Its no surprise that our data and information is being collected. The government collects this data for law related things and better interaction with the people. Advertisers and social media giants like to collect the information to learn about our interests and adjust the algorithm of their content so it reflects what we like to see. While that may be beneficial for their business, we as users do not know what they are doing with our information. It could be getting sold to other businesses, misused or worse. Naturally, this makes a lot of people uncomfortable, and they do not feel safe. With less trust in the respect of their privacy, there’s less of a chance they will use the internet as frequently. Another issue could consist of benefit. A lot of Americans feel as if they benefit very little from having their data collected, which is understandable, because they don’t. Unfortunately, the people who collect the data are the only ones who benefit. A third issue, could be the collector’s lack of disclosure. If they aren’t willing to explain how exactly they are using the data, they will lose many consumers. Lastly, a huge issue can consist of how exactly the data is used and how acceptable it is to use it. For example, using student test score data to measure the average is pretty acceptable, but its not as acceptable to share audio recordings of people with law enforcement.

The U.S. is vulnerable to many cyber attacks. Many include Social attacks like phishing, download or link based attacks like malware, or just flat out hacking, which can lead to very dangerous things like ransomware. Compared to other countries, its on the favorable end of the totem pole because of its security, but every country has to deal with cyber attacks. For example, Tajikistan is by far one of the worst countries in terms of being cyber-secure. Very little tech support, no legal measures put in place, and virtually no cybersecurity structure. Fortunately, it is not attacked as often as other countries, and it does not house nearly as many devices, but a large chunk of people are at risk just by living there. At least attempting to be secure, will grant the country a lot of increased safety in its own right.

“Americans and Privacy: Concerned, Confused and Feeling Lack of Control Over Their Personal Information.” Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech, 17 Aug. 2020, www.pewresearch.org/internet/2019/11/15/americans-and-privacy-concerned-confused-and-feeling-lack-of-control-over-their-personal-information/.

“Know the Risk: The Best and Worst Countries for Cybersecurity.” BroadbandSearch.net, www.broadbandsearch.net/blog/best-worst-countries-cybersecurity#post-navigation-20.

“Protecting Personal Privacy.” U.S. Government Accountability Office (U.S. GAO), www.gao.gov/protecting-personal-privacy.