Hey Brian,

Since you started this, it must be OK to pile on. There is 100% trust in this site not giving up any private info on members, that is certain. Beyond the bounds of this site though, the amount of personal information gatherable and gathered is mnd-numbing. The war has been lost on privacy and 90% haven't a clue there was a war.

As you say, how can google and facebook and many other sites be worth billions of dollars. The information they collect on every person is amazingly valuable to every type of business trying to target and profile you. It is boggling to think about how much technology and service are "given away". Those personal profiles about you are worth a HUGE amount.

As to cookies. Maybe in the old days it made a difference for more security but cookies are more an aid to the user than anything else. Nearly all the data that is collected is done real time. Every time you press enter, that payload of data is captured and processed.

I have worked in IT for several decades and have seen it all happen before my very eyes. The genie is out of the bottle and there is no turning back. The only hope I see is if individuals can wrestle control over their digital persona and privatize it. Then rather shared by default, nothing gets shared unless by exception. Of course, if this were to happen the cost of all digital services would skyrocket. The question is will people be willing to pay up to protect their privacy. I have my doubts.