Privacy

After Paul, there is another famous octopus that appears on the heading of our morning paper.

I mean our Octopus card – or the scandal around the selling of our personal data by the company.

Discerning reader would note that I said personal, not privacy data. In fact, it is an innovative idea that disclosing our name and contact information to a third party impinges on our privacy.

Alas, if you are not familiar with the definition of privacy, let me show you the one from the US Constitution:

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated… No warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”

In other words, the concepts deals with eavesdropping, tapping of phone lines, and activities of a similar kind by the government or other secret agents (and therefore a protection against excessive power of the government or dictatorship) – not disclosing your name or phone number to the others.

If you have an obsession to protect your privacy of the latter kind, you should not allow your friends to call you by your name in public.