In the digital space, it’s less about whether data is being managed, and more about who takes responsibility for it. If I don’t take care of it myself, someone else will. Absolute security is unrealistic, because you can never fully control all your data.

That’s why the focus shouldn’t be on perfect protection, but on consciously managing uncertainty: knowing which information about me is public and being prepared in case it is used.

First of all, it’s important to understand that the digital space is fundamentally designed not for privacy, but for visibility and public exposure.

Even if you configure services to be as privacy-friendly (and user-friendly) as possible, they are still built to present and position us. That’s something to always keep in mind.

Beyond that, the biggest vulnerability is clearly careless handling of one’s own data. Many people unintentionally disclose private information on social networks, putting themselves at risk without any active attack or advanced technical means being required.

In many cases, no specialized hacking or exceptional skills are needed, because much of the information is already easily accessible and the tools to gather it are relatively easy to obtain or learn.

We shouldn’t forget that the digital space is not only enormous, making it easy to lose track, but that data, or fragments of data, are almost always stored.

This makes it relatively easy to collect and analyze information.

What makes the digital space so complex isn’t just its scale, but the fact that data persists, even when we’ve long forgotten about it. Nothing disappears on its own, so I have to actively ensure that data about me is deleted. Even though it’s a common assumption that individual data gets lost in the sheer volume, there will always be people who search for it specifically.

Even that tells me something as a malicious actor: namely, that this person values privacy highly. That alone is already usable information.

A good example is a Google account, which is extremely convenient because it connects many services - from email to logins across numerous platforms.

This convenience simplifies everyday life, but it also means that a large amount of information converges in one central place. Even seemingly harmless activities, like a well-intentioned café review, are linked to this account and provide contextual clues about locations, habits, and social situations.

Most people don’t want their private home address to be publicly available online. But once someone has your Google email address, certain services can be used to identify which accounts are linked to it. Is the Google Calendar public, for example? Can I see scheduled appointments? This happens more often than one might think.

Even without publicly sharing your name or address, recurring locations, timestamps (“my first coffee in the morning”), or phrasing (“just a five-minute walk to the best matcha in town”) can reveal your approximate place of residence.

If such an account falls into the wrong hands, through a data leak or targeted searching, it’s not just emails that are affected, but an entire usage profile: interests, movement patterns, even family structures. Many of these data points are generated unconsciously in everyday life, but can still be highly valuable to malicious actors.

It’s important to distinguish clearly between the public-professional space and the private space.

The public-professional space is easier to manage, because visibility is often intentional and even beneficial, especially in semi-public roles like that of a managing director.

Visibility does not automatically mean insecurity. What matters is how informed you are and how consciously you manage that visibility. The better your overview, the better you can manage the associated risks.

This includes regularly checking where you appear, where content is shared, in what context it appears, and how it is perceived, whether through simple tools like name alerts or professional analyses by external providers.

At the same time, you decide how precise the information in your own posts is. You can create something like “background noise”, sharing without revealing meaningful details. For example, you could say you like to go for a walk when you’re stuck, without specifying exactly where. That way, you control your visibility while managing your digital security.

The private sphere is more difficult to manage, because people in your close environment rarely assume malicious intent.

At the same time, this is where the most sensitive data exists. That’s why it makes sense to establish a clear family strategy: how do we present ourselves digitally? What do we share? Which services do we use?

Even if data is only temporarily visible (for example via “status” features), it can still be saved. So you need to be clear about what you’re comfortable with. And if you don’t want your face online, you need to communicate that clearly and others should respect it.

There are services that show where you are registered online, and these should be checked regularly as part of active data hygiene. In short: if you no longer use something, delete it.

The first step is to ask yourself: which data do I want to keep private, and which data am I comfortable sharing online? Then sit down and write out: “Where do I have accounts?”

Exactly. Most people estimate they have five to ten accounts.

In reality, it’s often more than 30. Many services are no longer actively used, but the data is still stored. So you need to go through all services, apps, and platforms (including inactive ones) and review their privacy settings.

First, I create a realistic overview of where my data is stored.

Then I review what information is saved: usernames, passwords, and personal data such as date of birth or address.

For social networks, I also check the general settings: visibility of my profile and personal information, and how much contact from strangers is allowed.

And this process should be repeated regularly, because updates can reset these settings.

Exactly. I personally aim to minimize how much private information I share, while many services are designed for maximum connectivity. These are fundamentally opposing interests.

I would answer that in two parts.

First, from a legal perspective, we are on a positive path toward a safer digital environment - not fast enough, but in the right direction.

Second, it’s the younger generation. They grow up with a different level of digital literacy and can often intuitively distinguish, for example, between AI-generated and real content. In fact, parents and grandparents can learn a lot from them. That’s why working with young people in the context of digital media is so rewarding: they already approach it with a level of critical thinking that many adults lack.