Kate Newtown from RadioNZ writes about just how much data private companies are collecting about us, and what they're doing with it.

Issues include:

• The over-collection of data both with and without permission.
• Whether people understand the permission they give – or how meaningful this permission is when you have to agree to it to get your buscard, bank account, or phone service.
• Who the data is shared with.
• Are companies allowed to work out new things about people by analysing the data thet thay have collected?
• Whether anonymised data really is as anonymous as people think.
• How much of this information is then made freely available to the government.