The Internets leading advertising company, DoubleClick, Inc. compiled thorough information on the browsing routine of millions of users. They accomplished this by implementing cookie files onto computer hard drives. These cookies enable Web sites and advertising networks to observe peoples on-line activities with great precision.

Cookies also include the search vocabulary entered as well as the articles one reads over, and the amount of time one spends looking at a particular article. Convinced that their actual identities were not being made public, consumers were pleased to accept this in exchange for the ease of navigating the web more efficiently.

In July of 2000 two California teenagers pleaded guilty to juvenile delinquency charges after they accessed computers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the U.S. Air Force. This attack raised government fears because it indicated the effectiveness of a well-organized and systematic hacker attack. The huge scope of the Internet worried some government officials, who saw unfettered Internet gambling as a threat to society.

One of the most popular Internet music players, RealJukebox was recognized in November 1999 by privacy advocates when they realized that the music each user downloaded could pinpoint a users identity by matching it with a unique identification number. There were even various software products such as Microsoft Word 97 and PowerPoint 97, which implanted distinct identifiers into every document.

It should not be assumed that service account information is kept private. Member directories are provided by many services, which publicly lists all subscribers to the service. Membership lists may also be sold from the service provider to direct marketers.

Changes in the delivery of books, music and television were extending these technologies of surveillance beyond the office (www.britannica.com) In 2000 Amazon.com created controversy when they changed their privacy policy without warning. They announced that customers were no longer allowed to obstruct the distribution of personal data.

Some topics in this essay:
Privacy Act, Air Force, Mylott III, DoubleClick Inc, Management Association, Identifiers GUIDS, Business Week, , Supreme Court, Eugene Spafford, personal information, online services, online activities, thomas mylott iii, key code, computer systems, thorough information, system operator, electronic communications, law enforcement, service provider,