Privacy Implications Of The Advancement In Information Technology Mai Ayman Abdelmonem

Supervisor: Mohamed Awny

Thesis (M.A.)—Nile University, Egypt, 2019 .

"Includes bibliographical references"

Contents:
Chapter 2: Data Privacy ................................................................................................................................ 3 2.1: Definition of Data Privacy and its Implications .................................................................................. 3
2.2: Data Privacy relates to Different Data Types ..................................................................................... 3
2.2.1: Medical Records .......................................................................................................................... 4
2.2.2: Financial Information .................................................................................................................. 5
2.2.3: Geographic Information .............................................................................................................. 6
2.3: Ethical Issues in Information Technology .......................................................................................... 7
2.4: Privacy Implications of the Rapid Advancements in Information Technology .................................. 8
The Individual Level .............................................................................................................................. 8
The Economic and Social Level ............................................................................................................. 9
2.5: Ethics and Regulatory Laws................................................................................................................ 9
2.6: Cases of Businesses’ Online Security Breaches ................................................................................ 11
Chapter 3: Protecting the Online Privacy.................................................................................................... 13
3.1: Keeping the Online Information Safe .............................................................................................. 13
3.2: The Positive Impact of Information Technology .............................................................................. 14
In the Banking Sector: ......................................................................................................................... 14
In the Healthcare Sector: .................................................................................................................... 15
In the Business Sector: ........................................................................................................................ 15
3.3: The Role of Information Technology in Maintaining Privacy ........................................................... 15
3.3.1: Design Methods ........................................................................................................................ 15
3.3.2: Privacy Enhancing Technologies ............................................................................................... 16
3.3.3: Cryptography ............................................................................................................................ 16
Chapter 4: Security in Cloud-Based Technology ......................................................................................... 17
4.1: The Difference Between Cloud-Based and On-Premises Data Storage ........................................... 17
4.2: Cloud-Based Services Advantages and Challenges .......................................................................... 17
4.3: Privacy Aspects in Cloud-Based Technology .................................................................................... 19
Chapter 5: Problem Statement, Objectives, and Research Method ........................................................... 20
5.1: The Research Problem ..................................................................................................................... 20
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5.2: Research Gap .................................................................................................................................. 20
5.3: Importance of the Research ............................................................................................................ 20
5.4: Research Objectives ......................................................................................................................... 20
5.1: The Research Method ...................................................................................................................... 21
5.1.1: Research Type ........................................................................................................................... 21
5.1.2: The Target population............................................................................................................... 21
5.1.3: Research Variables .................................................................................................................... 21
5.1.4: Hypotheses ............................................................................................................................... 22
5.1.5: Hypotheses Testing ................................................................................................................... 25
Chapter 6: Survey ....................................................................................................................................... 26
6.1: Survey Objectives ............................................................................................................................. 26
6.2: Survey Sample ................................................................................................................................. 26
6.3: Survey Results ................................................................................................................................. 26
6.3.1: Privacy Invasion with Regards to the Use of Social Media ....................................................... 27
6.3.2: Privacy Invasion with Regards to the Issue of Finance ............................................................. 31
6.3.3: Privacy Invasion with Regards to Health Information .............................................................. 34
6.3.4: Privacy Invasion with Regards to Geographic Information ...................................................... 35
6.3.5: Privacy Invasion with Regards to Government Intervention .................................................... 37
6.3.6: Privacy Invasion with Regards to the Cloud Technology .......................................................... 38
6.4: Survey Discussion and Analysis ........................................................................................................ 39
6.4.1: Privacy Invasion with Regards to the Use of Social Media ....................................................... 39
6.4.2: Privacy Invasion with Regards to the Issue of Finance ............................................................. 40
6.4.3: Privacy Invasion with Regards to Health Information .............................................................. 40
6.4.4: Privacy Invasion with Regards to Geographic Information ...................................................... 41
6.4.5: Privacy Invasion with Regards to Government Intervention .................................................... 41
6.4.6: Privacy Invasion with Regards to Cloud Technology ................................................................ 41
6.5: Privacy Concerns Indicated by the Survey Results and Ways to Mitigate these Concerns ............. 42
6.6: Summary of Survey Results ............................................................................................................. 44
Chapter 7: Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 45
Bibliography & References ..........................................................................................................................

Abstract:
The impact of information technology on all aspects of our society, work and life has, undoubtedly, been substantial. The rapid advancement in this technology over the past few years has transformed how we do lots of things from communication, shopping and banking to almost everything we do in our daily lives. However, there have been some implications for this transformation which has resulted in a rise of public concerns over personal privacy. Today we are at the beginning of understanding the privacy implications this transformation has on our privacy. The recent advances in information technology have threatened privacy, reduced the amount of control over personal data, and opened up the possibility of negative consequences as a result of inexpensive and convenient access to personal data through the internet.
The purpose of this research work is to shed light on the privacy implications of the advancement in Information Technology on the privacy of individuals and their personal lives.
The research work focuses on a few aspects affecting privacy being the most obvious ones in our personal lives. These aspects are the use of social media, the issue of finance, health information, and geographic information. The implications of Information Technology on the above aspects are discussed and their possible negative impacts on people’s rights such as privacy, freedom, and right to express themselves.
As the Cloud-Based Technology is developing rapidly, this research discusses briefly the security and privacy aspects of this technology.
A field investigation in a form of a survey is conducted; the survey was applied to a sample of 100 respondents randomly approached among the researcher’s professional, academic, and personal network. The responses of the respondents, regarding the issues under study, were analyzed. The research findings have indicated that although a lot of people are genuinely concerned about their privacy, not enough efforts are done to protect their privacy due to insufficient knowledge among most of the respondents.
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The role of the government is also addressed and emphasized. Governmental privacy laws need to be well stated and people should be aware of them. However, laws are unable to keep abreast with the implications of Information Technology advancements.
The research also investigates the positive side of Information Technology where it can help in preventing privacy invasions. In this respect, the research work also investigates whether privacy concerns can restrict the future of Information Technology applications

Text in English, abstracts in English.