Write a short reply to this post Do you find any of these particular practices to be ethically questionable?$$ What are those practices?

I find the practice of selling personal data to be ethically questionable, as it can skew a company$$s primary mission and purpose of the product or service it provides to profiting off the sale of consumer data beyond a reasonable scope of their awareness of control. Sharing a user$$s precise location, sexual orientation, or STD status violate consumer$$s right to privacy and can be particularly dangerous exposing them to theft, physical harm, or imprisonment in countries were same$-$sex relations are illegal. I believe this to be the case, even when the company provides a disclosure about data management because the disclosures are often too lengthy or complex which discourages consumers from reading all the fine print. When a company sells data to a company who then sells that data to another company, all of the controls of sed data are removed from the consumer. As Finn Myrstad shared in the article, many consumers will share data with apps they trust, many of these apps are abusing that trust $($New York Times $($Online$),2020).$ Additionally, the government needs to enact better laws and regulations to protect consumers data privacy rights. This behavior is parallel to being cyberattacked or could put consumers in the position to be exposed to one. $$

Why do you think these practices are unethical using one of the ethical theories in your toolkit?

Based on the rights and duties perspective, consumers have a right to data privacy and to expect companies to protect their data. That means that companies have a duty to protect consumer$$s data and to use and store sed data in an ethical manner. This is why the practice of selling consumer data, in general, raises ethical questions. Is it ethical for a company to profit from the sale of consumer data? Is it ethical for companies to share private and personal detail about consumers that they may not want shared with other? The right and duties theory would most answer both questions with a no$,$ or only in limited circumstances with the consumer$$s consent.

Based on the fairness and just perspective, it does not seem fair to violate customer$$s data privacy by selling their information particularly when it is done without their knowledge or consent. It also does not seem just for companies to profit from the sale of consumer data to third$-$party companies for unknown use. While the U$.$S$.$ government has enacted various laws and regulations, it should do more to protect the data privacy rights of consumers and to penalize those who violate those rights.

Are you surprised or alarmed that so much of your personal data is available in this ecosystem?

I am not surprised and always alarmed by the amount of personal data that is available in the ecosystem. Working for a financial institution who has recently undergone a digital transformation, I was exposed to third$-$party data selling that opened my eyes to the amount of data that consumers authorize to be shared $$ truly without their knowledge. I also witnessed the impact on customer service when these $$insights$,$ as we call them are used to engage the member. They are often confused and sometimes concerned about how and where we obtained data that they did not personally share with us$.$ It is a very complex and tangled web of data that can be powerful of businesses and dangerous for consumers. As such, authorities have an even greater responsibility to enforce rules or to make better rules to keep citizen$$s data safe $($New York Times $($Online$),2020).$

Do you think the system ought to be changed to eliminate these practices and, if so$,$ what changes would you suggest?

I believe that companies should be required to fully disclose how they protect and use data, including the names and details for companies to whom data is sold and for what intent. Additionally, all companies that acquire personal data from customers should be required to have an opt out clause that is clearly communicated and easy to enact. The government should also engage in stricter enforcement of laws and harsher penalties for companies that misuse consumer data or abuse their data privacy rights.