Online Social Networks Leak Personal Information to Third-Party Tracking Sites

I recall seeing an ad on a non-facebook site that was somehow using my name. Not very surprising leakage though, since for some ad networks the publishers need to provide some user info. Personalized ads get higher CTR. Seems they then use this info outside of FB as well.

It's interesting to ponder that if things like this progress, will there eventually be laws regulating the conduct of social networks and/or their users? Governments may be able to control/influence companies in their own country, but do they have the right to do so on the internet, which is open to everyone?

I think I'm more troubled by the unbridled speculation about the dangers of online information than I am by the information itself. So according to the examples in this article, if you google for cancer, that could lead to trouble getting employment. How? It's a big handwavy "information, bad guys, sharing, the man" argument that doesn't even attempt to connect the dots with so much as a bad scifi movie plot.