All The Info I’m Sharing Without Meaning To
7:00 AM: The alarm goes off, and I do what I always do: grab my phone and scroll through TikTok for a bit. Every swipe and like is sending TikTok info about me – my tastes, what makes me laugh, and even the time I wake up. When people say “I built my FYP brick by brick” they actually mean, they’ve shared their data with a website or platform. Also, my Tiktok usually shows me ads, and they are usually things I would like to buy; meaning that my data has been sold or repurposed to feed me tailored ads. Then, I check my emails – boring, but necessary. My email provider is keeping track of which messages I open, which ones I delete without reading, and which links I click. All this helps them decide which ads to show me or which "important" emails to put on top.
9:00 AM: Off to work, and it's podcast or audiobook time. I flip between podcasts on Spotify and thrillers on Libby, depending on my mood. Spotify tracks everything – what I’m listening to, how long, and when. My employer pays for my Spotify Premium, and I’m sure they’re getting data from me too. Libby, connected to my library card, knows which books I borrow, so it’s also figuring out my tastes and habits.
12:00 PM: Lunch break means YouTube time – usually watching Mia Maples or Adam McIntyre. YouTube’s taking notes: what videos I watch, how long I stick around, and what I skip. They know who I subscribe to and what topics I’m into, all of which shapes their recommendations and the ads they throw my way.
5:00 PM: After work, I dive into my schoolwork with my usual background noise: the Goldensdaphneandruby puppy livestream on TikTok. As cute as those puppies are, TikTok is learning more about my interests (dogs, obviously!) and keeps building a profile on me. It might even guess that I’m into online education or wellness because of the stuff I watch.
9:00 PM: Finally, it's time to unwind with some Hulu. I’m catching up on my shows, but Hulu’s taking notes, too – what I’m watching, how much I binge, and even what time I start and stop. They use that info to suggest more shows and push ads that they think I’ll care about.
11:00 PM: I set my sleep timer and call it a night. But even when I’m not online, all the platforms I’ve used today are busy analyzing my data, making sure they know what I’ll want to see next. It’s wild to think about how much I’m sharing just by doing my usual thing.
Overall, I know the data I’m leaking out on a daily basis is being monetized, and it makes me the commodity, but I’m not seeing a penny of that money, which is kind of frustrating. However, I don’t know how to stop it, other than going completely off-grid.
