Your nonactions can really hurt others.
-https://cybershipwreck.substack.com/p/why-not-caring-about-digital-privacy-
Whats-app is a great example. In Germany a court case raised the question as to the privacy violations of others that do not use Whats-app.
Whats-app was known for scanning, reading and sending all your phone contacts to the USA for Facebook to use as they please.
The court concluded, external contacts have to consent to this violation in written form.
*https://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/medien/weitergabe-von-kontakten-durch-whatsapp-vor-gericht-15085153.html
No one does this, companies gloss over this fact when they force employees and customers to use Whats-app.
You are giving away my data without my consent.
This could be mitigated by using the same features in a privacy focused app like Signal or Sessions. Bit more freedom and privacy is offered by SimpleChatX, where you do not even need a phone number to sign in.
You might not care that your data is exploited, others get rick off of you or that leaked/stolen/hacked data can be used in phishing attempts or even get people killed or financially ruined.
Those are real world consequences that arise when people get lazy and continence is more gratifying then keeping themselves and others safe.
Lets see what the news for today tells us:
Up to 2.9 Billion Records Stolen in a Hack of US Background Check Company (https://www.nobsbitcoin.com/up-to-2-9-billion-records-stolen-in-a-hack-of-a-us-background-check-company/)
The leaked data consists of two text files totaling 277 GB, containing almost 2.7 billion plaintext records, slightly less than the 2.9 billion originally claimed by USDoD. Unlike previous leaks, this 2.7 billion record set does not include phone numbers and email addresses.
Further Exa.:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/daveywinder/2024/01/23/massive-26-billion-record-leak-dropbox-linkedin-twitterx-all-named/
Here we have not only that you got robbed, but that the mindvirus of woke communist made you pay for it.
Recently hacked Indian exchange WazirXIndia went from "democratising crypto investing" to "democratise the loss".
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/technology/tech-news/biggest-indian-crypto-exchange-wazirx-hacked-230-million-funds-stolen-funds/articleshow/111837172.cms
But the remaining tokes will be converted and distributed as part of their FAIR AND TRANSPARENT SOCILIZED LOSS STRATEGY/ DISTIBUTE THE IMPACT EQUUITABLY.
Self Custody is the solution.
Stop trusting 3rd parties with the things most valuable to you or your company (this includes data).
Companies grow fast, their situation has to adapt with that growth. It's understandable that companies reach for solutions of 3rd Parties.
I understand the convenience.
But here also lies the potential of economic loss.
And it could lead to bankruptcy or being locked into contracts, that hinder growth.
These companies are in a race, and all they see is the race.
But sometimes you need to sit out the next round and take a breath.
A lot of companies are tangled up with many different tools, that at the end of the day harbor risks and costs money. Lots and lots of money.
These companies usually have locations globally and do not see the potential in moving to more decentralized structures, with less dependencies on 3rd party actors. Using tools that can adapt and scale, locally.
I understand the costs, and that some locations will need a different form of 3rd party agreement (external IT for remote locations as an example). The difference lies in contractional individual agreements, which you hardly have with centralized big tech.
Its a better „insurance“ at the end of the day, that's for sure.
I root for many of these companies. I wish them success and growth.
But shake my head at the lack of interest at the fundamental level.
So I wish them the best of luck and hope they do not regret the decisions they make by paying rental license for a generic but popular product. Then losing that data or even selling it to other 3rd party vendors. And then getting sued by the data owners, which will always be the person you got the data from.
Some times its better to go a pace slower, and invest.
I have lost patients with many lazy people, so much that I do not give out real emails or telephone numbers if I now that these pwople use spyware and do not care about other peoples privacy rights.
Most still find ways to contact me. So thats a plus.
Be aware of what tech you use and how it can really hurt you if you do not use privacy features.
Start small:
Use Brave instead of Google for browsing
Use Signal instead of Whats-app
One little change today, will save a lot of grief at the end of the day.
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/hackers-are-leaking-childrens-data-s-little-parents-can-rcna1926
https://www.identityiq.com/identity-theft/how-sharenting-can-lead-to-identity-theft/
