A Meeting of the Tech-Giants

Eight of the most prominent tech giants including Google, Facebook, Apple and Microsoft, recently met and voiced their concern about the use of customer data by the governments which has raised many questions about customer data protection and privacy.

Not only that the recent events have raised question about the governments’ role but also left these giants in an awkward position. The data that is used or misused by the governments as a part of their online surveillance program is more often provided by these very companies who are now concerned about their position in the whole scenario. 

The big names of technology urged to initiate an international ban on data collection by the governments on a grand scale to ensure that their reputation as customer-friendly remains intact. The initiative was more of a necessity for these companies since users’ trust in them is one of the key elements of success to them. If this trust is lost, their business will certainly suffer all around the world.

In fact, the air of distrust has already started to circulate with many countries writing rules that the companies must abide by while handling their citizens’ data. On a bigger scale such initiatives will only make data collection more expensive for the companies resulting in limited access and hence advancement in the area of marketing and promotions.

At  Pittsford University a team of social-media experts is working on various aspects of secure usage of the social media and developing programs that will allow users to be well-informed about how protected they are. It is important that we understand the significance of data protection and play our part as the first line of protection rather than relying on anyone else to do it for us.