Something few of us pay any attention to is the location data that our mobile device is collecting and sharing. Literally every single step you take is recorded, archived, and sold. Based on your location data, your gender, income, political leanings, education, pregnancy status, and more can be inferred. Once this information has been sold, it can be used not only for marketing, but to spoon feed you targeted news and alerts.
It has been used to discover who attends political meetings and rallies, Planned Parenthood, or Burger King. Most recently, the data location of those who downloaded a Muslim prayer app have been targeted by the US government, and a Catholic news outlet used data location to out a priest who frequented gay bars.
If you think there isn’t a target painted on your back (or the soles of your shoes), then why is location data – including YOUR location – currently a $12 billion yearly industry?
Visit https://themarkup.org/privacy/2021/09/30/theres-a-multibillion-dollar-market-for-your-phones-location-data for a great review.
