Write about the topic below for 5 minutes
Some people think companies should be allowed to collect and use personal data as long as users agree to the terms of service. Others think this kind of consent does not really protect users. Which do you agree with?
A follow-up question based on your answer will appear here.
Useful Expressions
Show Model Answer · Step 1
I agree that consent through a terms of service agreement does not really protect users. Most people never read these documents, and even when they do, the language is often too technical or vague to understand what data is actually being collected.
This kind of consent is also rarely a free choice. Many essential services, from banking to communication, require accepting the terms before use, so users effectively have to agree regardless of how they feel about the data practices described.
Real protection requires clearer rules than a checkbox click, such as limits on what data can be collected, plain language disclosure, and independent oversight. Consent in name only does little to protect people from how their information is actually used.
Show Model Answer · Step 2
In theory that choice exists, but in practice it is far more limited than it sounds. Many of these services have become essential infrastructure, and avoiding them can mean losing access to communication, employment opportunities, or basic financial tools that most people cannot simply live without.
Even users who do try to avoid a specific service often cannot avoid the broader system, since many companies share or purchase data from each other, so opting out of one platform does not guarantee privacy elsewhere.
A meaningful choice requires real alternatives and clear information, neither of which most users currently have. Placing the responsibility entirely on individual users ignores how the system itself is structured against them.