Evaluating and Enhancing Privacy and Information Sharing in Online Social Networks

本研究的目标是评估与在线社交网络中的信息共享相关的隐私风险，并提出有效的缓解策略，可以提高隐私，同时保持有价值的在线互动。在线社交网络，如Facebook、MySpace，近年来会员数量呈指数级增长。这些网络是以计算机为媒介的社会互动的成功例子。然而，它们也引发了新的隐私问题。本研究将量化与在线社交网络中的信息共享相关的风险，提高对这些风险的认识和减轻风险的方法，从而帮助提高这些网络的可用性和价值。本项目将开展三项主要活动。 首先，它将评估社交网站上公开提供的信息可能被用来收集有关个人的额外和可能更敏感的数据的风险。具体来说，它将评估个人的社会安全号码可能从普通的社交网络数据中估计出来的风险-随之而来的是身份盗窃的威胁。其次，它将评估社交网站上公开提供的信息可能被用来在伪匿名数据的情况下重新识别个人的风险。具体而言，它将评估在其他伪匿名网站上发布自己图像的个人可能使用标准面部识别技术和公开可用的社交网络数据进行个人识别的风险。第三，它将设计和评估适当的工具，以减轻通过以前的研究发现的风险水平，以便在不破坏信息共享的情况下加强在线社交网络的隐私。在线社交网络不再是一个小众现象;数百万人使用它们进行交流、联网或约会。因此，与在线社交网络相关联的安全和隐私风险变得显著。因此，为用户提供隐私意识工具和为公共机构以及社交网络提供商提供政策指导至关重要。然而，这项研究的影响更为广泛。在线社交网络只是当今个人在线共享个人信息的一种方式。以计算机为媒介的通信使信息共享和交互变得容易，而且还可以挖掘，存储和分析这些数据。这项研究的更广泛的目标是评估，并在必要时提高人们对计算机介导的社会系统中与信息共享相关的新权衡的认识。研究结果将提供有关计算机媒介通信如何创造新的机会和威胁的见解。这种洞察力将有助于政府机构制定政策;有助于个人进行自我意识和控制;有助于私营部门实体了解其架构中的潜在漏洞。

The goal of this research is to evaluate the privacy risks associated with information sharing in online social networks and to propose efficient mitigation strategies that may enhance privacy while preserving valuable online interaction. Online social networks such as Friendster, MySpace, or the Facebook have experienced exponential growth in membership in recent years. These networks are successful examples of computer-mediated social interaction. However, they also raise novel privacy concerns. This research will quantify the risks associated with information sharing in online social networks, increase awareness about those risks and ways to mitigate them, and therefore help increase the usability and value of those networks.This project will carry out three main activities. First, it will evaluate the risks that information publicly provided on a social networking site may be used to gather additional and potentially more sensitive data about an individual. Specifically, it will evaluate the risks that an individual's social security number may be estimated from ordinary social network data - with the ensuing threat of identity theft. Second, it will evaluate the risks that information publicly provided on a social networking site may be used to re-identify an individual in the context of pseudo-anonymous data. Specifically, it will evaluate the risk that an individual who posts images of him/herself in otherwise pseudo-anonymous sites may be personally identified using standard face recognition technologies and publicly available social network data. Third, it will design and evaluate appropriate tools to mitigate the level of risk detected through the previous studies, in order to enhance privacy in online social networks without disrupting information sharing. Online social networks are no longer a niche phenomenon; millions use them for communicating, networking, or dating. Security and privacy risks associated with online social networks therefore become significant. Hence, it is crucial to provide tools for privacy-awareness to users and directions for policy to public agencies as well as social network providers. However, the implications of this study are broader. Online social networks are just one way through which individuals today share personal information online. Computer-mediated communication makes it easy to share information and interact, but also to mine, store, and analyze that data. The wider goal of the research is to evaluate and, if necessary, raise awareness about the novel trade-offs associated with information sharing in computer-mediated social systems. The results will provide insight on how computer-mediated communication is creating new opportunities and threats. Such insight will be of use to government agencies for policy making; to individuals for self-awareness and control; and to private sector entities to inform them about potential vulnerabilities in their architectures.