> It would require some serious education before the public wakes up to the dangers of private companies running amok with their data.
Exploitation is the best education there is. Everything is fine until it isn't. One day, companies and governments are going to start doing things with personal information that are unacceptable to even the average person. By then, it will probably be too late.
Case in point: The Nazis used census records to identify Jews. Who knows what pieces of personal information the next madman will consider relevant. They'll certainly have much more of it to choose from.
Exploitation is the best education there is. Everything is fine until it isn't. One day, companies and governments are going to start doing things with personal information that are unacceptable to even the average person. By then, it will probably be too late.