How Valuable Your Personal Information Is?

What are you going to do to me if I give that all to you? Track me down? Why would you? Call me repeatedly? I'll block you. And all of that information becomes a lot less valuable when it starts to change on a daily basis, or when you live in an apartment or a dorm and someone will actually have to do a lot of legwork to isolate who you actually are.

I used to be all protective of that stuff, but now I wonder, why? What terrible thing is someone going to do to me with it? Of course, no one's getting my credit card number or my PIN or my SSN, but that goes without saying.... and it seems like so many places need to know these things anyway. Hell, employers need to know them, and I don't trust most of my employers farther than I could throw them. How much worse can it be to tell some random receptionist I'll never hear from again?

Personal data are part of my -guaranteed by our constitution- right to privacy.

So I decide, where they get and why: I would never give on phone like described above (and that would be illegal here [and in the EU*] as well).

[*The EU-convention(ETS No. 108) "Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data " - in addition to providing guarantees in relation to the collection and processing of personal data - outlaws the processing of "sensitive" data on a person's race, politics, health, religion, sexual life, criminal record, etc., in the absence of proper legal safeguards. The Convention also enshrines the individual's right to know that information is stored on him or her and, if necessary, to have it corrected.]

Re: How Valuable Is Your Personal Information?
Miriam: what you asked from people is social identification. I am not american, but in Europe that's a normal proceeding.I don't see anything wrong about that. If you have asked personal questions - religious or political beliefs, that would be different.

You mention that you log every incoming call, and are required to collect that information. I assume that means you only collect from people who call your company. If that's the case, I see no problem divulging such information. However, if the call is an outgoing one, to me from your company, and unsolicited, I would never give out that info.

Cav spoke my mind. If I want something from Company X or Site Y, I'm willing to give out a limited amount of personal information.

Last week I logged on to the "Glad" site for a free coupon. They wanted similar personal information and I decided I didn't want a coupon that badly and logged off, anonymous.

Re: How Valuable Is Your Personal Information?


May I doubt that a little bit, val? At least - knowing about that in a handful of European countries personally and by legal aspects in a couple more, I've never heard of such.

For markting researches, you are sometimes asked for the first three (out of five) (seldom all) digits of your zip code, but that's all.

[Reverse looking for telephone numbers becomes legal in Germany only by tomorrow and can be blocked easily as well.]


I agree that, if I want something and someone needs for that my data, I've no reason not to tell. (I'm here with my full name, too :wink: )

I started this topic because I personally feel uncomfortable when asked for this kind of information when I only called to ask a small question.

And I am receiveing phone calls from unknown companies who claim I bought someting from them, which in fact I didn't.
Even though my number is in no call list.

I used to feel sorry for all those old sweet ladies who will be receiveng this type of annoying calls.

However after your replies clarified this issue for me I feel much comfortable with this.

If someone wants my info, sure be me for a day...I guarantee they'll bring all my crap right back.