CNN iReport

American society seems to be getting closer by the day to resembling such once far-fetched models as "Brave New World," and "1984." With the dawn of the internet came a shrinking of the globe. Ones and Zeros screaming down wires and floating through space have created a vast network of multimedia exposure of everything and anything under the sun. Sometimes this can be a good thing. If you want to find something out, just Google it. Other times it seems we are entirely too willing to sacrifice our own privacy and identity for a little convenience and entertainment. For one thing we are being visually monitored much more than most people are aware of. Everywhere you go these days there are video cameras recording what you do. Traffic lights, toll booths, ATMs, stores, street corners, airports, police cars, cell phones, satellites, webcams, the list goes on. Go ahead and try to do something stupid and embarrassing and see if it doesn't get uploaded to YouTube before you even have a chance to deny it. Another alarming invasion is behind-the-scenes marketing surveys. Almost every time you order something online, swipe your credit card, enter a contest, click an ad, sign up for a service, enter a term in a search engine, or download a program, your demographics and buying habits are likely sold to dozens of marketing firms. Many companies claim they don't share your information. Some are probably telling the truth, others probably not. Either way, enter adware and spyware. These are types of privacy-invasive software that aim to gather info about you or influence you in some way without your consent. They can load onto your computer as a background script without you ever knowing. Any activity on your computer can then be pushed out to a host of companies which then use your information to engineer products and advertisements, send out spam messages, and offer you all kinds of crap that you probably don't want or need. There is also an emerging technology that seeks to establish "intelligent homes." In the future it is likely that not only will your computer be connected to the internet but just about everything else in your house will be as well. The latest example of this I have seen is a patent-pending design for a refrigerator that detects when you are low on foods and automatically buys your groceries for you over the internet (patent link: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/EP1176377.html) . My question is who else is getting this info? What are they using it for? What else do they know about me? How is the government going to use this type of access? What if someone hacks my shopping list? That probably doesn't seem like a very big deal but maybe I don't want someone to know what or how much I eat, how much alcohol I drink, or how many guests I had over for dinner last night. And this is only the beginning. What's next? TVs that monitor which programs you watch? Phones that screen for domestic disputes? Beds that catalogue nocturnal activities? Toilets that scrutinize bathroom habits? Get out of my life! Think you can escape it? Good luck when your products are no longer compatible with the new versions deemed necessary by the government. Just look at HD TV. Only 66 days until you will be forced to convert your television. There's something about that mandate that I don't quite trust. What hidden surprises are in my holiday tech gifts? Do I have to unplug everything in my house to tell someone a secret or make love to my wife? Maybe I should just flip the breaker and light a candle. Big brother is watching. . .