We are all surrounded by an invisible cloud, made up of the data and the information we produce online – a continuous flow that someone collects, processes, and exchanges. Thanks to big data we can access services that are increasingly tailored to our needs. However, every move we make, every purchase, every message, every public and private moment is observed. For each and every one of us, a profile is stored somewhere. Big data is useful to whoever wants to influence our choices, both as consumers and citizen voters… and maybe to whoever seeks to exploit our weaknesses and secrets.

Marco Delmastro heads the Economics and Statistics Division of the Italian Authority for Communications Guarantees.

Antonio Nicita was an Italian Authority for Communications Guarantees commissioner from 2014 to 2019 and teaches Economic Policy at the Sapienza University in Rome.