The biggest issue in today’s news is your right to privacy. Especially concerning your social media. So, what does that mean? If you listened to any of the Congressional hearings of Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg this week, then you know that no one really reads the fine print, and that when you do sign up for social media, you are agreeing to all of their terms and conditions.

The Internet vs. Our Right to Privacy

But that brings us to the topic at hand. Do any of us truly have the right to privacy if it’s on the internet? Most people would say absolutely, but how truly private are our posts, likes, and shares? The right to privacy is something that is often debated and has been for many years. The truth is that people using social media are the customer, and it’s the job of the customer service provider to sell them something. So, if that means taking some information from your social media and selling it to another company that then shows you targeted ads, how can you really blame them?

What is Targted Advertising?

Targeted advertising works when you have looked at something on one website and then when you go to another website, the same content shows up in the ads on that page. Companies buy and sell our information with the click of a button and there is often nothing to be done about it. There is no federal regulation, there is nothing to make it so that others cannot access your information. It also isn’t something that really hurts you in the long run, because targeted ads work to market to the individual.

Now What?

This really isn’t something that would be that big of a deal either, but because of the breach with Cambridge Analytica, people are on high alert about their information being used. And much of that information was accessed, not because they had logged into a specific site that needed to access their public Facebook information, but because a friend did. The fine line for targeted ads comes with politics, because many people are influenced by what they have read on the internet. Political targeting and influencing through illegal means is what the public should be worried about.

To continue to keep life private, you can update your privacy settings, and make sure that no one can see anything you don’t want them to see. You can also install adblocking in your browser so that you don’t have to see targeted ads. Taking steps to protect yourself, is what is most necessary in today’s internet world.