Maintaining electronic privacy requires more vigilance than with other areas of your privacy.   I always recommend to use cash whenever possible in a transaction. This is the best way to remain anonymous when transacting.

The internet provides many options for purchasing products electronically, without setting foot out of your house or ever dealing face to face with another person. But this kind of transaction can be dangerous to your electronic privacy unless you take specific measures to make it an anonymous transaction by using an anonymous card.

Prepaid Debit Cards: Anonymous Enough For Electronic Privacy?

In reality, prepaid debit cards are not really an anonymous card. They are subject to federal law which requires you to disclose your SSN and other personal information that identifies you in order to use the card. 

Using an anonymous card might be a short term alternative to securing bank privacy.  It is likely that the personal information that is collected on you to comply with the law is only kept on file and not really used for any other purpose. Because there is no credit risk involved with using the cards, the companies maintaining them probably spend less time integrating the information they collect on prepaid debit cards with other databases.

You may or may not even be able to transfer the card from the person who activated it to another person. Even if you do transfer the card to a person who did not provide their information for activation they will still be responsible for all transactions made with the card.

Even though not entirely anonymous, there are some benefits to using prepaid debit cards which include being able to withdraw money from ATM's or any number of chain stores without an associated bank account and, most cards allow you to recharge the card with ease using cash. The cost to use these cards is less than the gift cards and the limits are usually quite a bit higher.

Gift Cards: A More Anonymous Card For Electronic Privacy

Gift cards offer far more anonymity than the prepaid debit cards because they can be used without disclosing any SSN. Although many terms of use say they require online registration of the card if you want to use them to make online purchases, the registration usually asks for a name and an address, not a SSN.  Gift cards can be paid for with cash at many locations like Rite Aid, 7 eleven or countless other stores. They also work as an anonymous card at most stores where a regular debit card is accepted, again, without a related bank account.

There are some significant downsides to using gift cards. One of the main ones is that they are usually limited to a maximum of $200. Some vendors will be willing to split the payment over several different cards at once, but some will not be willing to do this so if you want to buy a more expensive item you should verify this before hand.

Although not very high for each gift card, the fee for the card can add up if you are buying a lot of them. Gift cards are usually limited for use within the country where it was purchased, meaning that if you want to buy something from another country, you are out of luck.

Conclusion

Maintaining privacy while shopping online is not a difficult task but requires a few steps of preparation, ie: getting a ghost address etc., before you can take full advantage of it. Getting an anonymous card is well worth it, however, and can be an important part of protecting your electronic privacy along with using anonymous web surfing tools. 

Getting an anonymous card for a friend or loved one is also a good way to spread the message of privacy, engage in hawala transactions, or help someone get started on learning how to vanish.  Using an anonymous card can also help you avoid huge tax liability when traveling outside of the tax free states.

What Privacy Issues Concern You?

I write articles based mostly on what I am thinking about and what I think other people would be interested in learning.  I have also been spending some time putting these ideas down in a very detailed and organized way in a book so that I can present it as good resource for everyone.

I have also been asked to write about some topics that answer some of the questions of readers for other websites.  When those are published I will let you know, but I want to make sure that I am addressing all of the issues that you, the readers, are concerned about.   Leave comments and emails about what privacy concerns you have and I will do my best to respond to your concerns.