Cell Phone Gather Screens Watching Information Personal Computers

Do you feel like someone is watching you, even when you're in a room alone? Well, maybe they are.

A recent Los Angeles Times article talked about the many ways that screens - a computer screen, a TV screen, a cell phone screen - is "collecting" (gathering) information about you. Most people know that what we do on our personal computers is not always "private" (not seen or known by other people). "No matter" (it doesn't matter) which "web search engine" (such as Google, Bing) you use, what you search for, what you buy, how long you visit certain types of websites, and what you do on "social networking websites" (connecting with friends using a website, such as Facebook), all of that activity is a "source of data" (information that can be used).

If you own a "smartphone" (a cell phone that can access the Internet, check email, and more), the phone company is "keeping track of" (watching and recording) where you are and where you go, so that it can find you if you get a telephone call, if you ask for driving instructions, or if you want a list of restaurants or stores near you. If you use "apps" (computer programs downloaded onto cell phones and other devices to play games and to get specific services), these apps gather a lot of the same information that personal computers do.

Do you have "cable television" or "satellite TV," where you get extra channels by paying a monthly fee? If you do, you probably have a box next to your television that allows you to view those additional channels. That box also allows the company providing you with the service to "log" (record) which shows you watch, which "commercials" (TV advertisements) you watch and don't watch, and "in some cases" (with some companies; in some situations), even when you "mute" (turn off the sound for a short time) on your TV.

Of course, companies that gather this kind of data say that they don't watch individuals when they gather this data. Instead, they "aggregate" (combine) data to help improve their products and services. However, in this "age" (period) of technology, it's difficult to be truly private.