Hello everyone,
In my last data privacy lecture, the professor talked about certain companies that take pictures or videos without the person's consent. This practice is strictly forbidden in Germany. I later discussed this with a few family members, and they all asked me what someone could actually do with such data. Honestly, I wasn’t sure.
But yesterday, I read an article on Forbes.com that explained how personal information ends up on the dark web. The problem is that many people freely give away their data for small incentives like gift cards or other freebies. This data can then be used for identity theft. According to Forbes, “Basic methods include printed photography and manipulated ID documents, mid-tier attacks may use real-time face swapping and deepfakes paired with genuine documentation, and advanced attacks can use 3D modeling and real-time animation in an attempt to respond to liveness detection checks.”
I brought this up with my boss, and he seemed surprisingly unfazed. He said we’re being conditioned to give away our data in exchange for a small feeling of saving money or getting something useless. And you know what? He’s absolutely right. I’ve fallen for it myself—I use Payback, for example. Loyalty cards are everywhere now, especially in Germany, where so many supermarkets have their own points systems.
I think it’s important to highlight how urgent it is to take better care of our data. It doesn’t matter if it’s a “trustworthy” company or, even worse, a no-name company selling our data on the dark web. Please don’t upload personal information or documents to random clouds without encryption. Don’t send sensitive data without encryption via email, WhatsApp, or any other messaging method. Be aware that your data could end up anywhere. And let’s not forget to be cautious about the information we share with AI models. Even if the platform claims to be secure, it’s worth thinking twice before inputting sensitive or personal information. Once shared, you can’t always control where or how it’s used.
Let’s make 2025 the year we take more responsibility for protecting our data.