Why Privacy Matters
Nothing in Life is every truly free
Email Monetization: Targeted Ads Based on Email Data
Email services like Google and Outlook collect user data that can be used to target ads. This allows companies to pay for email-based advertising, providing a revenue stream for email providers and users. Relevant ads can be displayed to users based on the content of their emails, their email contacts, and their email usage patterns. This can be a convenient way for users to see ads for products and services they’re interested in, while also generating income for email providers.
This is more based on gmail encrypts emails only during the sending process so they can’t be intercepted but while on the servers it isn’t quite as well protected.
Gmail are trying to introduce end to end encryption but this seems to be Gmail to Gmail only and currently only for a initially limited selection of Google Workspace users (Business)
https://www.howtogeek.com/gmail-better-encrypted-emails-workspace/
You might say I’ve nothing to hide which is the case for the vast majority of people, but it still doesn’t mean I want people snooping through my data to sell adds or have my data sold for AI training or to data brokers, which is part of the reason for all those Scam calls we get.
Remember online with the nature of the internet its can be quite difficult if not next to impossible to have your data removed. There are websites like delete me or Incogoni that specialise in removal of data from data brokers.
Privacy Focused Email Providers
There are thankfully some companies out there Tutanota and Protonmail to name but 2. I personally use Proton as they provide much more than just privacy based email but I’ll Get into that in more detail in other sections.
First and foremost these companies have no advertisements at all they are funded by both home and business users but they do offer a free tier its limited but it works for day to day use.
The first difference you will notice when setting up a proton account is they encrypt your email and provide a recovery kit for their services. This is because your email account its self is encrypted meaning proton does not have any access to your data. The recovery kit is used in case you need to reset your password. As when you log back in all your emails will not be readable until you use the recovery kit to un encrypt the data.
Proton and other secure email providers use end to end encryption which means your email inbox is itself encrypted as well as each and every step along the path the recipients mail box. Full support isn’t there for providers that don’t offer end to end services but as long as they do you are secure in the knowledge that no one at all can read what you have sent. So no data selling as its impossible and no option for targeted advertisements.
These companies also tend to usually have strong rules surrounding data requests from governments and if they have to comply with said request there isn’t much data at all to share as its all encrypted and thus unreadable to anyone but the account owner
Web Privacy
Data selling is not just restricted to emails search engines Google and Bing to name just 2 collect vast amounts of user data, including search queries, browsing history, location information, and personal details. This data is then packaged and sold to advertisers, who use it to target users with personalized ads. Search engines profit significantly from this data-driven advertising model, which has raised concerns about privacy and the exploitation of user information.
And since Microsoft Edge defaults to Bing and Google chrome defaults to Google every time you search that data is collected.
It is true that both are very powerful search engines and a lot of people user them.
Current stats show that as of 2025 that 89.7% of all search results go through google Microsoft Bing is the next biggest at 4.01% that is a lot of advertising revenue
Identity Theft
Scammers use your name, birthdate, address, or bank info to pretend to be you. They can open credit cards, get loans, or file fake tax returns in your name. Once your identity is stolen, it can take months or even years to fix
Identity theft occurs when someone obtains and uses another person’s personal information without their permission, typically for fraudulent purposes. Some of the most common ways identity theft can happen are as follows:
Data Breaches: Large-scale breaches of databases containing personal information can expose sensitive data to criminals. Basically where you have given your details to a reputable website and they have had their data stolen.
Phishing: Fraudulent emails, texts, or calls that trick individuals into revealing personal information such as passwords, credit card numbers, or Social Security numbers.
Malware: Malicious software can be installed on a victim’s computer or device to steal personal information, either via looking for certain files or even setting up a keylogger which records and transmits all your key presses aka logins for websites and your E-mail
Public Wi-Fi: Hackers can intercept data transmitted over unsecured public Wi-Fi networks.
Physical Theft: Stealing wallets, mail, or documents that contain personal information.
Social Engineering: Manipulating individuals into divulging personal information through deception or impersonation.
Skimming: Devices that capture credit or debit card information during transactions.
Dumpster Diving: Searching through trash for documents containing personal information.
Shoulder Surfing: Observing someone as they enter sensitive information into a device.
Impersonation: Pretending to be someone else to gain access to personal information.