Monday, August 5, 2013

21. How We Sabotage Our Own Privacy for Deals and Ego

How We Sabotage Our Own Privacy for Deals and Ego, an article from Mark Gibbs of NetworkWorld, touches on a very sensitive issue: the perceptions and reality surrounding privacy in a highly digitalized world.  In the article, Gibbs describes the multitudes of people who freely give out personal information.  Even the smallest trends, such as buying habits, can reveal more information about our personal lives than we intend to give.  Many of us "no longer care" how much personal information we give out, according to Gibbs; we give out personal information to banks, doctor's offices, on social media, and more.  However, the realization that companies and organizations are "mining" for our personal data scares us; the two points don't seem to add up.

While I wouldn't say that I have been overly protective of my information on the Internet, I have tried to take measures to protect the most vulnerable pieces of information such as my credit card number and my social security number.  I have placed my trust in companies that show security measures taken to prevent my information on their websites, but there is no guarantee that such information will never be compromised.  It is an increasingly more dangerous game to play to give out personal information on the Internet, but as societies around the world become more connected to digital media it becomes all the more difficult to avoid.

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