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What reasons are there for being concerned about companies like google and meta etc collecting data and tracking me? (lemmy.world)

submitted 8 months ago by Mr_Dr_Oink@lemmy.world to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world

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Please understandnim asking this question from a genuine place. I dont want the quora answer, i want the tech savvy, security expert minds of my fellow lemmings. If thats ok?

What happens to this data? What can/do they do with it? and why are so many people concerned about google tracking them?

Do i as an average user need to be concerned?

If so, What sorts of things can i do to avoid being tracked? Preferably without too much comprimise.

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[-] Kage520@lemmy.world 24 points 8 months ago

I think the best example is for women. Imagine they can figure out, with 95% accuracy or something, that you are pregnant, that could be valuable data.

Now imagine you are a woman at a large corporation who just got pregnant, but aren't telling anyone yet. Too early. Your corporation buys a batch of data and discovers there is a 95% chance you are pregnant. They don't want to pay for maternity leave or make reasonable accomodations during pregnancy or pumping breast milk. They fire you for "unrelated reasons", before you ever tell them you are pregnant.

Nothing illegal happened there really. You never told them so you have no way to prove they fired you for that.

[-] Fleur__@lemmy.world 1 points 8 months ago

Isn't that illegal though

[-] Blackmist@feddit.uk 5 points 8 months ago

Only if you have the funds to prove it.

[-] FontMasterFlex@lemmy.world 3 points 8 months ago

how so?

[-] realharo@lemm.ee -3 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

This is very unlikely, because if they did it to more than a handful of people, the pattern would become immediately obvious.

[-] Kage520@lemmy.world 13 points 8 months ago

Not necessarily. It doesn't have to be pregnancy either. It could be because you are 95% sure a Democrat. Or union friendly. Or atheist.

[-] AngryCommieKender@lemmy.world 4 points 8 months ago

Bundle the "undesirables" in mass layoffs to increase the obfuscation of why they were laid off. "The algorithm said these 10% had to go."

this post was submitted on 01 Nov 2023

173 points (94.4% liked)

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