Thoughts On Prepaid Cellphone Privacy

Pertaining to my last post on attempts at preventing the inevitable, it has been proposed that prepaid cellphone usage should be banned to avoid criminal anonymity. There are people who are not criminals who benefit from prepaid cellphones who do not deserve to lose this privilege. For example, prepaid cellphones are inexpensive. Someone who can not afford an unlimited calling plan might use one as an alternative. My first cellphone was prepaid, because my parents felt that at a young age it was necessary to monitor my minutes rather than including me on their plan. My grandmother owns a prepaid cellphone because she is inept when it comes to technology and wanted something simple. Whatever the reason, prepaid cellphones are used by many people and the government can find other effective ways to trace criminals.

Thoughts On Location Tracking

I think that planting any kind of location device on humans is morally repugnant. It doesn't matter if it is an infant, a teen, or an elderly person, it is a complete violation of privacy. Yes, it would help in preventing kidnappings and things of that nature, but we can't rely on technology to solve all of our problems. Parents are expected to be responsible enough to keep a close eye on their young children. Teenagers desperately seek freedom and a location device would prevent them from having any type of relationship with their parents. As far as the elderly, I would think that they would consider it humiliating to need to be watched over at such a mature stage in their lives. I don't believe that tracking devices for humans should even be available as an option let alone a requirement. We need to accept the fact that bad things happen in this world. Unfortunately, children get kidnapped, teenagers lie to their parents, and the elderly find themselves in helpless situations. A complete invasion of privacy is not a logical approach in preventing the inevitable.

Introduction

My name is Jessica Murdock, I am a freshman at UNH. I recently transferred into the course, "Living in a Networked World: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly", and so far I am very pleased with my decision. I find the content to be interesting and informative. Seeing as how the world today is centered around technology, this class will be essential in expanding my knowledge of the internet, and understanding how to use it safely.