If you have HBO Max, or even if you don’t, you may have seen John Oliver’s episode regarding data brokers and the lack of privacy in the world today. This episode provided a great overview of the data industry and its practices. 

Oliver is known for his controversial takes, but he has never shied away from saying what needs to be said. He starts his monologue with an explanation that data brokers are the reason behind you “being targeted by ads for something oddly specific.” 

“… what all these companies have in common is they collect your personal information and then resell or share it with others. As one expert puts it, they’re the middlemen of surveillance capitalism.”

The segment that was released this last Sunday acknowledges that this data most people are giving up may feel like something that they already know about, but he says that the extent is what is going unnoticed. Oliver brings to light how “data brokers operate in a sprawling unregulated ecosystem which can get very creepy, very fast.” 

“The truth is when it comes to data brokers, they know significantly more about you than you might like and do significantly more with it than you might think.”

Oliver quickly explained the evolution of first-party cookies, the type of cookies that are placed by the websites you actively visit. These specific cookies are essential for activities such as shopping cart fulfillment, tracking a past visit, and user sign-in authentication. Oliver goes on to say “… the practice gradually evolved to include third-party cookies. Basically companies other than the site that you are on planting a piece of code in your browser that allows them to track where else you are going on the internet.”

The brokers that Oliver is referring to have access to everything from the location of the device, the IP address, and even the ability to combine with other data to confirm to whom each device is tied. With all of this information, each broker uses and sells this data. And it’s not for what you think. Its sold to more than just “businesses who want to market to you.”

The entire second half of this episode is when it really gets good. It’s worth the watch if you have the spare few minutes. Although we’ve known about the data being shared, I think it can be very eye-opening to see what exactly is being shared, and more importantly, how they are tracking and profiling the general public. Oliver makes the point that the “entire economy of the internet right now is basically built on this practice” and that changes are “tricky.” 

At the end of this specific episode, Oliver says how easy it is to change something when the people of congress are the ones suffering from a law or lack thereof. We wont highlight exactly how Oliver put the individuals of congress on notice, but the last 3-ish minutes of the episode are a must-watch.