Lori Andrews, author of I Know Who You Are and I Saw What You Did: Social Networks and the Death of Privacy
“When octuplets are born in Houston, when a dead man fathers a baby in Los Angeles, when ‘twins’ of different races are born after a medical mix-up in Manhattan, whom are you going to call? Lori Andrews definitely is on the short list,” says USA Today.
Lori works on the edge of new technology. She’s advised companies, politicians, and consumers around the world about the personal and social impacts of genetic technologies, reproductive technologies, and nanotechnologies. Now she’s focusing on how social networks are changing our lives, for good and ill.
She started her consumer activism when she was seven and her Ken doll went bald. Her letter to Mattel got action. She’s been fighting for people’s rights ever since.
Lori is the author of ten non-fiction books and three novels. She frequently appears on television, including on 60 Minutes, Good Morning America, and Nightline. She has written for publications that include Playboy, Parade, New York, Vogue, Glamour, Self, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, and Psychology Today.
The American Bar Association Journal calls Lori “a lawyer with a literary bent who has the scientific chops to rival any CSI investigator.” In her current project, she is writing a Constitution covering social networks.
Lori works on the edge of new technology. She’s advised companies, politicians, and consumers around the world about the personal and social impacts of genetic technologies, reproductive technologies, and nanotechnologies. Now she’s focusing on how social networks are changing our lives, for good and ill.
She started her consumer activism when she was seven and her Ken doll went bald. Her letter to Mattel got action. She’s been fighting for people’s rights ever since.
Lori is the author of ten non-fiction books and three novels. She frequently appears on television, including on 60 Minutes, Good Morning America, and Nightline. She has written for publications that include Playboy, Parade, New York, Vogue, Glamour, Self, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, and Psychology Today.
The American Bar Association Journal calls Lori “a lawyer with a literary bent who has the scientific chops to rival any CSI investigator.” In her current project, she is writing a Constitution covering social networks.
Lori talks about her travels across the Web
While I was in law school, I wrote about computer crime for New York Magazine. Because of what I uncovered about the holes in computer security, for years I refused to buy anything on the Web. Not an airline ticket. Not even a book from Amazon. Then one of my research assistants wanted a specific birthday present that could only be purchased on stupid.com, a website that sells things like a flying alarm clock, a book of seriously bad baby names, fetus-shaped soap on a rope, and Freudian slippers. I made the purchase and realized that, even though I was a decently-paid, hopefully well-respected law professor, my entire digital profile was now that of a stupid.com user.
Today, it’s impossible to stay off the grid. My preferences and desires, my foibles and my fears, are all revealed. From my Facebook profile to the website for my books, from my credit card purchases to my decision to check job postings, facts about me are floating through the ether and could be used against me. A stalker found me with just a quick glance at my book-signing schedule. Now he can learn my unlisted phone number and my home address through a free data aggregator. Facts about my travels across the Web are collected daily—without my consent—via cookies, web beacons, scrapers, and other tracking mechanisms.
As I undertook research for my book on social networks, unseen decisions were made about me based on the websites I visited. When I was doing research about the virtual Texas deputies who sat in bars and digitally patrolled the border, the following ads popped up on my computer: “Designer Heels Only $39.” “Newegg Business Store: Computers, Office Equipment, Office Supplies, Software and more!” And, “Earn A Homeland Security Degree & Become a Border Patrol Agent Today!”
Yeah, that’s the real me. A Christian Louboutin-wearing, software-wielding border cop.
I’d love to hear about your experiences with social networks. Review the Social Network Constitution.
Then let me know your thoughts.
Today, it’s impossible to stay off the grid. My preferences and desires, my foibles and my fears, are all revealed. From my Facebook profile to the website for my books, from my credit card purchases to my decision to check job postings, facts about me are floating through the ether and could be used against me. A stalker found me with just a quick glance at my book-signing schedule. Now he can learn my unlisted phone number and my home address through a free data aggregator. Facts about my travels across the Web are collected daily—without my consent—via cookies, web beacons, scrapers, and other tracking mechanisms.
As I undertook research for my book on social networks, unseen decisions were made about me based on the websites I visited. When I was doing research about the virtual Texas deputies who sat in bars and digitally patrolled the border, the following ads popped up on my computer: “Designer Heels Only $39.” “Newegg Business Store: Computers, Office Equipment, Office Supplies, Software and more!” And, “Earn A Homeland Security Degree & Become a Border Patrol Agent Today!”
Yeah, that’s the real me. A Christian Louboutin-wearing, software-wielding border cop.
I’d love to hear about your experiences with social networks. Review the Social Network Constitution.
Then let me know your thoughts.