Somewhere along the way, we decided everything needed an internet connection. Our televisions, phones, doorbells, and household appliances now communicate with servers we don’t own or control.
And apparently, we’re supposed to be fine with that.
We buy the products, pay for internet service, and sometimes pay additional subscriptions. Meanwhile, companies collect information about our habits, interests, and everyday lives.
When did buying a product start meaning we also agreed to become the product?
Convenience is great. But convenience shouldn’t mean handing over your privacy without a second thought.
Why Do Companies Want Your Data?
Let’s get something straight. Companies aren’t collecting your information just because they’re curious.
Your information is worth money.
Your browsing history, location, purchases, and online behavior help companies build advertising profiles. Those profiles allow businesses to target advertisements, predict purchasing habits, and measure consumer behavior.
Some companies sell or share information with third parties. Others make money by selling advertisers access to carefully selected audiences.
Not all information collection is unnecessary. But collecting what a service needs is very different from building a business around tracking people’s lives.
Meta: A Business Built Around Your Information
Facebook and Instagram are owned by Meta, a company whose advertising business depends heavily on information about its users.
And we’re not just talking about what you voluntarily post.
Meta’s advertising technologies can collect information about your interactions with other websites and applications. Businesses using tools such as Meta Pixel can send information about website activity back to Meta.
Think about that. You don’t necessarily have to be scrolling through Facebook for information about your online activity to reach its advertising systems.
This isn’t some conspiracy theory.
In 2019, Facebook agreed to a $5 billion Federal Trade Commission penalty to settle charges involving deceptive privacy practices.
In 2023, federal regulators warned healthcare providers about privacy risks from tracking technologies, specifically naming Meta Pixel among the technologies that could expose sensitive information.
And in 2024, the FTC documented extensive collection and monetization of personal information across major social platforms.
At what point do we stop pretending all this tracking is simply about making our online experience better?
Your attention is valuable. Your information is valuable. And these companies have built businesses around both.
Social Media Wants Your Attention Too
The problem doesn’t stop with Meta.
TikTok, X, YouTube, and other platforms also have powerful incentives to keep people watching, clicking, scrolling, and interacting.
Recommendation systems decide what appears in your feed, and engagement can influence which content receives attention.
Research has found that engagement-based ranking can amplify emotionally charged and politically hostile material under certain conditions.
That doesn’t mean every argument online was deliberately manufactured by a social media company.
But when keeping people engaged creates advertising opportunities, it’s fair to question whether the incentives always serve the people using the platform.
Sometimes the best thing you can do for your privacy—and your sanity—is close the damn app.
Your Television Is Watching You
In 2017, Vizio agreed to pay $2.2 million to settle allegations that it collected viewing information from approximately 11 million smart televisions without adequate disclosure or consent.
According to the FTC, that viewing information was also sold to third parties.
You buy a television to watch football, movies, or whatever the hell you want. Meanwhile, software inside the television can collect information about what you’re watching.
Your television doesn’t need to build an advertising profile to display a football game.
The Smart Home Isn’t Always So Smart
Security cameras, speakers, thermostats, and connected appliances promise convenience.
And sometimes they deliver.
But every connected product potentially introduces another account, privacy policy, and source of personal information.
Does your refrigerator really need an internet connection? Does every appliance need its own account?
Not every smart device is spying on you. But that doesn’t mean you should blindly trust everything it collects.
Taking Back Control
You don’t need to throw away every piece of technology you own.
Review your privacy settings. Disable unnecessary tracking and personalized advertising. Limit app permissions and location access.
Check the advertising preferences and off-platform activity controls offered by social media companies. Understand that these settings may reduce certain uses of information without stopping all collection.
Tools such as NextDNS can block known tracking domains, although they cannot prevent every type of data collection.
And before buying another connected product or signing up for another platform, ask yourself what you’re getting in exchange for your information.
Convenience Shouldn’t Cost You Your Privacy
I’m not against technology. I use it, enjoy it, and appreciate what it can do.
What I have a problem with is companies treating our personal information like something they’re automatically entitled to collect and monetize.
A television should be a television. A social media account shouldn’t require surrendering unnecessary details about your life. And a household appliance shouldn’t need access to information unrelated to its actual purpose.
You bought the product. That shouldn’t mean the company bought access to your life.
Privacy shouldn’t be some unreasonable demand. It should be part of the deal from the beginning.