Monday, June 17, 2013

101 Ways You Are Being Tracked

The recent release of the NSA spying documents is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to ways that you are being tracked.  Consider your activities and how they can be tracked via:

  1. Cell phone usage
  2. Smartphone apps
  3. Cell phone cloning
  4. Social media post/tweets/etc
  5. Items you buy with store rewards cards
  6. Items you buy online
  7. Items you buy with credit/debit cards
  8. Your car's GPS system/On Star system
  9. Your library activity (recorded via your library card)
  10. Your internet (ISP) activity
  11. Red-light/traffic cameras
  12. Private, public, and government security cameras
  13. People with cell phones recording your activities
  14. Your passport and other RFID-chipped cards
  15. Your banking activity
  16. Your casino player's card
  17. Facial recognition software
  18. DNA
  19. Microchips (ie: in your pets)
  20. Biometrics (for work/banking.etc purposes)
  21. Public sound surveillance systems
  22. Computer cameras and microphones
  23. Public transit cameras
  24. PC printer/copier machine tracking
  25. Digital camera GPS tracking
  26. Fingerprints (for Concealed Carry license, etc)
  27. Online public records 
  28. Online forums, comment activity
  29. Your website/blog/Facebook page, etc
  30. The emails you send
  31. The search engines you use
  32. The web browser you use
  33. The torrents/videos/etc you stream/download (ie: Netflix activity)
  34. The organizations you participate in/join/volunteer for
  35. Cookies and caches on your computer/smartphone
  36. Credit reporting agencies
  37. The wi-fi networking in our homes (everything from PlayStation usage to networked lights and thermostats)
  38. Google Earth and other satellite tracking systems
  39. Medical records (irrespective of HIPPA)
  40. Dental records 
  41. Airports (flight records, TSA searches and body scans, etc)
  42. Public transit and toll pass card records
  43. ATM usage
  44. License plate recognition systems
  45. Border crossing automated record systems
  46. Unusual financial transaction reports (SARCs, Form 8300, and other government mandated reports)
  47. PayPal, eBay, and other online financial activities
  48. Everything that falls into the SHODAN search engine
  49. Any barcoded activity (from your VIN # to your employee ID badge to your luggage)
  50. Activity trackers for your car provided for a "discount" on your auto insurance
  51. The black box in your car
  52. Any cyber stalking activity (ranging from a hidden camera in your home to hacking into your computer or online accounts)
  53. Online accounts where you provide personal information (dating websites, Linked In and Monster, etc)
  54. Malicious software downloaded to your computer
  55. Anything you leave in "the cloud"
  56. All account information (from your online comment account for your local newspaper to your online utility accounts)
  57. Your utility usage
  58. Charities you donate to
  59. Collected personal information sold by data brokers
  60. Anything that can be found online by Googling you
  61. Any activity that triggers social security number usage (from Medicare payments to government pensions, etc)
  62. IRS/tax collection information
  63. Data collected from your employer (everything from attendance records to performance reviews)
  64. Keylogging software on your computer/browsing history stored on your computer/etc
  65. Caller ID
  66. Insurance claims/disability claims/etc.
  67. Any legal actions by/against you (lawsuits, tickets, fines, criminal records, etc)
  68. Firearms registration
  69. School records
  70. Your investment history (401k, stock purchases, etc)
  71. Any surveys you participate in (census, consumer survey, psych evals for work, etc)
  72. Crowd scanning data (everything from chemical surveillance at a football game to photographic records by law enforcement at big events)
  73. Government data collection (Fusion centers, Echelon, PRISM, Carnivore, etc)
  74. Any interaction you have with the government (jury duty, college loans, government-backed mortgages, etc)
  75. Anything put online by or about you (from naked pictures to viral videos of poor behavior)
  76. Any job you apply for
  77. Any gathering you partake in (from hacker conferences to football games to "subversive" gatherings)
  78. Data collected by any "service" you join (from the military to AmeriCorp to FEMA, etc)
  79. Anything you create on your computer
  80. Everything you buy that's traceable (whether by payment type, store security video, etc)
  81. Any debts you owe 
  82. The people you hang around with (maybe you aren't under surveillance but they are)
  83. Your habits (a daily Starbucks addiction, a penchant for strip clubs, etc)
  84. Any surveillance or data collection done by your employer
  85. Tattoos, scars, or other markings that permanently identify you
  86. Data collected by companies on your shopping habits (Amazon for example)
  87. Any prescription medications you require
  88. Records kept for anything you rent (apartment, storage unit, car, tools, heavy equipment, etc)
  89. Any "subversive" group you belong to (can be anything from your local shooting club to the local mosque)
  90. Any odd/unusual behavior that is noted by neighbors, coworkers, etc.
  91. Random checkpoints (DUI checkpoints, traffic stops when the police are looking for a fugitive, etc)
  92. Any documents/items found in your trash or your shredder
  93. Through friends, family, and associates (if someone wants to find you, this is often their first stop)
  94. Through professional societies, school alumni groups, etc.
  95. Through licensure (from the basic--driver's license--to the professional--DEA license)
  96. Through subscription services (from Netflix and magazine subscriptions to CSAs and online subscriptions)
  97. Through your children (everything from consent forms to school/CPS/children's club activities)
  98. Through your spouse (your spouse often needs to list you on financial/business/other official records whether you know/approve of it or not)
  99. Rebates, warranties, service contracts, and other information you provide to businesses
  100. Your religious affiliation
  101. By your shoe prints, tire marks, etc (crime scene investigators can use this information to great effect)

2 comments:

  1. This is such a great resource that you are providing and you give it away for free. I love seeing websites that understand the value of providing a quality resource for free.

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  2. Thank you for taking the time to publish this information very useful!I’m still waiting for some interesting thoughts from your side in your next post thanks.

    ReplyDelete