Protecting my kids from digital harms and protecting their personal data often makes me feel like an isolated eccentric. Even before kids, I followed how the attention economy profited off of adults in ways that damaged mental health. In the quest for never-ending growth and profit, children are exposed to the same addictive harms that we as adults struggle to resist. So, you had better believe that as a parent, I am attempting to limit what my own children get exposed to.
Now, I have plenty of critical things to say about Big Tech, but I am going to give it some high praise here. During my time at Microsoft, there has been a continuous focus on security, digital safety, and protecting PII data. This isn’t a one-time thing. It is a culture where everyone is expected to understand and guard against exposure. I suspect companies reliant on technology (meaning all companies) have a similar posture. We have to.
So, now drop me with my personal and professional cultures attuned to digital awareness into the world my kids inhabit. A world where parents are asked to put their social security numbers and other PII into a shared Google Sheet. I am not making this up. This is obviously an extreme example, but there are lots of subtle ones. Assumptions about cell phone access make it challenging to set boundaries. There are Apps required for everything that are doing God knows what with all the data they collect.
Schools seem to get really upset when students exploit some configuration that allows for mischief. Most of the time, these are harmless pranks, but they get treated like nuclear launch codes were exposed. Schools should take advantage of these volunteer Red Teams. Maybe offer them bug bounties. I would rather students expose these vulnerabilities than truly bad actors. I get it is embarrassing to be taught by the students, but show some growth mindset and learn from your mistakes.
It feels like there are adversaries around every corner, and most parents, educators, and activity organizers are either unaware or have just given up. Am I a lone tech-fearing loony who reads too much and needs to get with the times? Or do you feel my parenting pain?