Why should you care?
If you are like some people I know, you might ask how can I think about my privacy when I have bills to pay, children to feed and relatives to take care of. I have nothing to hide, why would I care about that too?
It isn’t about having anything to hide. Government is watching you, corporations are watching you too. If you live in a capitalistic society you will be watched. It’s a matter of supply and demand. Currently only generic searches are altered and tailored for each user. In the very near future this concept will expand to anyone to read, buy and use anyway they want.
We live in a society where goods and services are tied to the credit industry. Many recognize, and accept, that the cost of individual insurance is partially based on payment history. Cell phone plans are also affected the same way. Anyone with a lower credit score is penalized and forced to pay more for services. This is only one example of how deep government collusion with corporate interest has affected our daily lives.
So why are you a slave to the credit industry?
If you have credit you have to protect it. It is used to judge you as a person. Aren’t you more than what you buy? This is not what makes a good person, yet we are judged accordingly whether we realize it or not.
The intrusion into your daily life is not yet complete, but left to politicians it soon will be. Your information belongs to you. Should a private company like your health insurance carrier be able to charge you extra if you eat fast food? What if the price you pay is tied to your opinion? What if it differs from the company’s view of religion, abortion, foreign policy or political affiliation. Would raising a personal opinion cost you more than someone who agreed with the company? Some banks and credit reporting companies are using facebook and twitter as a basis for credit worthiness.
The problem is not with the collectors and how the original information gets used. The problem is that large companies use our information in a number of different ways that you are never informed of and never agreed to.
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Agreements are contracts. All contracts have a beginning and a termination clause. However, this is not the way agreements work in the area of information gathering. Third parties get your information and sell it however it wishes. This is done without your permission. To further complicate the issue, companies are able to hide this fact so consumers have no idea who is collecting information about them or for what purpose.
This site offers a list of companies who are in the business of selling your information. You can notify them and tell them that you don’t want to be bothered. That is one definition of privacy – the right to be left alone. Your information and how you post it belongs to you. Once information makes it onto the internet it still is your property.
Don’t be fooled into thinking that any of your information is public information.
