One of the things we all take for granted in the online world is our privacy. We assume that we are safe sat behind our computers in the comfort of our homes and offices, and forget that our online activities are recorded, analysed, and commonly shared between companies and organisations. This is most commonly done for marketing purposes, but there are others who seek our data for more nefarious purposes.

The recent furore surrounding the changes Facebook made to their privacy policy has proven that we all need to be vigilant with our personal data, who we share it with, and more importantly what they do with it. Facebook themselves have tried to put a positive spin on the subject, claiming they are trying to make the web more “sociable”. However as others have pointed out this should have been optional and the user should have the choice, rather than Facebook unilaterally making the decision on their behalf.

This got me thinking about my own online foot print, where my data resides, who has access to it, and more importantly how they use it. Thus far I have figured out that merely understanding this is a mammoth task, and doing something about it, even more daunting. However I have decided that I am going to at least try.

I have started off reviewing the mailing lists I subscribe to and reappraising if I actually want or need the communications I am sent, removing myself from the ones that I don’t, and confirming the source of the ones I do. Where I wish to remain on a mailing list I have checked the web site of the company / organisation and confirmed that they a) have a privacy policy, and b) clearly state who they are and who they are owned / run by.

I have started reviewing the contents of my spam filters more closely than I have done in the past. A lot of the spam that does make it through to my inbox these days (I have several lines of defence starting at my ISP) are actually from companies and/or organisations that I am linked with either directly or indirectly.

One such example is Plaxo, an online contact manager tool that I used to use way back in my Windows days. I haven’t used this service for a good number of years and the service has changed a lot since I originally signed up. Not only to I get email from random people that would like to connect with me, but I now also receive Birthday reminders and a whole bunch of other email from them and their partners with all sorts of special short term offers.

So over the last few weeks I have been seeking out these redundant services and deleting my accounts. If I have subsequently received a communication from these organisations I have contacted them and challenged them, pointing out where possible their privacy policy. So far I have only needed to do this once, and the matter was resolved quickly and without fuss, but I am sure I will hit a few bumps in the road ahead.

Now where I have come across services that I do still want to use, I have checked there mailing list options, which most companies / organisation still tend to keep well hidden away, and ensured that I am not on their special offers list. If a company / organisation do not provide these options they get a rather to the point email advising that they either provide the options or lose a customer. TextExpander from SmileOnMyMac provides the mean’s for some rather terrific email templates.

I have also taken the time to change my passwords whilst on these sites, ensuring that no two are the same and that they are highly complex. I will say the rather marvellous 1Password from Agile Web Solutions has made this a very simply process, even saving me from having to think of my own passwords.

For now I am aware that I am only scrapping the surface of what is a very large topic, and that what lays ahead is a long journey, but one that I hope you will share with me, and find useful.