In Privacy1 (Privatheit 1), I wrote about harm-free disposal of private, real objects when I die. And what I meant was objects I would not want anybody to know I possessed.
But how about data? Secret letters you may have written at some time. Secret pictures you may have collected? And, above all, all that countless stored interaction lying around somewhere on electronic storage devices? All those private notes and ideas on diverse topics?
All those hard drives and computers sitting somewhere? Most of them have been forgotten already? What do I need to write into my testament in order to make sure it will all disappear soon after I die? To make sure that absolutely nobody will ever hear about what was embarrassing and consequently probably extremely “private” in my life?
But hey: is that really what I want? Do I really want to completely eradicate all traces of my life? Won’t a lot get lost? What will happen to my own website and my blog? After all, I was enthusiastic about it, wasn’t I? Do we need a digital tombstone on the internet that opens everything with one click?
Or is it preferable to have a digital grave of forgetting where all remains of one’s own digital life will be buried and finally “covered with soil”? Something like “/dev0″ I remember from my former “Unix Live”.
It is probably better to live a transparent life and let everything remain. If possible without exceptions. And if there is anything you would not wish to be caught doing, maybe you should just not do it! Either refrain from fraud – or admit to it.
If you adhere to this principle, there will be no huge secrets you would be unwilling to let “others” know and consequently wish to hide or eventually delete.
But is it really true that a “bad conscience”, guilt and shame are actually only human? Or did someone persuade us somehow that this is so? If so, shouldn’t we liberate ourselves from it? Maybe it would mean we have to be less afraid about “privacy”?
After all, fears and anxieties will only complicate our lives. And especially when it comes to data, they really only happen in our head. So: throw them away, your fears and anxieties! But do not throw in the data, as well!
RMD
(Translated by EG)
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