I've never used the AutoFill Forms option in Internet Explorer,
and I don't plan to.
Why not? What happens if I click "AutoFill Form" and give a site
a little bit more information than I'd like them to have? Companies
love getting email addresses, snail mail addresses, and they
especially love telephone numbers.
I keep a separate email address just for those sites that
require you to receive a confirmation email, follow a link, and
type in a code. I'm not going to give them my personal email
address!
However, I recently read the latest Mark Morford column,
Amazon.com Does Not Know Me, where he states that even
though companies have a wealth of information about him, "They
cannot touch me. They cannot actually reach me in any significant
manner, ever...."
That's completely true. The big, bad companies that send out
spam encouraging you to buy prescription medication online or clear
all of your debts with just a few clicks aren't going to burst
through your front door and demand that you give them your wallet
because you decided you'd rather handle your finances yourself.
They won't put a bomb in your mailbox because you didn't buy their
discount DVDs, and they won't poison your breakfast cereal because
you didn't sign up with them to "lose inches in days!"
What Morford is saying is that while people can steal your
credit card numbers and social security numbers over the Internet,
they can't steal your personality. He says, "We think if we offer
up too much personal data they will somehow use it against us,
diminish us...."
He also talks about the "ideal standpoint" from which to look at
these matters - and argues that a positive outlook might actually
be the way to go instead of getting paranoid about people stealing
your credit card numbers, phone numbers, and other such things.
That said, my mom still won't purchase anything online unless
it's from a reputable company (she's bought some things from Apple,
for example). The problem is, even if you do buy from a reputable
company, there are even things that could go wrong. You're still
taking a bit of a chance.
However, if you think about it, you're taking just as much of a
chance (if not more) at a restaurant. They could swipe your credit
card through their little machine to their heart's content - and
would you know it? Not until you got the credit card bill, which
might not be for another month. Or how about stores? "Oops, it
didn't go through, let me see the card again please."
Morford's column makes a really good point: You can't live in
fear of what people could be doing to hurt you behind your
back.
That said, I still won't be using AutoFill, nor will I be giving
out my personal email address to just anyone.
