Have you thought lately about how much information you give up while browsing the Internet? Here are some examples:

• Have you used an online translation tool? Did you think about the fact that the document you translated contains confidential information (personal or work oriented)?
• Have you searched the web to understand your illness better? Did you think about the consequences if your employer has access to these search words (and s/he probably does)? 
• Have you researched your confidential new project by searching the web? Did you think about the fact that your computer ID (which may contain the name of your company) is freely available and linked to these searches?
• Did you search the web for self-help articles about difficulties in your marriage or with your kids? Did you think about the fact that your kids and spouse can easily see what you searched for (because the keywords are by default remembered by Google "for your convenience")?
• Do you remember that it's not difficult to actually find your true identity through your search words (remember AOL two years ago)?

The above are just a few examples, and I haven't even started on the amount of information we consciously put up on social networking sites. We are a society that is concerned about privacy while freely giving it up, sometimes consciously and sometimes without realizing it! If you really want to get frightened, then think about the ramifications of someone linking all of the above together in order to build a detailed profile about you. Who would do such a thing? Well, potential employers may (they are already searching MySpace and Facebook to see what you say about yourself there).

So, what should you do? That's already a difficult question. One possibility is to use an anonymous routing service like TOR. Otherwise, you can just be a bit careful:

• Try not to use social networking sites beyond a minimum, and if you must, keep in mind that a future employer may be looking (your kids may also have a look at what you posted, next year or in 20 years time).
• Clean up your search history and set the defaults on your browser to not remember your searches. (You can also disable automatic fill-in).
• Be careful about what you search for at work. This includes your personal searches (that you don't necessarily want your employer to know about) as well as searches that may give away confidential company information.
• Before you use any online service, make sure that you are not transferring confidential information to an outsider that has no interest in protecting it.

These are just a few short ideas. The main lesson is to be aware. If you don't watch out for your privacy - at least minimally - then you can't expect to have it.