Content-type: text/html Downes.ca ~ Stephen's Web ~ Ethics of identity in the time of big data

Stephen Downes

Knowledge, Learning, Community

This is a delicious question. Should I be able to have multiple identities - that is, multiple versions of myself (think: my self at work, my self at home, my self in an online game), or should I have only one identity? It's a delicious question because the obvious answer to both questions is "yes", and yet they can't both be true - either I have multiple identities, or I have one. Which is the more ethical choice? When Mark Zuckerberg says "Having two identities for yourself is an example of a lack of integrity," we recoil. Who is he to say we should have only one identity? On the other hand, when it comes to credit reports, criminal records, and drivers licenses, it's very clear we should have only one identity. But should prospective Tinder dates see your credit report? What about our educational records - can we just drop that ugly semester at the community college? This article begins to investigate this issue, one which will not go away.

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Stephen Downes Stephen Downes, Casselman, Canada
stephen@downes.ca

Copyright 2024
Last Updated: Apr 28, 2024 04:47 a.m.

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