…. And your browser history, and your city mobility… it goes beyond. And it is like this everywhere and any sectors. So because it is so pervasive the answer can’t be a restriction (of our data in the hands of companies) or a device that let us control who we give our data to (do you know that we can all be profiled even as we don’t give out data: my choice for privacy — where this choice is given — is already data and my profile is estimated ‘in opposition’ to those who have given access).

Let’s keep on using the same example of insurance companies using our data to calibrate their profits better. They know lots about me, fair enough, but then I want to know more about them. I want to know what is their algorithm to calculate the premiums and how it compares to other insurance companies; I want to know what is their projected profit they count to make on me; I want to know who work for them; I want to know how they manage their relationship with which doctor; I want to know their projections on how my premium will increase during my lifetime and compare it with peers.

We need Data equality but this can’t be by restricting companies’ use of my data (it is too late for this). But it can be in a system that forces corporations — all of them — to give out the same amount of data we provide them daily with. As they base their choices on my data, I want to base my choice as a consumer on their data.

The longer time we waste trying to try to clamp down on companies’ ability to extract data from us, the farther we will be of the vision of Data equality.