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Do you remember the books Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass?
The stories have long evoked a common metaphor, popularized within the past generation from the movie The Matrix. The metaphor is about the rabbit hole. The deeper a person travels into the rabbit hole the more the person becomes disconnected from reality.
This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill — the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill — you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes. — Morpheus, The Matrix.
Data mining, tracking, and privacy intrusions are now the norm rather than the exception. The desire and effort to obtain user data long ago surpassed surreal proportions. This rabid desire for user data indicates a cultural shift. At the core of this shift is a fundamental lack of respect for fellow humans and basic dignity. Everybody is treated as a product and a commodity.
This topic is a deep rabbit hole.
Recently certain privacy rules imposed by members of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) were blocked. While upsetting to many people, the FCC rules had not yet gone into effect. That was not scheduled until later this year. Basically then, despite the controversy, nothing actually changed.
Many people speculate that the loss of rules allows Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to sell customer usage data.
Fast-Air customers need not worry. Nobody working at Fast-Air participates in customer data collection.
Even with the rules not yet in effect, ISPs still had the ability to collect and store data about every customer even if they did not use and share the sensitive data.
Historically customer data has been used and shared to target types of users and not to violate personal privacy.
Advertisers buy this data. For targeted advertising. Large ISPs see the retraction of the rules as an opportunity to compete with Google and Facebook, both of which are advertising companies. While the FCC rules did not apply to the Google and Facebook folks, they were against these rules too, fearing that such rules eventually would be applied to them.
Will the loss of rules mean ISPs will sell individual browser histories? Will ISPs use and share individual data to create a dystopian future much like in the movie The Minority Report? Nobody knows.
Now for a proverbial bucket of ice water. Some reality checks.
- Many ISPs already know a lot about customers using Domain Name System (DNS) records, geo-location data tracking, and deep packet inspection.
- The definition of ISP goes beyond what home and office computers connect to, such as Fast-Air, Comcast, or Cox. Phone carriers are ISPs too.
- A significant amount of this data mining is done through smart phones.
- The likes of Google and Facebook — the giants of customer data collection, were never affected by the FCC rules.
- A majority of people using the web willingly give away this sensitive information.
Many people freely and happily use Google, Yahoo, Facebook, and smart phones. Such users are already data mined and tracked beyond belief. Most users don’t care. Many who do care are helpless about avoiding the problem because of the technical challenges.
Do you use a well-known search engine, such as Google, Yahoo, or Bing? All of these search engines are designed to set cookies in web browsers. Users are tracked with every search request made and then followed around the web. Even when blocking cookies from these sites, these services are designed to correlate IP addresses with search requests.
Do you use Facebook? You are being tracked.
Do you use a smart phone? You are being tracked.
Do you use Windows 10? You are being tracked.
Do you use Netflix or Hulu? You are being tracked.
Do you use a smart TV connected to the web? You are being tracked.
Do you use cable or satellite TV? You are being tracked.
Do you use a customer loyalty card? You are being tracked.
Many people today connect to the web using a smart phone. Phone carriers have been tracking users for years. The history of phone carriers and tracking is less than stellar.
The horse left the barn a long time ago. Don’t bother closing the door.
For many people this is where the story ends. Such people have chosen the blue pill. They get to believe whatever they want to believe. This is the price of apathy and choosing convenience over security and privacy.
The Google and Facebook folks have long been a deeper threat to privacy than any ISP. The lack of the proposed FCC rules only means that ISPs might now join the game.
There is a fundamental difference between tracking from web sites and ISPs. People can choose to avoid various web sites and services, such as Google or Facebook. People can choose not to use a smart phone. Connecting to the web means being unable to avoid using an ISP. Web sites are end-point services. An ISP is an infrastructure service. This distinction is important.
Not being able to opt-out of ISP data collection is little more than an adhesion contract relationship. People who appreciate this distinction want to take the red pill. They want to go deeper into the rabbit hole to learn how to protect their privacy.
Going deeper into the rabbit hole is the only way to protect privacy.
Caveat emptor. Going deeper into the rabbit hole is not for those easily intimidated. Going deeper down the rabbit hole requires learning about computers and the web.
What can be done to avoid or neutralize these attempts of collecting and selling personal information? More to follow.
Technical tip: Modern office photocopiers are actually a computer with a scanner and printer. That means there is a hard drive inside that stores all documents that have been photocopied. Before selling or discarding a photocopier be sure to perform a secure wipe of the hard drive. Modern photocopiers are network-enabled, which means a security risk. Be sure to keep the firmware updated. Through this connectivity some models routinely “phone home” to the vendor. Learn how to segregate these untrustworthy devices with a router.
Family time: In the candy name, what does “M&M” stand for? Think you know? Search the web.
Next issue: Data Mining and Tracking 102
Sometimes we are moved to tears.
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