We go online every day and most of us carry at least one device that connects us with our bank accounts, work emails, and social media accounts within seconds. Since going online has become so normal, it’s easy to forget how dangerous the Internet can be.

That’s why we’re happy that Bitch Magazine recently interviewed Violet Blue, a journalist, and the author of “The Smart Girl’s Guide to Privacy.” To help make the book practical (not everyone is an Internet wizard), Blue consulted attorneys, psychologists, and tech employees to glean easy-to-digest information that doesn’t require too much background knowledge, Bitch reports.

Now, you may be thinking that since you grew up using the Internet you have no use for this book… not so. Bitch reports that while you may already know about a lot of the book’s tips, there are some bits of information you may have had no idea were accessible to the public (we’re talking stuff like your home address… yikes).

In the Bitch article, Blue expresses that Internet privacy is a self-defense move. She equates Internet safety with real life safety, and it makes sense:

“It’s the same sort of protection that you would take when you go outside. People just don’t think of going on the Internet in the same way. Would you trust a man on the street? Would you trust a person who has a clipboard and is asking you for your phone number and address to sign you up for some interesting offers? You wouldn’t say yes to anything like that because it’s a privacy risk. You’d think, “Who is this person?” But on the Internet, we’ve been lulled into a false sense of security—a lot having to do with social networking sites—that giving up our privacy, identity, and information is a necessary exchange in order to enjoy these services,” Blue explains.

Blue also states that online privacy is a gendered issue. “I think the biggest thing that’s missing in today’s privacy conversation is the role of gender.” She goes on to say that “straight men perceive privacy completely differently from everyone else,” which is unfortunate, because they are the ones who “shape, develop, and implement” the technologies we all use.

I, for one, will be adding this book to my to-buy list because I think about Internet safety a lot. I need to defend myself as much as possible because I spend a ton of time working and playing online.

Do you want to read this book? (If so, get the info on where to find it here.) Are there any aspects of Internet privacy that really creep you out?

Related on EcoSalon

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Image from the book’s Tumblr

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Shouldn’t ‘Hello Barbie’ really be named ‘Backstabbing Barbie’?

Barbie has gotten a lot of flak over the years. From her body shape to her career choices to her taste in men, she’s more controversial than most celebrities—and there’s way more to come. Mattel, along with San Francisco startup ToyTalk, is set to release ‘Hello Barbie’ this fall, a talking Barbie that has real conversations with kids and—like a parrot from hell—remembers everything the child has ever said.

“Mattel has always been at the forefront of inspiring conversations between girls and their dolls beginning with Chatty Cathy in the late 1950s. The number one request we receive from girls globally is to have a conversation with Barbie, and with Hello Barbie we are making that request a reality,” Stephanie Cota, SVP, Global Communications told Huffington Post.

The play-by-play of how ‘Hello Barbie’ works goes something like this: Kids press a button on the doll, and ‘Hello Barbie’ asks them questions. A microphone on the doll records the child’s answers and sends them to ToyTalk. ToyTalk records the information and responds, the whole idea being the child forms an actual bond with their doll, like they would a friend in real life. Over time, ‘Hello Barbie’ gets to know you, your likes and dislikes, and talks to you based on the information she’s gathered about you during your conversations. Totally not creepy at all.

As a little girl who used to own a Barbie, or nine, I understand the desire to have a conversation with your doll. I mean, when you’re six or seven years old, your world’s pretty limited and you eventually run out of material. I can barely keep up my half of the conversation to this day, never mind when I had to make up my doll’s too. At the time, I thought it would be amazing for my Barbie to pick up the slack… you know, then the “Chucky” movies came out.

Obvi, parents are shitting their pants over the doll potentially (aka definitely) eavesdropping and invading their child’s privacy. The Siri-like feature may be violating the regulations under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, which prohibits collecting information from children under the age of 13 without parental consent, though ToyTalk has explicitly stated this isn’t the case at all.

“While the underlying technology of our products works much like Siri, Google Now, and Cortana, ToyTalk products never search the open web for answers,” Oren Jacob, CEO of ToyTalk, told The Register. “Responses are carefully crafted by our own writing team, and conversations recorded through our products are never used to advertise or market to children or anyone.”

Then again, there are those pesky people called hackers. All I know is if I wanted a friend who was going to spill my secrets and publicly humiliate me, I’d just go to school.

How do you feel about the creepiness that is ‘Hello Barbie’?

Related on EcoSalon

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No Green in Sight for Boomer Barbie

Unfeminist Barbie: From Food Restriction to Female Incompetence

Image: TomoUSA/YouTube

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