Invasion of Privacy: How to Protect Yourself in the Digital Age [Hardcover]

Michael Hyatt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 3, 2001

This book is a report of how the government, industry, individuals, and interest groups have access to personal information about you. The book contains valuable information that will help you get around Big Brother.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Invasion of Privacy

Right now, whether you realize it or not, you are exposed and vulnerable. Why? It’s quite simple: privacy is ending.

The intimate details of your life—your home address and phone number, Social Security number, bank accounts, credit history, shopping habits, work history, medical records, travel habits—are readily available to anyone who might be interested in them. And you may be shocked to learn just how many groups are clamoring for your information: corporations, criminals, private investigators, government agencies, and more. Although we’ve embraced the Internet and other technological innovations that have brought convenience to our everyday lives, these technologies have made us more vulnerable than ever.

In Invasion of Privacy, best-selling author and consumer advocate Michael S. Hyatt exposes the dangers to your security and how you can protect yourself. Among the many risks:

-Manipulation by marketers: banks regularly sell detailed account information to telemarketers, and even medical records are sold to the highest bidder
-Credit card fraud: a problem that has only grown worse with the anonymous purchasing afforded by the Internet
-Identity theft: using just your Social Security number, criminals can steal your identity to rack up debt, write bad checks, and commit other crimes—all in your name
-Stalking: thanks to the Internet, stalkers have new windows to break into your life
-Frozen assets: the federal government monitors your every transaction and can even freeze your assets to investigate what it deems “suspicious activity”
-Frivolous lawsuits: the end of privacy means that nearly anyone with a little know-how can get a list of your assets to decide if you are worth suing
-Employment insecurity: employers regularly monitor employees in the workplace, and many now assess prospective employees by getting detailed background information on them—often without the applicants’ knowledge
-Government surveillance: the government now uses high-tech systems to monitor virtually every transmission of any kind, including phone calls, e-mails, Internet downloads, and faxes

Fortunately, Hyatt offers specific, real-world countermeasures that will help you end the relentless incursions on your private life. His privacy self-assessment will help you determine where you are now (most people don’t realize how vulnerable they truly are). And his practical strategies and tips will show you how to achieve privacy protection to match your goals and resources.

Are you being watched?
You may not realize it, but your privacy is under attack. Detailed information about you is available to just about anyone who wants it—corporations, fund-raisers, criminals, government agents, and more. Most people today think of privacy as simply an Internet issue (that is, if they think about privacy at all), but as Michael S. Hyatt shows in Invasion of Privacy, you are vulnerable even if you don’t use a computer. Consider these true stories:

-When Michelle returned home from a Mexican vacation, she was detained by U.S. Customs officials; the DEA had put out a notice for her arrest on drug-related charges. It didn’t matter that Michelle was completely innocent. A woman had stolen her personal information and assumed her identity; the thief gave Michelle’s name when she was arrested for trafficking three thousand pounds of marijuana.
-Ray was always careful to protect his financial privacy, but it wasn’t enough. Someone got his Social Security number and used it to rack up more than $100,000 in debt in his name, buying two cars and even securing a personal loan.
-Norma was shocked when the insurance company notified her that it was raising her rates. The company attributed the increase to her recent conviction for drunk driving. But Norma doesn’t drink. Another woman had stolen her identity and been committing crimes in her name.
-Twenty-year-old Amy was fatally shot by a stalker outside her place of work. How was the stalker able to track her? Simple: he paid a small fee to an online private investigative service to get all the information he needed.

It’s up to you to protect your privacy and your family from unwelcome intruders. Michael Hyatt shows you how.

Invasion of Privacy: How to Protect Yourself in the Digital Age

-How to set up your computer and your Internet connection for the utmost privacy and security
-Ten things to do to protect yourself against credit card fraud
-Why you should never volunteer your Social Security number—and how to avoid giving it out to those who ask for it
-How to know if your employer is monitoring you at work
-How to keep from being overwhelmed with junk mail and e-mail “spam”
-Six documents you should never carry in your wallet
-Why you shouldn’t use supermarket discount cards
-The first line of defense, and how to work your way up to more sophisticated privacy protections
-How to keep your financial and medical records private
-“Privacy Self-Assessment”: Find out how vulnerable you are

About the Author

Michael S. Hyatt is a best-selling author specializing in technology and its impact on today's consumers. A much sought-after speaker and consumer advocate, he has appeared on more than 650 radio and television shows and has testified before Congress on the subject of technology and the consumer. Hyatt is executive vice president and publisher of Thomas Nelson Publishers. He lives with his wife and five daughters outside of Nashville, Tennessee.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Regnery Publishing; First Edition edition (April 3, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0895262878
• ISBN-13: 978-0895262875
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,351,993 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful, May 2, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Invasion of Privacy: How to Protect Yourself in the Digital Age (Hardcover)

This book for all of you out there that have any doubts is amazing! I was totally oblivious to all of the things that our government is taping into, and with this book I really have become more aware and am able to live with the knowledge of how these things effect my own personal life everyday and that can be more safe. Michael has made me realize just how easy things can be found out and how to protect myself and my family. This is definitely one to pick up!!

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Privacy Primer, January 13, 2002

By 

Charles Church (Kona, Hawaii) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Invasion of Privacy: How to Protect Yourself in the Digital Age (Hardcover)

Michael Hyatt's book is a very comprehensive book on
privacy. Privacy is an issue of great variance of
importance to people. Some people are very private and
some do not seem to care at all about their privacy.
This range of concern is based on two factors. One is
trust, if you trust who you give your information to and
those organizations that use this information for
various purposes you have a very high tolerance on
privacy. The second is experience in events of privacy
abuse, if you have never had your credit card number or
identity used, or been stalked, you again will have a
very high privacy tolerance. The strength of this book
is that approaches privacy in degrees of the privacy you
want to attain. The book has very current information
and is supported by an even more up to date website.
The book seems to lack much original thought or
direction, but I think that is caused by the author
offering such a wide range of resources to meet the wide
range of privacy desired by the reader. The information
of the book is well summarized and referenced into a
series of "Practical Privacy Tips" lists and another
"Complete Privacy Checklist" in the appendix. This book
is a little shallow in technical areas, but that is
because it is written for the general population. The
reader with a high tech background will enjoy the range
of choices provided. Another element of the book I
enjoyed was the emphasis of having a family or business

privacy plan. While privacy tolerance is a very private
issue, a compromise plan needs to be developed for your
household or office. This book is great privacy primer,
I would have given it five stars, but I had problems
with the emphasis on getting a lock box mailing address.
The author did not emphasize enough the need to
maintain that alternative address for a long time after
you move to another location. Change of address notices
only last six months and need to be renewed for several
years. I know when I got my post office box the mail
from the prior box users continued to be delivered
including what appeared to be preapproved credit card
notices. This minor flaw was out weighed by the quality
and volume of information on protecting your privacy.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Invasion of Privacy: How To Protect Yourself, May 8, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Invasion of Privacy: How to Protect Yourself in the Digital Age (Hardcover)

Every person in America needs this advice! A member of my family was recently a victim of identity theft, and since it happened we have all been scrambling to find good information on protecting privacy. We bought several books and this one was by far the most informative and simple. In his book, Hyatt offers simple solutions that make you less attractive to criminals. Believe me, watching my loved one go through this identity theft has inspired many to take action and protect ourselves. And this book gives us all the info we need, I HIGHLY recommend!