Social Insecurity, Changes, Risks and Communication

Social Insecurity, Changes, Risks and Communication

Introduction

Technologies have already become an essential part of daily life, and most people cannot imagine a day without using devices. However, this theme is much broader than it may seem, as technologies modernize and transform completely such fields as healthcare, security, data collection, and space exploration, and it is only the tip of the iceberg. The implementation of innovations in society is a complex process, which contributes to general progress and prosperity. Nonetheless, it also raises severe concerns and fears in public, and analyzing different aspects of the issue may give a broader understanding of its importance.

The major concepts and research on the topic examine such themes as social insecurity, adaptation to social changes, risks, and communication. Besides, the terms of McDonaldization and consumerism need to be assessed in order to make the full picture of the problem.

Optimistic Perspectives

Many research centers evaluate public opinion about innovations and new technology. Among them, the Pew Research Center has published a recent survey concerning views about the future of technologies (Smith par. 1). In general, Americans expect various positive changes in science which would improve the quality of living of the society. This optimism is understandable. People want to be healthier and live longer. Thus, technology is certainly the best means for achieving these dreams. However, not every change is commonly desired.

The research was devoted to the expected progress in science in the next 50 years. Optimists believe that it will soon be possible to obtain custom-made organs made in a lab (81%), computers will be able to create art similar to that made by humans (Smith par.7). People dream about traveling improvements and enhanced life-longevity. At the same time, the respondents admitted that it seems to be unlikely that humans will colonize other planets or finally invent teleportation in the nearest future.

Pessimists highlighted that the following changes can lead to the worse: robot caregivers for the elderly (65%); children with improved DNA (66%); non-military personal drones (63%), and other personal devices that would provide their users with all information about the current environment (53%). Such a negative attitude displays the major public fears and reveals that not every change is welcome. The reasons are connected with security and ethical concerns, and other stigmas that still exist not only in America but in the global society. The question is whether humanity is ready for such innovations and whether it corresponds to their real needs or undermines the common moral concepts and beliefs.

Schaefer provided several points of view on the topic (318). On the one hand, functionalists consider technologies as communication facilitators. On the other hand, conflict theorists regard innovations as a threat, as powerful people can use them to violate the privacy of the others. Both points have sense, as technologies provide not only progress and benefits but also the potential for abuse of rights. Hence, the controversy of the topic remains open to debate.

Security Concerns

The problem of public insecurity is especially acute right now when even the safest networks are easily hacked, and numerous cases of uncoordinated surveillance have been revealed. The era of information seemed to so aspire, but it turned out that the Internet knows much more about people than they do about themselves. It leads to public disagreement and sad cases of blackmailing people with information. Hence, the concern of data and cybersecurity is one of the most controversial topics at the moment.

Pew Research Center published research by Olmstead and Smith which was aimed at analyzing the cybersecurity habits of people (par. 1). Among their key findings is the number of 64% – it is a number of people who have ever experienced a data breach. It is impressive how many people do not trust social media and federal government sites. Also, the respondents are afraid of fraud when they deal with retailers and providers of various services. It is explained by the unprecedented number of fraud cases with credit cards and checks, and Americans feel this tendency. Although the research suggests that many people simply fail to follow cybersecurity rules on the Internet, it is still obvious that unsafe technologies and software are the primary reasons for everyone’s concern about the data.

The theme of privacy was also discussed by Schaefer who stressed that new technologies threaten our freedom from censorship and that “they also expose us to criminal behavior in new ways” (316). The subject of criminal misuse of information is quite broad and