Some days I think about how little of our life is private these days. Of course, with the blog, I probably share too much but it seems everything is tracked these days. I was surprised when I got a notice from Google a couple of years ago that tracked everywhere I had been – from the time I left the house til I got to where I was going, whether I was leaving Texas and driving to MO (including all the stops along the way) or whether I was leaving my house and driving 5 miles to Walmart. That’s when I learned that I was going to Walmart early in the morning, picking up a grocery order and coming home and being gone for a total of 21 minutes.
Since we’ve changed our thermostat to a wifi thermostat, we get an email every month showing our usage.
There’s also a comparison to what we did the previous month.
I’m reasonably sure there’s no one sitting at a desk watching our usage but, there could come a point in an energy crisis where this info could be used. We already have smart meters so the thermostat isn’t giving away info that isn’t easily available.
It’s really crazy that with the cell phones with us every minute of every day, it’s easy to track where we’ve been; our energy usage is tracked down to the second of every day, the thermostat app knows how much heating and cooling we’re using. We accept it and don’t think anything about it.
With cameras on red lights and security cameras on most every home and business we drive past, there’s not much we do that isn’t on record somewhere.
I’m happy that I’m not doing something I shouldn’t be doing! I suppose people who are doing things they don’t want others to know . . they must know how to turn this kind of stuff off.
We’ve given up a lot of privacy in order to have convenience. Some days I think it matters and some days I don’t think it matters. I tell myself it all depends on how the information gathered is used and that’s the big question. Our grandkids are growing up in a world where they won’t even know what real privacy is and by the time Addie is an adult, who knows how information will be used.
vivoaks says
Did you ever have to read the book, “1984” when you were in school? Well, 1984 has come true in a lot of respects. Yes, just about anybody can find out anything they want about us, just by our electronics. It’s amazing that criminals get away with as much as they do, with all the surveillance in the world.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
I didn’t read it in school but I’ve read it 3 times in the past 10 or so years.
Donna in KS says
We get an electric report every week! “They” say it’s to help prepare us for the monthly bill, so we will pay closer attention to our usage. I read “1984” in high school. It had a great impact on me then; recently read it again. It seems even more possible now and it should be becoming a bit of a warning.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
I think I need to read it again.