‘Big brother’ is watching: dark side of big data exposed

[warrenswil]

George Orwell could scarcely have imagined that his sci-fi novel, set in 1984, would come true a mere 30 years later.
But according to a Federal Trade Commission report on “big data” released this week, it apparently has.
In Data Brokers: A call for transparency and accountability, the government watchdog lays out in frightening detail how much is being collected about all of us and the uses to which it is being and could be put.
The FTC unanimously calls for legislation to give consumers the right to learn about the existence and activities of data brokers and give them access to their data.

“The need for consumer protections in this area has never been greater,” the report concludes.

There’s much more detail and analysis at Federal watchdog urges curbs on data brokers
The FTC has sounded the alarm. Now it is up to each one of us to amplify its voice and make it heard on Capitol Hill.