CNN:

Editor’s note: This post was created for your reading pleasure as a collaborative effort between the editorial staffs of BuzzFeed and CNN.

(BuzzFeed/CNN) — Edward Snowden, a 29-year-old former technical assistant for the CIA, revealed himself as the source behind one of the most notorious intelligence leaks in recent U.S. history.
Snowden’s leak revealed the shocking amount of information the National Security Agency was collecting as a way to track down foreign targets. And while the NSA’s tactics may be unsettling, it’s not just the U.S. government that is messing with your data.
It’s a brave new world of information mining. Here are a few ways your data are already being collected and put to use, even if you don’t know it.

1. Facebook knows what you’re buying.
Facebook purchased data in 2012 on 70 million U.S. households from a data mining firm called Datalogix. Facebook then revealed in February what many users were already noticing: The social network was, in fact, tracking users’ behavior to better advertise to them.
The backlash from creeped-out users has since led Facebook to become even more transparent about its targeting programs. Users now also have the ability to opt out.

2. Your Facebook likes reveal personality traits.
Liking something on Facebook is a simple, almost mindless way to pass time on the social networking site. But choosing to “like” beer, crappie or “Real Housewives” allows researchers to extrapolate far more intimate details about you, such as sexual orientation, political leanings and religion, according to a University of Cambridge study released in March.
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