What Are We Giving Up When We Give Up Data Privacy?
Posted October 12, 2026
Charles Woods, a privacy rhetoric expert in Georgia Tech's School of Literature, Media, and Communication at the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, shares four major concerns.
- What’s happening: As people share more personal information through social media, online purchases, health trackers, and location services, Woods warns that many accept data collection without fully understanding how their information is shared and monetized.
- Why it's important: Increasing third-party data sharing and privacy slippage between corporate and government organizations threatens our privacy and makes us more susceptible to digital profiling, targeted enforcement, and self-censorship.
- Expert insight: "What we need to do in response to the astronomical streams of data being shared online is develop a response to our surveillance apathy,” Woods said.
