While You're Surfing It Is Surfing Your Personal Information

What have you got to hide?

That is the typical response from marketers and many technology firms whenever the question of privacy and online tracking arises. It's a standard intimidation tactic: You must be some kind of criminal if you're worried about what we do with your personal information.

Right.

Fortunately, consumers are beginning to wise up to the very serious issues involved in how our information is being used. Those concerns are -- in small ways -- reflected in recent moves by the two leading Web browsers. Mozilla's forthcoming Firefox 4 and Microsoft's brand new Internet Explorer 9 have added features intended to curb some of that tracking. Even Google, one of the biggest proponents of tracking on the Web, recognizes that the practice can create problems; it now offers a way to block some sites using its Chrome browser.

In case anyone still is skeptical about the dangers of letting people freely track your moves online, here are some points to consider. The information being tracked includes what you read (Fox News or The New York Times; the schedule for your local church or synagogue), what you buy (books about nuclear physics or gun maintenance), and where you go (a coupon used for Olive Garden or a local hotel). Furthermore, they also know where you bank, what kind of car you own, and where your children go to school. They know whether you're worried about your son having ADHD and that your daughter has trouble in English.

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