. Unintentional leakage of sensitive information online -— such as trade secrets, intellectual property and personal details of other employees –- can be a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2018.08.013">security risk</a> for organisations, and lead to loss of competitive advantage, reputation and client trust.</p>
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<img alt="Quarter life, a series by The Conversation" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><em><strong><a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/quarter-life-117947?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">This article is part of Quarter Life</a></strong>, a series about issues affecting those of us in our twenties and thirties. From the challenges of beginning a career and taking care of our mental health, to the excitement of starting a family, adopting a pet or just making friends as an adult. The articles in this series explore the questions and bring answers as we navigate this turbulent period of life.</em></p>
<p><em>More articles:</em></p>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/why-it-makes-good-business-sense-for-your-employer-to-look-after-your-mental-health-177503?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">Why it makes good business sense for your employer to look after your mental health</a></em></p>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/goblin-mode-a-gothic-expert-explains-the-trends-mythical-origins-and-why-we-should-all-go-vampire-mode-instead-180282?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">Goblin mode: a gothic expert explains the trend’s mythical origins, and why we should all go ‘vampire mode’ instead</a></em></p>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/national-insurance-rise-what-do-upcoming-tax-changes-mean-for-me-an-expert-explains-179023?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">National insurance rise: what do upcoming tax changes mean for me? An expert explains</a></em></p>
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<p>A vivid illustration of such security risks comes from footage posted by <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/submarine-officer-filmed-x-rated-videos-at-faslane-9ftqhm2b7">two Naval personnel</a> on the Only Fans pornography-sharing website of their intimate activities at a secure UK nuclear submarine base, resulting in disciplinary action.</p>
<p>Our team has been examining how employees’ digital footprints can harm them and their employers. Through extensive interviews with 26 people, we found that many struggle to recall and conceptualise the entirety of their digital footprints, or to imagine how others may string them together and draw unforeseen conclusions. </p>
<p>This matters for young adults entering the job market, who usually have extensive digital footprints across multiple platforms, and extending back many years. These footprints may reflect outdated versions of the person, and identities and opinions “tried on for size” as they mature and work out who they are.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A man in a suit lifts his glasses and looks shocked while looking at a computer." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/455808/original/file-20220401-21-r3jwum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/455808/original/file-20220401-21-r3jwum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455808/original/file-20220401-21-r3jwum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455808/original/file-20220401-21-r3jwum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455808/original/file-20220401-21-r3jwum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455808/original/file-20220401-21-r3jwum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455808/original/file-20220401-21-r3jwum.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Don’t shock potential employers with outdated or inappropriate social media profiles.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/shocked-caucasian-middleaged-businessman-look-laptop-1751133512">fizkes / Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>Young people have told us of the peer pressure they face to comment on hot topics, such as Black Lives Matter and #MeToo, without necessarily feeling that they want to express opinions publicly. Others have expressed regret at opinions gauchely expressed around politics, race and sexuality – opinions which seemed acceptable as a teenager yet don’t read well to adult eyes. The persistence of this online content can affect young adults in ways unfamiliar to their parents, whose murky pasts are likely consigned to photo albums under the bed.</p>
<h2>Digital decluttering</h2>
<p>Coherently cleaning up one’s digital footprints is a task that people tend to find overwhelming. They <a href="https://pureportal.strath.ac.uk/en/publications/revealing-cumulative-risks-in-online-personal-information-a-data-">struggle to recall</a> what they have posted across multiple channels across many years, and avoid decluttering – reassuring themselves that they are boring and not worthy of others’ interest.</p>
<p>Some take broadbrush actions, such as deleting some or all of their social media accounts. Yet deletion is a luxury. Some of the young adults that we interviewed in our research felt compelled to be visible online via social media accounts while job-seeking – especially for white-collar jobs – so that potential employers could check them out.</p>
<p>Online visibility builds legitimacy. It presents an identity to the world – who we are, who we hang out with, our activities and opinions. Admittedly, that identity may be a sanitised version of the real person, carefully constructed with an online audience in mind, but so is a CV. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A young man sits in front of a laptop computer with his hands covering his face" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/455806/original/file-20220401-30473-mkngiz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1380%2C327%2C6729%2C5833&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/455806/original/file-20220401-30473-mkngiz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455806/original/file-20220401-30473-mkngiz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455806/original/file-20220401-30473-mkngiz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455806/original/file-20220401-30473-mkngiz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455806/original/file-20220401-30473-mkngiz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455806/original/file-20220401-30473-mkngiz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Many people struggle to remember the entirety of their digital footprint.