{"id":18871,"date":"2021-04-20T11:15:13","date_gmt":"2021-04-20T03:15:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/?p=18871"},"modified":"2021-06-11T15:43:21","modified_gmt":"2021-06-11T07:43:21","slug":"online-privacy-and-security-concerns-grow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/2021\/04\/online-privacy-and-security-concerns-grow\/","title":{"rendered":"Online Privacy and Security Concerns Grow"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

HongKongers are using Signal and VPNs due to privacy and security concerns.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Leung Pak Hei<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

University\nstudent Fong Kit-wa has switched from WhatsApp to Signal since early January\n2021 due to privacy concern. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am\nworried that WhatsApp will collect my personal data, and I am not sure under\nwhat conditions WhatsApp will give these data to a third party,\u201d the Year Two\nstudent says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Half of her\nfriends have switched to Signal a week after WhatsApp released its new privacy\nterms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On January 5,\n2021, WhatsApp announced that it would change its privacy policy. The new terms\nallow businesses from Facebook and Instagram to connect with WhatsApp users,\nsparking concerns over privacy. Many question if Facebook companies will monetise\nWhatsApp to share users\u2019 data, including contacts and status updates, for\nadvertising. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Users were\ninformed that they would not be able to continue using the app if they refused\nto accept the new terms before February 8. WhatsApp users flocked to rival\nmessaging platforms like Signal and Telegram due to cybersecurity and privacy\nconcerns. WhatsApp was forced to postpone the deadline to May 15.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Signal was\ndeveloped by Brian Acton, co-founder of WhatsApp. The application released in\n2014 now\n has about 40 million users worldwide. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The instant-messaging\nplatform later issued a statement: \u201cThe changes are related to optional\nbusiness features on WhatsApp. The privacy and security of your personal\nmessages and calls do not change. They are protected by end-to-end encryption,\nand WhatsApp and Facebook cannot read or listen to them\u201d on its online Help\nCentre website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
WhatsApp’s answers to questions regarding its privacy policy. (Source: WhatsApp Help Centre)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The\nstatement is unlikely to iron out users\u2019 mistrust. Fong says that Signal has\nbecome her main way to communicate with others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNow I use\nSignal more than WhatsApp. I only use WhatsApp for work-related purposes, like\ntalking to my students\u2019 parents when I work as a private tutor,\u201d she says.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI like the\n\u2018disappearing messages\u2019 function on Signal. I feel like it better protects my\nprivacy because confidential or secretive messages in a conversation will disappear\nautomatically,\u201d Fong says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
‘Disappearing Messages’ function on Signal.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSignal once\ncrashed at the end of January, but I can tolerate this because it is a\nrelatively new app,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recently,\napart from switching to Signal, more and more people in Hong Kong are also\nusing virtual private networks (VPN) for better cybersecurity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

VPN masks\nusers\u2019 Internet protocol address, making it harder for others to trace their\nonline footprint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

VPN is also\nused to access websites that are banned by governments. In January 2021, Hong\nKong network providers blocked a website named \u201cHKChronicles\u201d due to a request by\nthe police. The website contains personal information on policemen involved in\nthe 2019 protests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 University student Lam Cheuk-yin has been\nusing a\n VPN since late June 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI bought a\nthree-year plan before the implementation of the National Security Law (NSL)\nwhen there was a 60 per cent discount. Around ten of my friends have also been\nusing VPNs. They also\nbought it before the law came into force,\u201d Lam recalls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI use a VPN to\nprotect my digital footprint because I am concerned that the government may be\nable to access my online traffic under the NSL,\u201d Lam says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI use a VPN to protect my digital footprint because I am concerned that the government may be able to access my online traffic under the NSL.\u201d <\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Tsui\nLok-man, an assistant professor from the CUHK School of Journalism and\nCommunication, says more people in Hong Kong are using VPNs due to privacy\nconcerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInternet\nproviders or telecommunication companies may know which websites you have\nvisited. They may sell information to a third party or even give them to law\nenforcers,\u201d Tsui explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\njournalism professor thinks that people are switching to Signal out of distrust\ntowards\nFacebook.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhatsApp is\na property of Facebook. When Facebook purchased WhatsApp, it claimed it would\nnot collect any data from WhatsApp. But WhatsApp\u2019s new privacy terms show that\nFacebook has broken its promise,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCompanies\nlike Facebook are making a lot of money by collecting users\u2019 data. The data are\nused for selling advertisements or product innovations,\u201d the journalism\nprofessor adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tsui believes\nthat recent political developments have caused an increase in awareness of\nonline privacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSince the\n2019 protests, people who participated in the Anti-Extradition Law Amendment\nBill Movement have become more mindful of concealing their digital footprint\nbecause they are worried that the police may be able to gather enough\ninformation to charge them,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meng Wei, an assistant professor from the CUHK Department of Computer Science and Engineering, explains that Signal is more secure than WhatsApp because more conversation data is secured by end-to-end encryption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf the\ncommunication is end-to-end encrypted, only the people that are engaged in the\nconversation can get access to its raw content. Any other parties will not be\nable to learn about the content of the conversation,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhatsApp\nalso adopts end-to-end encryption, but some of the conversation\ndata is not encrypted, for example, time of conversation and account names of\nsenders and receivers,\u201d he continues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The computer\nscience professor further explains that Signal provides additional encryption\non the users\u2019 profiles, so it is more difficult to know who is talking on\nSignal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meng adds\nthat WhatsApp\u2019s new privacy terms make users concerned, but it will not hugely\naffect the app\u2019s security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhatsApp\u2019s\nnew privacy policy does not change its end-to-end encryption technology, so the\ncontent of the conversations is still kept secret. But WhatsApp is not\ntransparent on how it will collect users\u2019 data, this is one of the reasons why\nusers do not trust it,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meng thinks\nthat using VPN can better protect online security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll\ncommunications between the user and the VPN server are encrypted, so other\nparties will not know what the user is exchanging with the server,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf someone\nwants to express their opinion anonymously and does not want to be traced, a VPN\ncan provide some protection from local internet providers. But if you post some\ncontent after logging in on social media accounts like Facebook, they will still know\nwho you are,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut if you post some content after logging in on social media accounts like Facebook, they will still know who you are.\u201d <\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

He reminds\nnetizens to always use\nthe latest software and products because updates may fix bugs in older versions\nand keep attackers away. He also urges netizens to be careful when posting\ninformation online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In October\n2020, the Consumer Council compared 20 free and paid VPN services. Results\nshowed that number and location of servers, connection speed, safety and\nprivacy levels vary with each VPN service. Consumers can look for advanced\nfeatures like network lock, split tunnelling support, malware and ad block for\nfurther protection. It is always recommended to compare options before\npurchasing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Edited by Bonita Wong<\/em>
Sub-edited by Agnes Lam<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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