Facebook Generation Rekindles Expectation of Privacy Online

Mark Zuckerberg said in 2010 that privacy was no longer a “social norm.” But four years later, the pendulum might be ready to swing the other way.

The second generation of digital citizens -- teenagers and millennials, who have spent most, if not all, of their lives online – appear to be more likely to embrace the tools of privacy and protect their personal information. Disappearing-message apps like Snapchat and Cyber Dust have been embraced by young people who aren’t eager to leave too much of a digital footprint. Video apps like Vine and Instagram let you create an edited version of your world instead of uploading all your personal details. Even Facebook, despite years of resistance, recently changed its default for new posts from “public” to “friends” and introduced tools that let you easily untag yourself in other people’s photos and change old posts from public to friends-only.