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/young-african-man-using-laptop-home-2136153727">Krakenimages.com / Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>There can be ongoing tensions for job seekers between feeling they have to be visible online, and protecting their own safety. One of our interviewees, whose family had sought asylum in the UK, highlighted how asylum seekers could feel torn:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I have met … people who were … running for their lives. Any information that they put online digitally would be instantly sought out, so they stayed off any kind of digital, social media … But then they’re also met with the contrast of needing to put something out in order to progress … to put yourself on show, or otherwise people don’t think you’re legitimate.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Similarly, survivors of domestic abuse may want to keep a low profile to <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1524838020957985">avoid being found</a> by their abusers.</p>
<p>Decluttering is a painful, yet necessary aspect of entering the world of work. Google yourself. Get a friend of a friend to look you up online and see what they find. If you can, remove the content that surfaces which shows you in a bad light. If you are featured in content posted by others, ask them to take it down. Untag yourself. If all else fails, detach yourself from online connections who have tagged you at your worst, so that the content is not associated with you. </p>
<p>If there’s too much content that may harm your employment prospects, tighten your privacy settings so that potential employers can’t see it. If membership of a specific social media site is linked to a past that you no longer align with –- such as an OnlyFans account -– untag yourself and delete your account for good measure.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/179585/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Wendy Moncur receives funding from EPSRC (EP/R033889/2)</span></em></p>Growing up on the internet can bring consequences into adulthood.Wendy Moncur, Professor, Computer and Information Sciences, University of Strathclyde Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/906132018-02-07T11:29:11Z2018-02-07T11:29:11ZEstate planning for your digital assets<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/204891/original/file-20180205-14064-18d6b5c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Digital documents are not nearly as easy to retrieve.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/man-searching-documents-archive-737512603">Africa Studio/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>What will happen to your Facebook account when you die? What about all your photos shared on social media, your texts with loved ones, or documents on cloud-storage systems? In just the two-year period from 2012 to 2014, humans <a href="https://harvardmagazine.com/2014/03/why-big-data-is-a-big-deal">produced more data than in all of human civilization</a> before that – and the pace is only accelerating.</p>
<p>It’s not clear what people’s digital presences will look like in years to come, but it’s sure that an increasing number of people will be creating and accumulating growing reams of data until the day they die. But then what?</p>
<p>The law is very clear about handling paper documents and other physical property when someone dies. But as a law professor at Drake Law School who has been studying property transfers for years, I’ve seen that laws, regulations and court rulings are only recently trying to figure out how to handle <a href="https://ssrn.com/abstract=2561871">the ever-changing realm of digital technology</a>. So far, in most cases the information is controlled by the companies that store it – regardless of what users want or direct to happen after their death.</p>
<h2>Law catching up with technology</h2>
<p>Many people have had email and other digital accounts for decades, some stretching back to the early pioneers in the 1960s. But large numbers of average people really only began creating significant digital footprints in the early part of the 21st century. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2007/jul/25/media.newmedia">Facebook</a> and <a href="http://time.com/43263/gmail-10th-anniversary/">Gmail</a> began operations in 2004; <a href="https://sites.google.com/a/pressatgoogle.com/youtube5year/home/short-story-of-youtube">YouTube started in 2005</a>; <a href="https://thenextweb.com/twitter/2011/07/15/5-years-ago-today-twitter-launched-to-the-public/">Twitter launched in 2006</a>; the <a href="https://theconversation.com/understanding-the-real-innovation-behind-the-iphone-79556">iPhone came out in 2007</a>.</p>
<p>Almost a decade later, a group of lawyers from around the country <a href="http://www.uniformlaws.org/Act.aspx?title=Fiduciary%20Access%20to%20Digital%20Assets%20Act,%20Revised%20(2015)">developed a draft uniform law</a> they encouraged all 50 states to adopt, which would allow people to specify in their wills that the executor of their estate can access their email and social media profiles. So far, 39 state legislatures have adopted it and seven more are considering it this year.</p>
<p>The uniform law doesn’t specify – and courts have not yet been asked to rule on – exactly how that access should happen. So for the moment, a dead person’s executor must contact the company behind each digital platform to determine how to get into the person’s accounts.</p>
<p>In <a href="http://www.uniformlaws.org/LegislativeMap.aspx?title=Fiduciary%20Access%20to%20Digital%20Assets%20Act,%20Revised%20(2015)">states that haven’t passed this law</a>, companies themselves can decide whether to allow loved ones access to a late relative’s digital assets. <a href="https://policies.yahoo.com/us/en/yahoo/terms/utos/index.htm">Yahoo</a>, for example, is notorious for terminating an account upon a user’s death and forbidding access afterward. </p>
