Breached…Again?
Concerns about the ongoing breaches, settlements, and alerts.
*Deep Millennial sigh* I’m tired of the breaches. Breaches, alerts, and settlements that don’t do anything but bring on more subscription time to one of many monitoring sites.
TIRED, ok? T-I-R-E-D.
A major breach has happened yet again. This one was four months ago. I know — it’s the same song and dance of a company (National Public Data) dropping millions of sensitive balls of data, and we the consumers both freaking out and coping with dry humor.
Below that humor is tiredness. Fear is beneath that. The fruit at the bottom is anger. I’ve been carving my Internet presence since September of 2001. Spoofed by the most creative emails at that time, probably been profiled ever since. While I don’t run around just giving my info to every website, let’s just say that a younger Veronica fell for a lot of sweepstakes and free candy promises back then.
I’ve witnessed my dad going through identity theft when some unseasoned nobody went on a GAP and MMORPG shopping spree waaaaaay back in 2006 when we were still rockin’ NetZero DSL. It wasn’t fun to see a still-working man calling and gently sighing, wondering if all his assets were in the hands of some pimply little fart who somehow had his credit info.
Sorry to my future lawyer, I hope I’m not breaking too many NDAs at this point. I’m up to my chest in Experian and Identity Defense subscriptions for free because of past screw-ups with my data. If the info wasn’t stolen, it was sold. What has been my compensation? Sometimes it’s money — just enough to visit Amazon and update my office, or barely enough for a square.
Other times it has been something like a monitoring subscription. It’s useful in lots of cases, but one company just sends alerts. Stomach-turning, heart-stopping alerts. There is no actual concrete help on their part, just vague tips about password changing without telling you which site the password is for. Well, dandy. My info is in the world (still) where in some places I need it for identification purposes but I am starting to feel like my dad — dang can I not be online for everything? Where are my errand pants and sneakers?
This is ongoing.
We do business online. Some of us take surveys. I work from home, create content, pay bills — come on. I’m everywhere. Dear reader, depending on how you roll, you’re everywhere too. You don’t even have to be online “like that”, and somehow your information is still stolen and sold because you’re in a database housed on a server.
I’m tired, worried, and freaking out because I don’t have a lot to begin with. What I do have isn’t put on a blatant display, but I’m comfortable in my little nest. The ongoing discomfort of knowing my identity is out and about is something I continue to cope with. I no longer feel like everything is completely safe and secure, but things need to get done. Life needs to be lived.
I have finally had my first anti-tech Boomer moment at 38.97 years of age. (Please don’t hit me, my wobbly Millennial body is full of coffee and Tyson nuggets!)
I suppose that I’ll have to keep a much closer eye on my subscriptions. Remember, gang — freeze your credit.
About the Author(ess): A 30-something science experiment that went awry in the 80’s blossomed to become the night owl and aspiring writer known as Veronica. Bathed in the strange waters of Lake Michigan and the Chicago River (long before a certain bus did a certain thing), she is currently nestled in the quiet town of Paris, TN living her deep-fried dreams on a moonshine beat. When she isn’t muttering about the price of produce, you’ll find her hard at work for TELUS AI or mentally intertwined with her latest writing project. (Contact Info)
