Even your APPS are invading your privacy!

Location Data Companies

As regular readers know, I’m not a big fan of the traditional smartphone craze.

Sure, they’re really handy gizmos, but the amount of data being hoovered up and shipped off to large service providers is a bit frustrating.

As if things aren’t bad enough on that front, it gets better! It turns out that even individual APPS running on your phone are spying on you – specifically, they’re tracking your location (among other things).

What’s more, your location data can be easily linked to you as a private individual. To top it all off, this data is bought and sold to anyone who will pay – and all in the blink of an eye!

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Are Big American Tech companies a dying breed?

TechWarsOh dear God, make it stop.

There was a time when American Big Tech was the end-all and be-all.

It seems those days are rapidly going the way of the dodo.

For sure, there will be many companies that survive – and even flourish.

But it’s becoming painfully obvious that certain political, social, and cultural influences are starting to crush innovation, cripple sales, and piss off a whole lot of ordinary folks…

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Surveillance Valley: What you need to know about the Internet

I recently finished reading the book Surveillance Valley: The Secret Military History of the Internet.

Now, I’ve known for awhile that the world of high-tech – and especially the internet – doesn’t quite work the way everyone thinks it does.

We worship tech billionaires as if they’re the Second Coming, praising them for their ingenuity and standing in awe of their sheer genius.

The reality, on the other hand, is a bit more mundane.

Pretty much all the big players in the internet/tech world got where they are with a little help. And by “a little help”,  I mean A LOT

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Why “Big Brother” can never win

Well, it’s that time again.

Some recent news items – and people’s reactions to them – have once again compelled me to foam at the mouth about Big Brother.

Every time one of these “revelations” like the Facebook data breach occurs, everyone gets all fired up…

And then many people usually do exactly the wrong thing in response!

Sure, the privacy thing is a problem. It’s prolly going to get worse before it gets better.

But here’s the thing: YOU help to decide how and when that happens.

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