<p>The company’s refusal to grant access to surviving family members is being challenged in Massachusetts, a state that has not adopted the uniform digital assets law. In October 2017, the <a href="https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2017/10/16/12237.pdf">Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court</a> ruled that an executor could consent to the disclosure of emails on behalf of the dead person whose estate was being managed. The case is back before a lower court to decide on other issues, including whether the estate will be able to access the account despite <a href="https://policies.yahoo.com/us/en/yahoo/terms/utos/">Yahoo’s terms of service agreement</a>.</p>
<h2>The role of privacy</h2>
<p>With so many legal issues yet to be decided, people should be sure they include digital assets in their estate planning and encourage their loved ones to do the same. </p>
<p>Access to the email of a person who has died may be the most important to unlock: Messages and images are likely to be emotionally important. In addition, banking, utilities and other accounts are often linked to an email address; gaining online access to those can help administer a person’s estate.</p>
<p>Of course, it’s important to <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2798812">protect the privacy of a person who has died</a> – despite the general legal assumption that a dead person no longer has privacy that needs protecting. The uniform state law does this by requiring a person to have left specific written permission for an executor to access an email account.</p>
<h2>Making plans for yourself</h2>
<p>To prepare yourself for a digital afterlife, the first task is to state, in writing, what you want to happen to your digital assets. Create a list of the accounts in your name, and determine which ones you want your executor to access – and which should be deleted. </p>
<p>Crucially, do not list usernames or passwords in your will, because a person’s will becomes a public document upon their death. Instead, consider recording access information for these accounts in a safe place – like <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-we-choose-terrible-passwords-and-how-to-fix-them-76619">password management software</a> – and leave instructions for your executor to find them.</p>
<p>It’s not yet clear whether credits and purchases with digital media accounts (like the Google Play Store or iTunes) or online reward account points can be transferred when their holder dies. The only solution for now may be to leave your executor with instructions on how to access the value stored in those accounts – and back up the media on external hard drives stored in a safe place.</p>
<p>Finally, check with the companies whose online services you use to see if they provide their own method to transfer assets at death. For example, <a href="https://myaccount.google.com/inactive?pli=1">Google has pioneered a method</a> for its users to indicate what they want to have happen to their account if they don’t access it for several months.</p>
<p>By engaging in some simple estate planning, you can protect your privacy as well as ease the management of your estate after your death. Plan for your digital assets in the same way you would any other valuable tangible or intangible asset. After all, digital assets are today’s shoeboxes of photos, letters and other mementos. Planning can preserve your legacy in its digital form.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/90613/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Natalie Banta does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>What happens to your Facebook account, your iTunes purchases and your email messages when you die?Natalie Banta, Associate Professor of Law, Drake UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/898552018-01-10T19:35:04Z2018-01-10T19:35:04ZWhy children should be taught to build a positive online presence<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201444/original/file-20180110-36043-6hci6l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">While digital footprints are considered to be a liability, if managed well they can be an asset.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Rather than just teaching children about internet safety and reducing their digital footprint, we should also encourage them to curate a <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/julesschroeder/2017/04/30/how-to-use-your-digital-footprint-to-advance-your-career/#211761fe22af">positive digital footprint</a> which will be an asset for them in their future.</p>
<p>Today’s children are <a href="http://www.cci.edu.au/about/media/media-release-aussie-kids-%E2%80%98earliest-internet-users%E2%80%99">prolific users</a> of the internet. Concern has been raised about the future impact of the <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/national/education/tread-very-carefully--youre-leaving-digital-footprints-20150216-13g354.html">digital footprints</a> they are generating. While much discussion of this issue focuses on <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-parents-and-teens-can-reduce-the-impact-of-social-media-on-youth-well-being-87619">keeping children safe</a>, little is known about how children manage their digital footprints.</p>
<p>While digital footprints are considered to be a liability, if managed well they can be an asset. Digital footprints can showcase identity, skills and interests. This is important in an era where <a href="http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/businessreview/2016/09/28/does-profiling-employees-online-overstep-the-boundaries/">employers “google” candidates</a> to check their identity and verify their suitability. In this context, having no digital footprint can be as much of a disadvantage as having a poorly managed one.</p>
<p>The “<a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2042753017751711">Best Footprint Forward</a>” project explored what children know about digital footprints. Focus groups were made up of 33 children aged 10-12 years from three schools in regional NSW. Analysis of the focus groups reveals children have strategies to keep safe online, but they need further guidance on how to build a positive digital footprint. </p>
<h2>What children know and do about digital footprints</h2>
