One of our most popular and engaging workshops through MAC is the one about how technologies are exploited to stalk and harass people. Audiences are often unnerved by how software and hardware is used to gather information that is then used to monitor, locate, harass, impersonate, or intimidate them.

A recent article by John Brownlee at Cult of Mac explores a similarly creepy app called Girls Around Me. At the time of this post, the app had been pulled from the iOS app store, but it doesn’t mean it or something like it won’t come back. The app highlights security and privacy concerns inherent in some of the ways that personal information is disclosed through apps and social networking.

On the surface, the app is sleazy and creepy looking. It is designed with silhouettes of naked women on a radar screen, as if they are targets. It evens advertises that you should consider this public information an invitation to approach these women for sex or worse. “In the mood for love, or just after a one-night stand? Girls Around Me puts you in control.” The app plots public information from profiles on Facebook and Foursquare on a map so that you can see who has checked in near your current location. It also allows you to browse the profiles, check pictures, and message the individual. The design of the app and the stated purpose, again, is creepy unless you are the person “in control.”

However, Brownlee correctly highlights the fact that the app is accessing data that is considered public, whether or not the user understands the privacy settings or how the information is being used.  The best part about the app is it is another example of why we should educate people about how their data is used so that they can make purposeful decisions about what they share. If anything, this is a creepy enough example to get people to pay attention. 

At the end of every technology and stalking workshop, there is a line of people who want assistance in putting a numeric or visual password on their mobile device(s). Hopefully, we can use examples like this to educate people about how their information is distributed and accessed, as well as ways in which they can take steps to remain safe.