Liking, messaging, clicking, posting\u2014most of us do these things online without thinking twice. But whether we know it or not, our online activities contribute to an ever-growing digital portrait of who we are\u2014one that is more public than many people realize. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This portrait helps companies target content at specific consumers, helps employers look into your background, and helps advertisers track your movements across multiple websites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
More and more, your activities in the real world will also create digital footprints\u2014paying a road toll, walking past a security camera, or going from one cellphone to the next.\u00a0Whatever data you create on or offline, you will be leaving digital footprints behind somewhere.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Digital footprints are trails of data that people leave behind as they use the Internet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
These footprints include all the digital interactions and information associated with a person across various online platforms and services, including social media, online purchases, web browsing history, app usage, and location data. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Increasingly, digital footprints also go beyond what you do as a user of services\u2014you may be leaving digital footprints just by walking down the street. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
By saving your personal details, digital footprints can make your browsing experience more convenient. For example, you may not have to sign into Facebook every time you visit or resubmit your payment information every time you shop on Amazon. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Digital footprints in the form of cookies\u2014pieces of data that websites store in your computer when you visit so they remember your preferences\u2014make the Internet more usable. They can also help make individual transactions more secure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of the main costs of digital footprints is a loss of privacy and anonymity online. As you use the Internet, information about who you are, which websites you use, what you search for, and more can be shared with people and companies you don\u2019t know. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
With thousands of digital footprints, it becomes more possible to ascribe \u201canonymous\u201d actions to real-world identities, which introduces a real risk of online activities having consequences offline. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Companies use your digital footprint\u2014usually for commercial purposes\u2014to track you, customize your experience on their platforms, and market to you. Essentially, your digital footprint is a monetizable asset, but any direct gain does not usually come to you, the individual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Because so much of the content and services on the Internet are funded by marketing in some form, publishers and marketers can use your digital footprints and the information they reveal to target their products to the most appropriate audience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Is Anything on the Internet Truly Free? A major part of having strong privacy is being able to keep your data in a specific context\u2014what you say to your doctor doesn\u2019t leave the room, what you do in your online banking app doesn\u2019t leak to other apps, and so on. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Linkability means that a third party can say, \u201cthe person who did this, on site x<\/em>, is the same person who did this, on site y<\/em>.\u201d Linkability can make it difficult for users to keep personal data within a single context, and thus manage their own privacy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When websites share information with each other and link individual footprints, they can build more complete and sophisticated profiles for you using data such as websites you\u2019ve visited, products you\u2019ve bought, your address, age, sex, health, employment\u2014the list is longer than everything you\u2019ve ever shared on the Internet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Based on your digital footprints, profiling companies can also make inferences about your habits, preferences, values, and even your intentions and future behavior. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Because it can track users\u2019 actions and is a basis for profiling by online service providers and others, linkability has profound privacy implications. <\/p>\n\n\n\n While having zero digital footprints is impossible, you can take simple steps<\/a> to reduce them and manage your online identity. This will take regular thought, time, and effort\u2014but it can be done!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Develop your \u2018basic Internet hygiene\u2019 habits.<\/strong> Become a sophisticated user of your online tools and services. <\/strong> Find and use specific privacy-enhancing tools.<\/strong> Image \u00a9 Kaitlyn Baker<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a> Digital footprints are trails of data that people leave behind as they use the Internet.\u00a0This data contributes to a digital portrait of who we are\u2014one that is more public than many people realize.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1012,"featured_media":214904,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[31,4898,4738],"tags":[6049],"region_news_regions":[5931],"content_category":[6085],"ppma_author":[4109,5969],"class_list":["post-214901","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-privacy","category-strong-internet","category-security-1","tag-online-trust-and-safety","region_news_regions-global","content_category-blog-type"],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing.jpg",1440,500,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing-450x156.jpg",450,156,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing-768x267.jpg",768,267,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing-1024x356.jpg",1024,356,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing.jpg",1440,500,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing.jpg",1440,500,false],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing-250x87.jpg",250,87,true],"square":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing-600x500.jpg",600,500,true],"gform-image-choice-sm":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing.jpg",300,104,false],"gform-image-choice-md":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing.jpg",400,139,false],"gform-image-choice-lg":["https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Hands-Typing.jpg",600,208,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Robin 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<\/strong>
A lot of online content and services seem to be free, but if you are not paying directly (and sometimes even if you are), they are often funded by monetizing your information.
For many Internet sites, every time you look at a web page, someone has an interest in showing you an advertisement. <\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat is Linkability?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
How Can I Manage my Digital Footprint?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Using different \u201cpersonas\u201d for different aspects of your online life\u2014like using one email address for work and another for home\u2014will help keep different parts of your digital footprint separate.
Also, be mindful of what you share on social sites and elsewhere; that data is probably more public and persistent than you might anticipate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The default settings for browsers, devices, and apps are often set to share your personal data, rather than keep it private. Investigate those settings, make sure you\u2019re comfortable with them, and think carefully when asked to grant new permissions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are many privacy-enhancing tools out there, especially for browsers. They can help you protect specific areas of your digital footprint and understand what service providers are looking at.
Using end-to-end encrypted messaging will also protect your conversations from third-party intermediaries. <\/p>\n\n\n\nDigital footprints and their implications are complex\u2014especially given the lack of transparency surrounding the use of our personal data. To gain a deeper understanding, check out our free, self-paced online course.<\/a><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"