It’s rare when I come across a new web application that makes me go “Wow!” But that’s what I said when I first used snitch.name.com. I’m sure other people may go “Whoa!”

While many people use the Internet as a tool to help them do their job, for me the Internet IS my job. It’s how I earn a living as a journalist, academic and entrepreneur.

It’s no exaggeration when I say that I spend up to 90 percent of my time online searching for “stuff.” Most of the time I’m looking for the most current information available which is why I’m such a big fan of real-time search applications. So, while a lot of people are still figuring out ways to avoid using social media search tools like Twitter I on the other hand would be lost — and out of business — without a real-time search app like Twitter.

Now a new search app has entered my life — snitch.name.com. While Snitch is going to make may make my online search life easier, I’m sure more than a few people may get creeped out when they learn how easy it is to access information about them online.

Type your own name into snitch.name and see what happens.

The LA Times just published an article detailing the concerns some people have with all of this online openness.

It’s important to understand that a lot of the information about you has always been publicly available — things like real estate sales, political contributions and listed phone numbers. The Internet just made it easier to locate it.

However what some people are just now realizing is that information they assumed was off limits really isn’t. That account you opened on MySpace five years ago but now never use, guess what, I can probably see it. The LA Times article provided good tips to protect you If you are really concerned about your online privacy.

Limiting your personal exposure

With little federal regulation of the use of information that companies collect online, consumers are often left to their own devices to protect themselves.

Googling your own name has often been referred to as “vanity searching” — but now it’s better thought of as vigilance.

Use search engines to keep track of what’s out there about you and to spot unwanted leaks early. “People search” sites such as Snitch.name, Spock and PeekYou can also be useful when trying to clean up your digital breadcrumbs.

If you find information about you on a website you believe has no right to it, write to the site owner and request that it be removed. Getting a response may be difficult, however, as many of the sites that compile and store such details are automated. If the data is particularly sensitive, ask a lawyer for advice.

When signing up for a consumer or social site where you might share personal information, make sure to familiarize yourself with the privacy policy and learn how to work the site’s privacy settings.

Social networks such as Facebook give users relatively high levels of control over who sees their data, but don’t assume that your profile is private by default: Often you’ll need to tighten the settings yourself to deny access to people you don’t know.

Many government records are public by law, and preventing them from appearing online can be difficult, said Dixon of the World Privacy Forum. But consult a lawyer; judges are able to seal some documents and records, generally before they go online.

It’s also possible to avoid certain types of behavioral tracking. One of the easiest ways is to restrict your Web browser’s use of “cookies” — the tiny data mechanism that helps sites keep track of your browser.

By regularly clearing your cookies, you can cut down on the number of clues you’re offering to marketers regarding your browsing habits. Look for a privacy setting in your browser’s “Options” area that allows you to limit which types of cookies your browser accepts and how quickly they expire.

The growth of the Internet may actually spur the evolution of digital privacy, said Cooper of the Center for Democracy and Technology.

“Consumers are becoming producers and putting their own content on the Web,” she said. “With that comes the urge to be able to control who sees what.”

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