Wrangle your online privacy with some free tools (and a little bit of time)
If you are of a certain age then you may remember a time before the internet, when maintaining your privacy and keeping track of your personal information was a bit easier.
It’s almost impossible to not be online in some capacity these days, and a lot has changed since the early days of using email to just send “free letters.” Now your email address and the accounts they are tied to are used for just about everything: paying bills, watching TV, listening to the news, scrolling socials.
It’s inevitable that if you spend any amount of time online, some website or service is going to ask you to give up your private information. That’s just the way the internet works now: it’s an economic machine run on your personal data. That means if you have been using the same email address for a couple years (or in many cases, decades) there is going to be a lot of personal information tied to it.
Privacy starts with your email
Using any free email service is going to result in some of your data being shared, but some services like Gmail have a free privacy checkup that will help you be aware of what is being shared.
You can also review what 3rd party tools, services and websites you have linked with your Gmail account.
There are other free email providers such as Proton Mail which promise more privacy baked into their service.
Have I Been Pwned?
If you aren’t sure if your email address or other private information has ever been leaked, that answer is almost certainly a “yes.” You can see exactly what has been leaked and from what sites with a free website called “Have I Been Pwned?” (That’s not a typo – although the term “pwned” is based on a misspelling of “owned.”)
Once your enter your email address, you can get a glimpse into just how much of your personal information has been leaked out due to companies not securing your info or hackers breaking into databases to steal customer data. Most of the time, it’s a combination of the two.
Free (and paid) services
There are also a few websites that can help you remember what you have even used your email address for – they can search through social media profiles and other services to give you a list of what places you’ve used your personal info to sign up for.
SEON allows you five free searches to help find social media accounts that are associated with an email address.
Having that list is just the first step though, as removing yourself from those services can be a whole other confusing process. A website called Just Delete Me can give you up-to-date and clear instructions on how to delete accounts and other personal data from websites and services you’ve signed up for in the past.
It takes time but its worth it
Managing online privacy is also big business, and there are also a lot of websites and services that will clean up your digital life for you for a price. However, most services or websites that you find with your personal information on it will have a way to opt out or delete your info, but it can take some digging.
You’ll have to put your own price on the time it takes for you to remove them, but the time invested can be worth it for digital peace-of-mind.
The FTC has a page with more resources for online privacy, too.
Just the beginning
Digital privacy is much more than email. From the browser you use to your shopping habits, there are lots of companies and people vying for your data.
Treat the internet and the conversations and transactions you have on it like it’s a public market. You wouldn’t talk loudly about personal details or credit card numbers while in line at Stator Bros., for instance. Keeping a handle on your personal privacy may feel like herding cats at this point in our digital lives, but it’s an important task that should become part of your online routine.
Previously Reported:
