Everything About You Is Online. Now What?

For many of us, we share our whole lives online, from vacation photos and big events to things as simple as what we had for breakfast. There’s also other information about ourselves that we may not realize has been shared.

To put it directly, our personal data is all over the internet.

Having your information on the web can enable incredible possibilities, but it can also raise the risk to your right to privacy.

When hackers break into databases, they can steal identities, destroy credit scores, leak private photos, and sell DNA results on the dark web.

That’s why you should know your online privacy rights—and how to take action when those rights are violated.

Data Safety Is HIP(AA)

By now you should know to have a password stronger than “Password1!” You may have gone the extra mile and set up multi-factor authentication for your logins to protect your precious data. But did you know companies have legal obligations to protect that data as well? There are laws and regulations in place that hold corporations accountable as they handle sensitive information about their customers and users.

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability (HIPAA) safeguards your medical records against someone sharing your info without permission or a data breach.

The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) protects the online privacy of children and requires parental consent before any data is collected on websites and apps.

The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) guides how financial institutions can collect and use your data, blocking them from sharing your information with third-party companies.

The CAN-SPAM Act makes the “unsubscribe” button a requirement for all marketing emails and works to prevent uninvited and deceptive messaging campaigns.

Sharing Is Caring — Just Be Cautious Sharing on Social Media

In the era of social media mayhem, opting in can be automatic. That means when you use a particular social media platform, you automatically must agree to the terms and conditions of that business.

So what does that mean for the things you share on these social media platforms?

The photos and other media you share and post online are owned by you under copyright law, but many social media platforms have clauses in their terms of service that give them certain rights to use them.

For instance, you own your original content on TikTok, but the company has the right to use your videos and audio on its platform. Others can then reshare your content for their own purposes, as well.

On Instagram or Facebook, their parent company, Meta, retains a license to use your photos to support their products. Did you see an ad for Instagram on a billboard that displayed multiple images from the platform? Was one of those yours? They had a right to it, based on the terms you agreed to, whether you read through those terms carefully or not.

Be sure to read and understand the terms and conditions of social media use and be careful what you share, upload, and post!

Keep Your Personal Info Private

Not everyone has your best interest in mind. Sometimes corporations share private data to make a sneaky buck, other times lax security measures leave you vulnerable to data breaches and hacks.

In any of these cases, corporations need to be held accountable if they violate privacy laws or are negligent in the handling of your data. 

Morgan & Morgan takes data privacy very seriously, and for over 35 years, we have fought For the People to hold negligent companies responsible for their negligence or bad actions. As the nation’s largest personal injury law firm, we have recovered over $20 billion for our clients and continue to work tirelessly on our clients’ behalf.

If you believe your information was leaked or used in a non-permitted way, you might have a legal case against the companies who didn’t protect your information. Contact Morgan & Morgan for free to share your story and learn more about your legal options.