InfoSec Concept

Know about your DIGITAL FOOTPRINT

There is a subtle difference between data and information. Data are the facts or details from which information is derived. Individual pieces of data are rarely useful alone. For data to become information, data needs to be put into context. In simple words, for any individual, his/her name, address, bank account details etc., are his/her personal data. When you use this personal data to get meaningful information i.e Raj got 80% in 10^th std exam is an information about Raj.

Whenever you go online you leave behind some information about yourself like sending an email to someone, posting a picture on your social networks, commenting on a post or a news story, video calls, apps that you use, or even a simple Google search. So, it is extremely important that you know what kind of trail you are leaving,and what can be the possible effects it can bring in your life.Your digital footprint is all that you leave behind as you use the Internet. It is actually a part of your online history and can potentially be seen by other people, or tracked in a database by service providers. For example, the negative review you gave for a service team that could not fix your problem is available for anyone to read, forever. A picture of yours sent to your friend will be there in some server and can be used by anyone. All of these digital activities can create a much larger picture of who you are and where you have been, what you have done and how you respond to certain situations. There are two kinds of digital footprint: ‘passive’ and ‘active’.

Passive digital footprint
Passive digital footprint is collected without our knowledge and is used to target you through advertisements, build customer profiles and more. This includes information like individual browsing data, IP addresses, purchasing habits and many more.

Active digital footprint
Active digital footprint is the publicly-traceable information that you share online, like social media profile information, updates, posts, photos and videos shared.

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