Your online privacy matters now more than ever. Cyberattacks have never been more prevalent, and marketers aggressively pursue personal information to expand their sales lists. However, no one has the right to your information without your permission. Therefore, you should do everything you can to protect it from the multitude of people who use it for less than savory reasons.
Vultures are After It
Internet marketing is exactly new, yet the Cambridge Analytica scandal perpetrated by Facebook made millions of dollars from you. Marketing companies pay Facebook and CA for such data, who then have the cheek to sue others who utilize data in the right way. The BandTotal lawsuit is one such example. BrandTotal uses data fairly and helpfully, with permission from the owner. The vultures of the online data don’t like this since most people, given a choice, prefer their data not to be shared with anyone.
Image by Thomas Breher from Pixabay
It’s Used for ID Fraud
One of the main reasons you need to protect your online data is that you are vulnerable to ID fraud. Your personal information can be obtained in numerous ways by those with malicious intent. Some of the most common include:
- Social media scraping
- Cracking passwords
- Hacking large corporations
- Phishing
- Social engineering
- Telephone scams
Be vigilant, and don’t give your data to anyone you don’t know. Additionally, take care not to show personally identifiable things on selfies and photographs. For instance, don’t leave your credit card on the table behind you when taking a selfie for Instagram.
You Decide What People Know About You
When all is said and done, your data is just that; yours. Nobody has the right to your personal information. In the same way, they have no right to your money. Data is valuable, which is why there are over 1,000 large data breaches per year. Data breaches occur when a hacker steals information from a company to retrieve credit cards and personal information. While a company is responsible for online security, you are in control of what people know about you. It is helpful if you only divulge information when necessary and place minimal data on social media and public profiles.
It’s a Human Right
While not officially declared, data protection is widely regarded as a human right in most countries. Governments all over the world actively protect citizen data as best they can. Therefore, they impose sanctions on companies who fail to protect your data and pursue criminals aggressively. There are also data protection laws that apply both online and offline. For example, GDPR is an active consent policy in Europe and the UK. Any site that stores data of any kind, including website cookies, must request and confirm your consent to do so.
Data is Yours and Yours Alone
Your personal data is yours alone and is, therefore, private by definition. You have the power over what information is shared, stored, and used. For example, medical data such as your GP visits, ethnicity, and sexual orientation are private. No one has the right to this information. Therefore, data protection falls under the category of fundamental rights and freedoms. Online privacy laws are in place to protect all your data online. As a result, online data protection protects private individuals in the physical world by keeping contact information and location confidential.
