 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Serving Greater Hampton Roads, Virginia
"Anytime Line" - (757) 531-1300
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
"Privacy" on the Internet
Remain calm- we don't know who you are.
Recent news stories have suggested that Internet users are unwittingly giving out personal information about themselves when they visit web sites, and that this information is being gathered surreptitiously by advertisers or others. In June 1998, the Federal Trade Commission released a study, widely quoted in small pieces, that 89% of web sites "collect personally identifiable information", and that these sites were geared to attract children. This poorly-worded, simplified lead-in has created unwarranted fears that something sinister is at work.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Back to Home page
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Find a BBB Member:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The reality is that web site computers don't, can't, collect any information about you personally that you don't voluntarily give them (by typing something about yourself into a box, or "form"). Simply visiting a web site does record some data, but none of it identifies you. That data includes: time and date of your visit, the kind of browser you are using, the kind of operating system your computer is running, which pages you visit, and what site you were visiting immediately before you went to this one. None of this data can be used to determine who you are.
|
|
|
|
So Who Are You,
Anyway?
Try typing your name into the "search" field of several of the
major search engines. (Don't worry- you're not volunteering any personal information.)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This limited data is of some value to the web site operator. After hundreds of visitors have come and gone, the operator can then begin to look at this data to discern patterns of traffic. Determining what viewers want from a site, and making it easier to get it, a web business can make your future visits more fruitful. (We collect and use such data for this web site, too, for this same reason.)
Beyond the want for anonymity while using the Internet is the reasonable expectation that when personal information is volunteered, that it be held with some degree of confidentiality. A considerable number of web sites do ask the visitor to "sign my guest book" or "register" or to otherwise fill in a form that asks for personal information.
|
|
|
|
|
Consider using a false name, age, phone number, etc. when requesting more information. Don't use your personal email, use a disposable one.
|
|
|
|
Some sites offer more information, or a catalog, or entry into a contest, but only if you "register" your name, address and such. Submitting any of this information may reveal your email address as well. Of particular concern to parents are sites that do appeal to children, and ask kids to submit additional detail such as their age, hobbies, or number of siblings. That kind of information should be guarded as closely whether asked by a web site or a stranger on the telephone.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cookies are the latest hot privacy potato. Cookies are small, cryptic text files that are put on your computer by web site operators who want to track your movement through their site with more detail and over a longer period of time. They were designed and implemented by the engineers who created the world wide web, and are intended to make the Internet a bit more useful. By themselves, cookies do not contain any personally identifiable information about you. For the truly paranoid, cookies are feared because theoretically they could be directly associated and combined with other information databases that do contain personal information about you, thus providing a fairly detailed profile of your interests and buying habits on the Internet. Current use of cookies is employed almost exclusively by large commercial sites, and they cannot be read by any computer other than the one that put the cookie there in the first place.
Not satisfied? No problem. You have some options:
Don't accept cookies. Tell your browser not to allow cookies to be put on your machine.
Accept them, then delete them after each day's surfing. This ensures that you won't be shut out of any sites that demand you accept cookies, and returns your anonymity when you're done. Poof! You're invisible again!
|
|
|
|
You can't take it back. Once you've given some information to a web site, or sent an email, it's out there.
|
|
|
How can you determine whether the web site you're visiting represents a legitimate business? For the most part you can't. That's why Internet users should be very hesitant about volunteering any personal information, including your email address. A bit of paranoia is absolutely practical, especially when posting to a bulletin board, participating in a chat room, submitting your resume to an online employment site, or preparing to buy something from the web.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Recommendation
For maximum privacy,
Agree as a family NOT to provide any information, including your email address (see Avoiding Junk Email), when visiting a commercial web site.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
It is the opinion of the Better Business Bureau that all web site operators who ask for personal information (including your email address) should post on their site a formal "Privacy Statement". This declaration should serve as a legally-binding contract with anyone who submits personal information, detailing what will be done with any of the information gathered.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
s_cur_1_0 0101sisi0953049964b83fd3Jx4+POyMerrJ6dxdSqp 6XQn5yky8Z6 a4Ln5crU5M7Rxq2pm5WWqK2qo20= cnet.com/ 0 2426765312 32108053 1090490080 29330895 * u_srv_0_0 %2823%29 cnet.com/ 0 721955072 29339743 1106749152 29321638 * u_vid_3_0 04b9b485 cnet.com/ 0 2426765312 32108053 1180329728 29321457 * SITESERVER ID=b2766e69a6b7b6a84994502faa80afd4 cnet.com/ 0 642859008 31887777 1172629728 29321457 *
|
|
|
|
|