<p>The project found, while children use the internet for a variety of purposes (such as homework, gaming, watching videos), communicating with friends was the most popular online activity. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201446/original/file-20180110-36025-1lkwqdl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201446/original/file-20180110-36025-1lkwqdl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201446/original/file-20180110-36025-1lkwqdl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201446/original/file-20180110-36025-1lkwqdl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201446/original/file-20180110-36025-1lkwqdl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201446/original/file-20180110-36025-1lkwqdl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201446/original/file-20180110-36025-1lkwqdl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Most children in the focus group used Instagram just to talk to each other.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The children knew what digital footprints were: </p>
<ul>
<li><p>what you put online stays online </p></li>
<li><p>people could find you if you left identifying information, such as your address or full name</p></li>
<li><p>employers would check your social media. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>They talked about password security, not putting personal details online (such as their name, address and date of birth), blocking people who harassed them, getting advice from parents, not clicking on anything silly, not posting pictures of their faces. They showed awareness of the potential consequences of their actions.</p>
<p>The implications of their digital footprint awareness led them to try to minimise theirs, to try to be invisible online. They mainly communicated with one another via Instagram, using it as a messaging service. All but one child had their account set to private, and very few posted photos. They used it just to talk. </p>
<p>While the children in the study had a high level of digital footprint awareness, they are only aware of this as a liability. Their responses did not include any discussion of the benefits offered by digital footprints. Their re-purposing of Instagram as a messaging service suggests a savvy and pragmatic approach to the problem of, in the words of one girl in the study, the “internet always keeping it”. Educative interventions should be designed to empower and protect children, to supplement their existing digital footprint management strategies. </p>
<h2>How to teach for positive digital footprints</h2>
<p>Children could be taught how to <a href="https://www.saferinternet.org.uk/blog/create-positive-digital-footprint-online">curate their online presence</a>. That is, they could be explicitly taught not all they do online needs to be hidden. Curation is about knowing what to display publicly and what should remain private.</p>
<p>While it’s appropriate conversations with their friends not be public, children could be taught that digital artefacts which demonstrate their interests, achievements and skill could be both public and identifiable. School projects, awards, pieces of writing, and digital artworks are examples of suitable things to be attributed to them. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201445/original/file-20180110-36028-qn8fl6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201445/original/file-20180110-36028-qn8fl6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=349&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201445/original/file-20180110-36028-qn8fl6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=349&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201445/original/file-20180110-36028-qn8fl6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=349&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201445/original/file-20180110-36028-qn8fl6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201445/original/file-20180110-36028-qn8fl6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201445/original/file-20180110-36028-qn8fl6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Putting school projects online can add to a positive digital footprint for children.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/apr11/vol68/num07/Positive-Digital-Footprints.aspx">Teaching children</a> to curate their achievements, skills and some aspects of their digital identity would help prepare them for the greater online freedom that will come with high school. </p>
<h2>When should positive digital footprint education begin?</h2>
<p>There are four reasons the two final years of primary school would be an ideal time to begin to teach children about positive digital footprints:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>they are lacking this information and were not aware a digital footprint could be a positive asset for their future</p></li>
<li><p>children at this age <a href="https://www.acma.gov.au/-/media/Regulatory-Frameworks-and-International-Engagement/Information/pdf/Digital-footprints-and-identities-community-attitudinal-research-pdf.pdf">are transitioning</a> from predominantly game playing and video watching to more creative and generative uses of the internet and social media</p></li>
<li><p><a href="http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/parenting4digitalfuture/2015/09/21/parental-education-and-digital-skills-matter-most-in-guiding-childrens-internet-use/">different parenting styles</a> means not all children will get this information at home</p></li>
<li><p>the strength of the <a href="http://www.schoolatoz.nsw.edu.au/technology/cybersafety">cyber safety message</a> they’re getting from schools suggests this knowledge could be built upon so children are given options about which online activities should remain invisible and which would be beneficial to have out there.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>When asked what would you like to know about the internet, one girl in the study asked:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>How can it change your future? </p>
</blockquote>
<p>This gets to the heart of what’s at stake. Digital footprints can be an asset or a liability for children. Building on their knowledge by giving them guidance in curating a positive online presence could go a long way to help children shape their own future.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/89855/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rachel Buchanan received funding from the auDA Foundation to support the research described in this article. </span></em></p>When it comes to online spaces, children are usually taught about cyber safety and keeping information private, but curating a positive digital footprint could actually benefit them later in life.Rachel Buchanan, Senior Lecturer in Education, University of NewcastleLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.