PRIVACY AND SAFETY ONLINE: STUDENTS PERSPECTIVE
Keywords:
privacy, safety, online platformsAbstract
As the exponential growth of digital tools makes it easier for us to work, shop, interact, and connect online, those same technologies are easily turned into instruments for disinformation, unauthorized monitoring, misuse of personal data, and mistreatment of vulnerable populations and minors. Because of that, the public should be thoroughly aware of their privacy policies on the platforms they use, as well as how information and opinions are now created, transmitted, and shared, to be able to defend themselves.
This paper will address the issue of different levels of concern for privacy and safety online among the students at International Balkan University in Skopje, and the reasons behind it. We use the research results conducted during April 2024 through an online questionnaire with the students at International Balkan University in Skopje, North Macedonia, and explore the questions of students’ views on privacy and safety while using online platforms. We argue that it is of utmost importance to educate and inform the public about online platforms’ policies, especially of their privacy and safety-related policies, as well as to ensure the public understanding of the rights and obligations of the users once they accept the ‘terms and the conditions’ of an online platform.
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