Are we using the internet or are we used?

Almost everything we use on the internet, we gain some from the internet, and they gain from us in return.

Do you know what is on the internet? How much of that is you?

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We use the internet, but the internet also uses us

Nobody can say that we only use the internet or the internet only uses us - we wouldn't use something that we won't gain anything from. But if we gain, we are not the only people that gain something, everybody must be able to gain something, but nobody would be able to gain anything if nobody gave things.

For content that is covered by intellectual property rights, like photos and videos (IP content), you specifically give us the following permission, subject to your privacy and application settings: you grant us a non-exclusive, transferable sub-licensable, royalty-free, worldwide license to use any IP content that you post on or in connection with Facebook (IP License). This IP License ends when you delete your IP content or your account unless your content has been shared with others, and they have not deleted it.

We use Facebook to make it easier to comunicate with others. What most people do not know, is that Facebook actually has the right to sell your photos and videos that you post. There are ways to make it difficult to have the photo be sold (watermarks) but the average person does not take these steps.

What! We are used? I never knew.

Today, we are connected but we know so little about how we are connected. In the past, we knew more about what we were getting, because we could actually see everything in the product, and nothing was hidden. The only thing that the corporation would be able to gain is the money you spent from buying the book.

Now with technology, very few people actually know what goes on at mega-corporations. Be honest, do you know what Google, Facebook, or Instagram does with your information? Probably not, unless you actually work there.

Why are we used?

We are used because there is money to be made. That is correct, money. Facebook, Google and a bunch of other corporations are able to run only because of profits that they make from information. When you search for information, these websites log information about what they think you like and actually change the content that is displayed to you.


Here is an ad displayed on a French website, the ad has actually changed, to match the language of the viewer. By making ads dynamic, the amount of clicks that the ad gets increases, which affects the amount of money that the ad company makes, especially if something is bought on the website.

As long as there is money to be made, people will try to gain money, and the internet is no exception. By selling our information, or using our information, companies are able to get get public exposure to audiences that may actually purchase or use something from the company.

So where do we gain?

We gain so much from the internet - being able to get information fast. This connects us closer - bringing friends and family, who may be miles way, onto a glowing screen, allowing us to say hello even if we are not in the same country. We can see the election results almost instantly instead of waiting for the news to come on at 5.

It is better to read the ToS that most of use just ignore

The more you know, the more you you can use the internet and you can start preventing unnecessary information being used against you.

What do you think?

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© 2016 - Edward Vo