I know data privacy is important and I know that big corporations like Meta became powerful enough to even manipulate elections using our data.

But, when I talk to people in general, most seem to not worry because they “have nothing to hide”, and most are only worried about their passwords, banking apps and not much else.

So, why should people worry about data privacy even if they have “nothing to hide”?

  • radixEnglish
    10•2 years ago

    As the Cypherpunk Manifesto says:

    Privacy is not secrecy. A private matter is something one doesn’t want the whole world to know, but a secret matter is something one doesn’t want anybody to know. Privacy is the power to selectively reveal oneself to the world.

    … An anonymous transaction system is not a secret transaction system. An anonymous system empowers individuals to reveal their identity when desired and only when desired; this is the essence of privacy.

    People can desire privacy for privacy’s sake. Wanting privacy doesn’t necessarily mean they’re criminals who need anonymity or secrecy to cover up illegal/immoral acts; it just means they’re human.

    For an offline example, consider that you’re a cis girl in a women’s locker room. You know everyone knows you have certain body parts, and you have nothing to “hide” due to this, but you still don’t want to be stared at as you peel off your swimsuit.