Anonymized information can be useful in the development of better research technology, however most people dont feel comfortable with companies releasing any information about them. With the creation of the internet, mounds of private information have been filling servers for years, it has to go somewhere right?
The internet has always been fraught with privacy concerns, but so has the real world; in thirty-eight states it is legal to record a telephone conversation without the person on the other end knowing and if television shows such as Cheaters have taught us anything, there are always legal ways for people to gain private information about you. In the end what does in matter if people know what movies you liked on Netflix or if Apple know exactly where you are at all times... well maybe there is some cause for concern.
The internet sees and knows all, and the information you put out there stays there, but that does not give these companies the right to expose your information to others. However people should know by now that no information is safe on the internet. The laws haven't been completely fleshed when it comes to the internet, nor do the number of stories such as those of Netflix, Apple, or even AOL seem to ever decrease. In the case of AOL, the information in question was only released for a few hours, meaning everyone who wanted that information probably has it.
The internet is a scary place for the the privacy conscious, but in my experience, aside from some joker hacking into my Myspace account the information I have put on the internet has never affected me in any negative way. If you can deal with everyone from random researchers hired by Google to insidious twelve year old hackers possibly knowing some of your personal information, why be worried about what the internet knows?
Keeping yourself safe online is an important lesson to learn, but understanding that the internet requires you to let go of some of that information is even more important. Those of us hung up and worried about having their privacy attacked might want to rethink signing up for sites like Facebook or Netflix, but in this day and age, not having a Facebook or Netflix seems almost ridiculous. There is a price to pay for the convenience of the internet, and sometimes that includes letting go of some unreasonable fears, and accepting the threat of reasonable ones.
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