Covering Your Tracks: How To Protect Your Privacy Online

10 years ago, if you wanted to get information about someone without them knowing, you would have to resort to sneaky eavesdropping, digging through their trash, or hiring a private investigator. Today, anyone with a computer can become a Sherlock Holmes simply by using Google to get the same information with less work. Cyber stalkers are becoming more common. Everyday people like you and me do it too. Ever wanted to know what your old friend from high school is up to? Google their names. It's not hard and it's not exactly illegal. But just where do we draw the line? What constitutes stalking and how do we protect ourselves from it?

Stalking in the real world is creepy and dangerous. Stalking online is no different. However, there seems to be an open consensus that if you put something out in cyber space, don't expect it to be private. Deal with it.

What can you expect floating around on the Internet with your name on it? Anything from your social security number, credit card numbers, to your cat's name, eating habits, location, and even your sexual fantasies. You can imagine how sensitive some of these things can be. Who can we blame for this? Google? Facebook? Myspace? The stalkers? Ourselves? The answer is a little bit of everyone including ourselves. We can blame Google for providing stalkers with an easy way to track us and Facebook for ninja changing their privacy policy. But it is ultimately our own faults for putting the info out there. We have to take responsibility for our own privacy.

What is privacy and why should we take it seriously? In legal terms, your privacy is protected by the Fourth Amendment of The US Constitution. The Fourth Amendment protects all US citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures. As far as the Internet is concerned, each site with a sign-up requires you to accept their terms of service in order to use their service. Usually, you choose to give up your privacy meaning you allow them to gather information about you in exchange for their service. There is one exception to this standard, however.

In 1998, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act forced websites to include privacy policies outlining how they collect personal information. In order to do this, they require a parent's or guardian's consent. Due to the amount of paperwork involved, most site refuse service to these children. This act protects all children under the age of 13. 

While we take extra measures to protect our children, how do we protect ourselves and what exactly are we protecting ourselves from? Some people understand the value of information no matter how trivial they appear. Most people, however, have a hard time believing that the tuna fish sandwich they had for lunch is actually worth something to someone. Or that they like baseball and video games. How could something this trivial be worth money? The answer to that question is advertisement. Gathering information, also known as data mining is is a crucial part of market research. Marketers use this information to determine demand and trends. You see this is the result when you input a search query in Google. For example, if you were to search for "computer monitors reviews", you may be served technology related ads as a result. This is not necessarily a bad thing. The line is drawn when you become the product.

Let's say instead of searching for computer monitor reviews, I was searching for you. I point my browser to Google and input "John Doe" into the search query. I get a result page with your Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr. I browse through your photo albums. My, what a lovely family you have! Let's check out your Twitter. Wow, you sure like the go to the movies a lot. It seems like you are always going out Friday nights around 7 pm. What's this? You posted that you just purchased a 52" high definition flat screen television? I've always wanted one but could never afford it. Hmmm, out every Fridays at 7 pm ehh? Can you see where I am going with this? Creepy isn't it? Not to mention potentially dangerous and costly posting such "trivial" information.

Okay, so I have to be careful of what I write online. I get that. How do I cover my tracks? One way to keep your privacy online is to remain anonymous. Make a pseudonym. Many people do this. They post under the handle "Flying Camel", "Joe Boxer" or whatever clever nicknames they choose. This is all very common but advertisers don't like this. A trend marketers do to combat this is requiring you to input your real names in order to use their service. The most successful site to accomplish this goal is Facebook. They make it so by inputting your real name, other people such as old friends and coworkers can contact you easier. Thus making it easier to use their service to it's full potential. For this, there's no real way to get around it. If you want to get the most out of Facebook, you are going to have to use your real name.

However by using your real name on services like Facebook and Twitter, realize that they own everything you post including pictures. So don't get mad if you see your face on a promotional poster sponsored by Facebook. Don't think they would do such things? On March 2010, MySpace was reported putting user data for sale to third parties. Who would be interested in this data? Your personal data. Marketing companies, analysts, and insurance companies come to mind. Of course they are within their rights. Legally, they own that data since you agreed to their terms of service. 

If you do decide to use these services and you must use your real names in order to get the most out of it, I suggest you create a fresh email account to sign up. Most services require you to confirm your email by clicking on a confirmation link that is sent to your email. Creating a fresh email to sign up with these free services does something important. It prevents you from "linking" your past pseudonyms you've created in the past. That way, your anonymous information linked to your pseudonyms doesn't get connected to your real name. The web is becoming more open and advanced. If you don't believe me, go to Spokeo and type in your email. Type in the email you use the most and see what pops up. What you may find might scare you. 

Do not post words and pictures you might regret. The entire web gets cached. Even if you are paying for the hosting and own your own website, be careful because the pictures you post still might be cached by search engines. For the layperson. Whatever pictures you post may be online forever.

Protecting your privacy online is not hard. Sometimes, we take our privacy for granted. Just knowing that companies can make money off of our information should tell you that it has value. While some people play it off as not a big deal, marketing companies are making money by the millions with your data. In a quick recap. Protect your privacy by using pseudonyms to replace your real name when signing up for online services. If you sign up for a service that requires your real name such as Facebook, create a new email when you register. Use this email when you sign up so that the services you enrolled in using your pseudonyms does not get connected to your real name. Be careful of the words and images you post online. Once it is uploaded or submitted, someone on the other end can still save it even if you take it down. I hope some of these tips help protect your online privacy. Thank you for reading!

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