Mary Schaub speaks with Alec Harris about how privacy, security, and personal risk have evolved in a world shaped by data brokers, algorithmic profiling, AI, and digital surveillance. Rather than focusing only on hackers and technical systems, they explore a more fundamental question: what are we protecting—and how visible have we become without fully realizing it?

They examine why privacy is not about “having something to hide,” but about autonomy, safety, and discernment. Along the way, they unpack metadata, device fingerprinting, dynamic pricing, reputational risk, AI’s double edge, and the growing gap between convenience and control.

This is not a conversation about disappearing. It’s about calibration—understanding where the risks are, what matters most, and how to make more conscious tradeoffs in a world that increasingly rewards exposure.

Topics

• Privacy vs. convenience in the digital age
• The “human attack surface” in cybersecurity
• Why metadata can be more revealing than content
• Data brokers and the commercial data economy
• Device fingerprinting and cross-platform tracking
• Dynamic pricing and behavioral targeting
• AI as both a defensive and offensive tool
• Public exposure, doxing, and reputational risk
• Practical digital security and privacy hygiene
• Balancing visibility with protection

Memorable Quotes

• “It’s less about who we have to protect ourselves from, and more about what we have to protect.”
• “You don’t have to be the fastest antelope. You just can’t be the slowest.”
• “The metadata around how we behave is often more revealing than what we say.”
• “You can have a public persona and still protect the crown jewels.”
• “It’s not about hiding. It’s about discernment and balance.”
• “Doing a little bit for a long time is a fantastic place to land.”

Resources

• How to Disappear — The Atlantic (on modern privacy and anonymity)
• The Age of Surveillance Capitalism — Shoshana Zuboff (data and behavioral prediction)
• Cambridge Analytica case (data-driven political targeting)
• GDPR (EU privacy and data protection law)
• Real-Time Bidding (RTB) (how user data is auctioned for ads)
• Device fingerprinting (tracking users across platforms)
• Managed attribution (how metadata reveals identity)
• Don’t F**k With Cats (online investigation and digital tracing)

Keywords  

privacy and security podcast, digital privacy, personal cybersecurity, metadata privacy, online privacy, data brokers, surveillance capitalism, AI and privacy, digital security tips, reputational risk online, device fingerprinting, real-time bidding data, how to protect your privacy online, why privacy matters, personal security in the digital age, social media privacy risks, cybersecurity for individuals, doxing and online harassment, AI security risks, privacy vs convenience

Disclaimer:

***The information, opinions, and recommendations presented in this Podcast are for general information only and any reliance on the information provided in this Podcast is done at your own risk. This Podcast should not be considered professional advice.***

Credits: Written, produced and hosted by: Mary Schaub. Theme song written by: Mary Schaub

Contact: FractalsofChange@outlook.com  

Website: M. Schaub Advisory (MSA)