What responsibility do we have to protect user privacy by default?

vimanuelt

What responsibility do we have to protect user privacy by default?
Should telemetry and online connectivity be opt-in rather than opt-out?
Is silence on data collection an ethical failure?

Robin

There are "hardened" OSes that specialize in user privacy and data security. GhostBSD doesn't emphesize that on the website, but rather "user friendliness." Perhaps a little document on "security and privacy on GhostBSD" could be added to the wiki or docs, offering tips for enhancing them.

Telemetry and ads and such should be opt-in though, by default in my opinion.

brianthehughes

What responsibility do we have to protect user privacy by default?

None, in my opinion.

Should telemetry and online connectivity be opt-in rather than opt-out?

If it’s a product of the GhostBSD project a user should be informed and/or opti-in.

If it’s a product of the upstream and being made available to the user base… less so.

It becomes a tend your own garden before commenting on others. This is also the slippery slope of being ‘woke’

Is silence on data collection an ethical failure?

It’s 2025, if it’s free, how you use it is the cost. I thought this was an accepted norm.

Being silent.
Silencing the community.
Might be a failure but neither of that is what’s happening.
This community is responding to concerns and participating in the discussion while exploring alternatives to defaults.

Just trying to keep these topics aligned with the project here. Recently forum use surges have not helped threads stay on topic.

This thread has three distinct but subjectively related topics. 🙂

vimanuelt

@brianthehughes #p2489
To understand the values that a community shares is very important. These values give direction to development. They influence decisions and show which compromises the community finds acceptable. When we ask several related questions together, we can notice patterns in how people think. This helps us to see where people agree and where they do not agree. It also gives us a chance to speak openly and honestly. In this way, the community can move from personal opinions to a clearer and more united identity. This identity is not only what one person believes. It is what the group accepts as a common responsibility. This becomes especially important when we speak about privacy, ethics, and how software behaves, because these issues affect every user, even those who stay silent.

Now I want to share my opinion. Privacy should be protected by default. It should not be something that is added later. It should not be something that only careful or advanced users know how to enable. If telemetry or internet communication is used, the user should first give clear and informed permission. This respects freedom of choice and keeps control in the hands of the person. If a system collects data without telling the user, or hides this information, then there is a serious ethical problem. Many users will not know what has been taken or how it is used. In the end, the way we design and build things shows what we really care about. If we say that we respect users, then we must be honest. We must reduce the amount of data that applications collect. We must make privacy the natural and expected beginning, not something that the user must work hard to get back.