Holy moly...I just read an interesting article over at NPR this morning about the information companies buy and sell to each other. Or, more specifically, the information they have about me that they buy from, and sell to, each other. It's kind of disturbing because some of the data they have on people is so sensitive! The article, a transcript of an All Things Considered interview between Audie Cornish and Emily Steele (a correspondent for Financial Times), wasn't overly surprising...until they got the part when Steele tells us that companies have sold the names of rape victims. My stomach turned when I read that. And I'm not sure what's worse--selling the names of rape victims, or the fact that there is a company out there buying those names. And for what? What company needs to know that? Are they hoping to somehow make money off of rape victims? My jaw dropped over this and suddenly it makes me want to be as private as I can be with my information--make those companies really work for it, you know?
Speaking of that, Steele says that the harder the information is to get, the more sensitive it is, the more money it costs. But even the most sensitive isn't all that expensive--a mere $.07 for each name of rape victims (I still can't even imagine why anyone needs those names!). My piddly info might come in at around $.001--with the bulk of my worth coming from my medical records. Awesome. I don't really care that companies want my data; it's not like I'm all that interesting to anyone anyway. But if I'd been sexually assaulted, then yes. For once I would probably be pretty offended and put off that I was basically being bought and sold. Eh. The lack of morals out there is just truly astounding.
The interview that I've been referring to can be found here. Go ahead, read it and find out for yourself some of the grossness that happens out there.
Hashtag shivermetimbers.
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