How many times have you been called by spammers? How many times have your inbox been loaded down with trash because of advertisements? Somewhere, somehow, a company received your information data and now they just want your money.
The sale of information hits everywhere. Businesses like Kroger, Wal-Mart, etc. – anything you put your information into is taken and sold to the highest bidder. For years they’ve been giving out your email, your phone number, your address. And based upon things you buy at these stores, companies will send you advertisements trying to get their products in your faces.
For the longest time this frustrated me. Someone’s earning money off me. Companies like Kroger get you to sign up based purely on giving you discounts in their stores. If you read the fine print on those things, it actually says that your information can be sold off. That’s the extent of the legal requirement.
At one point I remember thinking that it was infuriating that I now have to deal with a lot of annoyances just for this and its my information, why can’t I sell it? I wish I’d actually sat down and done it because someone has. TIKI, a new internet startup, is set to create this system. Their new mission statement reads as follows:
“We’re building a fair, user-centric, decentralized system giving, you the users control of their data. It’s your data; you deserve the right to see, control, and monetize it. Your data does not belong to corporations, TIKI included! We build tools to protect users from exploitation, greed, and carelessness. We build tools to empower users.”
It’s the pipeline dream for people. If you’re going to be subjected to pop ups and adds then you might as well get paid for it. They are planning on creating a community with their website. Making a diverse plan to support and bolster users in this new age of data selling. So maybe look into taking back some time in your life. Only get those ads that might actually be interesting to you. Dive into a new beginning and see what’s there.
Robert Raney is a geoscientist whose been writing and painting for years to get his creative fix in. While working on his thesis in theoretical planetary physics he was also creating fantastical worlds on paper for fun. He's an at home Texan Houstonite who currently works slinging drinks at a local LGBTQ+ bar in the gayborhood, when not fielding oil & gas jobs that have taken him around the world.
