We are in a new era.
Technology makes it easy and cheap to collect, store and transfer information.
Many organizations use this ability to track and compile information about our daily activities, and even share them with others without our knowledge or permission. The media reveals every month how another piece of our lives is being sold away. Companies are getting rich from selling both the mundane and the intimate parts of our lives, and Congress is doing nothing to stop them. On June 11, the Washington Post described in a first page article how less than reputable companies are offering the details of our investments and bank accounts on the World Wide Web. In addition to our demographics and business transactions, technology now enables more and more monitoring of our activities.