10 Ways The Internet Is Watching You
Back in 1984, Rockwell always felt like someone
was watching him.
If only he'd been able to see 32 years ahead,
he'd have realized how good he had it back
then.
Now more than ever, the internet allows people,
businesses, and government agencies to watch
and record our every move.
Sometimes, we discover just how deep the surveillance
goes thanks to someone blowing the lid off
a secret government program, but more often
than not, it's the quiet, everyday invasions
of privacy that remind us we're never really
alone online.
Here are ten ways the internet is watching
you right now.
Cookies
Businesses of all stripes track your movements
around the web via these sneaky little bits
of data, which are designed to be harmless
to your computer's security in exchange for
being allowed on most computers by default.
Once a cookie is placed on your computer,
marketers and business owners can use the
data it sends to monitor your browsing activity.
When Pandora or Instagram seems to know exactly
what you like without asking, it's because
of cookies.
Though this information is typically only
used to market ads to people more effectively,
web cookies themselves are so common, and
so rarely noticed, that it's hard not to see
them as a little sinister once you do stop
and think about them.
Unsecured WiFi
Never got around to securing that WiFi router
you set up at home?
Then there's a pretty good chance anyone nearby
can see at least some of what you do online
– and what you have on your computer, particularly
in shared folders.
Anybody who's ever run iTunes in a college
dorm, only to have other people's shared playlists
pop up next to theirs, can attest to how common
this problem is.
Of course if you are up to something shady,
an open WiFi network can give you a bit of
plausible deniability, by allowing you to
claim someone else did it using your unsecured
connection.
We wouldn't count on that defense holding
up for very long, though.
It's best to just play it safe and secure
your network.
Webcams
Sometimes webcams are publicly available online
by design, like city sidewalk cameras.
However, many other times, they're work, school,
or private home cameras that the owner neglected
to secure from the prying eyes of the internet.
Even with security measures, many cameras
can be hacked with ease, and even highly secure
cameras can be illicitly activated by the
FBI.
Whatever the case, the fact remains that when
you step in front of a webcam – whether
on a city street or in your own bedroom – you
never know who might be watching.
So the next time you see someone with a bit
of masking tape over their laptop camera,
don't laugh – ask them for a spare piece.
Online Purchases
Yes, even secure purchases are being watched;
we can practically guarantee it.
But they're not being watched by sneaky hackers
or foreign governments – at least, we hope
not.
Instead, it's credit card companies who do
the monitoring.
This is perfectly legal under the terms of
the impossibly dense cardholder agreement
they made you sign when you got your card.
Of course, card companies have a valid reason
to require access to the details of your purchases.
The iffy part is that this information can
be bundled and sold as a marketing product
to advertising companies.
The practice isn't exclusive to the internet,
but internet commerce has made it a whole
lot easier.
Combined with all the other data you're leaving
behind as you browse the web, it's likely
that there's now an ad agency out there somewhere
who knows more about you than your parents.
Microphones
Much like webcams, computer microphones often
have lax security.
They're one of those bits of hardware that
most people don't think about very much, making
them a tempting target for spies.
It doesn't take a lot of effort for a determined
hacker to turn on your computer's microphone
without your knowledge – and unlike cameras,
a piece of adhesive tape won't do much to
prevent a microphone from picking up sounds.
In cell phones, where the microphone is still
an important and vital piece of the device,
security is somewhat better, but any web-connected
phone is still vulnerable to serious hackers
like the NSA.
If you really, really want to ensure your
privacy, it's best to leave the smartphones
behind, too.
Location data
Speaking of mobile phones, if you've ever
played Pokemon Go or used Google Maps, chances
are you have your phone's location data turned
on.
And it's undeniably useful: apps like Waze
and Yelp use this highly-specific information
to provide you with all kinds of handy, localized
services.
However, there aren't many restrictions on
what others can do with this data once you
volunteer it.
Government agencies, for example, can get
your number from the phone company, and then
track your cell wherever it goes.
If you're logged in to Google while using
a Google app, the search giant doesn't even
need to check outside records to know who
you are and where you've been.
And step into a local independent cafe, and
you might see a Starbucks ad pop up – a
marketing tactic called “geofencing” that
also relies on detailed location data.
In short, as long as your location is turned
on, you're being tracked.
E-mail
Say you send an e-mail to your sister, asking
what she wants for her birthday, and suddenly,
ads for birthday party supplies start appearing
wherever you look – even before your sister
writes back.
Congratulations; your e-mail has been automatically
scanned for keywords.
Those keywords were then matched up with product
categories, and advertisers who show ads based
on those categories are now reaching you,
whether you're interested or not.
This tracking is something most people agree
to without even noticing it, when they sign
up for webmail.
The targeted ads can be turned off by request,
though it's not always easy to figure out
where to make that request.
However, opting out of the ads doesn't actually
opt your emails out of being scanned either
way.
And yes, once again, the FBI can intercept
emails by accessing them at this stage, if
they decide to take an interest.
Internet Service Providers
If you've ever opened up a private browsing
window, you've probably seen a little disclaimer
somewhere, informing you that private browsing
won't prevent your internet service provider,
or ISP, from tracking you.
As a matter of fact, there's not much of anything
that can prevent your ISP from recording everything
you do online.
They're the gatekeepers, after all.
Users who engage in illicit activities online
– like pirating software – may receive
a warning from their ISP before they ever
hear from the software company whose work
they pirated.
In short, without extensive setup and planning,
your ISP will pretty much always know exactly
what you've done online.
And, as with many of the entries on this list,
government agencies can request access to
that information as needed, often without
a user's knowledge.
Search Engines
Stop and think about the humble search engine:
when we're looking for new information, most
of us have no choice but to use search engines
as the jumping-off point.
That makes them an extremely tempting place
to gather user data.
For example, Google will track your searches
on its search engine, whether you're logged
into a Google account or not.
And Google's predictive search technology,
which guesses what you're typing as you go,
is actually watching every single letter you
type in.
Even if you only type part of a word and then
change your mind, the big G will take a guess
at what you were planning to write, and then
try to serve you ads based on that.
Over time, this allows Google to build a fairly
comprehensive picture of what you're interested
in, which it can then sell to marketing agencies
– all without you having ever logged in
to Google at all.
Social Media
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more: social
networks are where most of us spend most of
our leisure time online.
Obviously, social media companies track and
sell user information to advertisers.
But the prying eyes we worry about the most
might be even scarier: they're our own friends,
families, and employers.
Hiding drunken party pictures from the parents
has become a common pastime among college
students.
Outside college, there have even been some
instances where people complained about their
jobs online and ended up getting fired for
doing so.
In principle, the solution to these problems
is easy: make sure your privacy settings are
robust, and unwanted guests won't be able
to see anything.
However, the constantly-shifting nature of
privacy controls on popular sites like Facebook
makes this a constant headache.
And in the meantime, who knows who's looking
through your photos and status updates?
So, what did you think of our list?
If it hasn't made you too paranoid, give this
video a like, and add your comments below.
We promise we won't try to find your secret
stash of embarrassing Instagram pictures.
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