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privacy mirrors

Privacy is a known issue in ubiquitous computing. It is exasperated by an oft-cited feature of ubiquitous computing – invisibility. When done well, designing for invisibility leads to computing environments that are integrated into people's on-going needs, practices, values, and aesthetic sensibilities. Invisible computing also often leverages implicit input from people, thereby minimizing the threshold of effort required to gain benefits from the system. However, invisible computing has many dangers as well. An example of this danger is a system that secretly collects information and disseminates that information inappropriately. Another example is a system that normally transmits data, but this fact is not relayed to an unknowing new user of the system. Clearly such systems are not well integrated into the social practices of their users.

This lack of awareness and control is not simply a privacy issue, characterized as "Do the wrong people know things about me," but it strikes fundamental issues in people understanding the capabilities of a system, and then being able to shape that system to meet their particular needs. [This is very similar to reflection in action.] Without the former (understanding the system), the latter (shaping the system) is impossible. There is no mechanism for people to reflect upon the system, no mechanism to help people understand the system, no mechanism for people to see how they and their information affect, contribute, interact, or participate in the system.

We are building interfaces that address this problem. In order to help users understand and shape the system, we want to visualize the invisible flow of information.

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