If the FBI goes after your YouTube history, how far up the creek without a paddle are you?

The incident led to a broader public debate on privacy and, ultimately, to the passage of the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) in 1988, which made it illegal to disclose an individual's video rental or sale records without their consent, underscoring the importance of privacy protections.

Even his opponents came to his defense

When the rental list was made public, Bork got aid from the last place to expect – from those opposed to him and his nomination. Several groups complained that this act had violated Bork's right to privacy and questioned whether it's anyone's business what movie one views on Saturday night.

One of the people who criticized Bork's nomination most severely urged the District of Columbia to pass a law banning video stores from releasing movie titles rented by private citizens. The American Civil Liberties Union, another Bork opponent, complained to the editor of the paper that leaked the list that its story was "tantamount to breaking into the judge's home to determine what books he reads".

Howard Simon, then-executive director of the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) of Michigan, said:



Ah, these quotes sure don't feel like they come from 1987. On the contrary, they sound up to date.

SIM swap scam – can the drama turn into a tragedy?

I can almost hear you say: "Yeah, well, that's none of my problem, since I only watch these ten YouTube channels. Also, I don't ever let anyone else use my phone… so I'm good!"

This isn't going to help you in the slightest when things go south, as we'll discuss in a moment.

Before that, let's not forget about the most recent fraud – the SIM swap scam phenomenon.

SIM swap fraud is a type of identity theft where criminals deceive a carrier into transferring a victim's phone number to a SIM card in the fraudster's possession. By doing so, the attacker gains control over the victim's phone calls, text messages and potentially access to secure services.

Usually, SIM swap scams are performed to empty one's bank account. Meanwhile, if the thief decides to watch a bunch of no-no videos while being logged in your account, you'll have a hell of a time trying to explain to the FBI or some other three-letter institution what you did or didn't do.

The two problems with someone looking at your YouTube history

There are two privacy problems with the idea of exposing one's YouTube history. Both are severe, but one can be fatal.

The first problem is what leaks, the second one is who does what with the leak.

For example, you're wearing a Cannibal Corpse t-shirt and your YouTube history leak reveals that you're actually headbanging to Taylor Swift, and you're watching The Kardashians in private.

Joking aside – the real danger, in my humble opinion, is when the concept of a crime changes overnight. You know, if tomorrow's rulers decide that all of a sudden the same things that were legal yesterday are punishable today. If you think that's impossible, better think again.

So, is there any bulletproof solution to the problem? Are we 100% sure our web activity won't get us in trouble in the future? Is there a set of DOs and DON'Ts, when it comes to the way we use our phones and browse the web?

I don't think there is any solution right now, as these digital times of ours are completely unknown. It's the wild, wild web years. A whole lot of shakin' going on will precede the moment when the dust settles. It's up to the months and years ahead to come up with some sort of adamant rules, if that's even possible.

I think we're still navigating through the dark of the night with our eyes wide shut. Whether we raise our phones to capture a beautiful dawn, or we stay in the dark (literally) because of our YouTube history, remains to be seen.

Until that day comes, you can check out various VPN solutions and see if there's anything that works for you.