Blog Assignment 4

Privacy is a very important issue for a lot of people. Online security is something you constantly hear about because with the Internet evolving and it being such a young technology, society is still figuring out how to deal with it. What amazes me is that a lot of the time users aren't aware of how their information is being tracked or used. Most of the time when people talk about privacy and online security consumers automatically assume internet providers and websites use one's information for the wrong reasons; however, personalization is one of the main reasons sites track your information. Even though personalization may seem like a harmless reason to track information, users should still take precautions. There are many concerns one may have when they notice their information being used to for personalization or customization. The article listed several examples, but here is something I have always thought of: When I purchase things online I tend to see similar items pop up in advertisements while I use other websites. Even when I am on social media pages, such as Facebook or Twitter, the item I bought online or was looking at comes up everywhere. I get really concerned about this because if I am putting my debit card information on a website that tracks other pieces of information, what is to stop me from thinking they have access to my card info? In the article it states that "internet users find it important to know how their personal information is being used, and to have control over this usage." I think this extremely important as well. The more we know, the safer we'll feel.