"Privacy?"

There is no such thing as privacy when it comes to the Internet, or any other digital world, for that matter. Even this blog can be monitored by someone across the globe, and the fact that I'm publishing this post online means that it's being hosted by a server somewhere else. Our banks want us to use online statements (since online banking is oh-so-secure), and even though I do this to save paper, I don't kid myself about the security risks inherent in even the most "secure" websites. I think I've had new credit cards issued to me 5 times in the past 4 years. If I didn't use them so much, I suppose there would be no risk, but there would be no airline tickets or gift cards or cash back, either, so I guess I'm OK with that.

My "Aha" this week comes from the fact that absolutely nothing I do online is as simple as it looks. Yahoo personalizes the ads based on my email content and my website visits. Google collects information from my 20+ searches per day. Who knows what sticky fingers the government has in our web activities. My school district records everything website I visit, and technically, if something appeared suspect, they have the right to subpoena my passwords to any websites I access (including online banking sites, personal email, and those pesky credit card statements--which could reveal a lot about my personal spending habits). And yet, I still play on Amazon during my plan period (if I'm caught up on all my work, obviously), search for fun deals online after school, and read restaurant/travel reviews when my kids are testing.

Big Brother is watching. We've been warned.