Why is a cell phone considered personal information?

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A lot of people do not give their cell phones out and I am wondering out of my own curiosity why it is considered personal. thanks

I've also been wondering this and the general idea I've gotten is that sometimes you say things to certain people that you don't want other people to know about because it might be embarrassing or give them knowledge about you that you consider private to everyone but a select few or maybe one person can know this about you but not another.

I get confused because I feel like if we're friends then it doesn't matter and I wouldn't judge them for anything they say. But maybe they worry they said something about me and don't want their feelings hurt. Or something very personal is happening. Idk.

Mopping at work now bye

Also phone numbers maybe.

I don't totally get it but it might be a theft thing. I've ended up acting like that since it seems like you're supposed to but I don't really feel that way.

Like the phone is an extension of their brain. And private pictures. So you wouldn't give your brain or address to people you don't know and it's the same idea with a phone.

Presumably, cell phones have messages in their inboxes, pictures in their storage cards and phone numbers in their contacts lists. Respectively, potentially private conversations, potentially personal pictures and phone numbers that should not be given away by anyone except their owners. Therefore, it may not be wise to give someone else free access to that much personal information.

Consider that even the iPhone doesn't seem to have a "block incoming call" function. You can only flag the number as SPAM in your address book and hope to have it alert you via caller ID.

Mobile phones are a double-edged sword. Some people have to shut off the phone after a certain hour just to be left alone from all the people trying to call them at inappropriate times. It's easier to limit who gets your number in the first place.

The number itself is just as personal as your primary email and home address; it is a clear identifier and can be used to bother someone with (just like a name, but that is all but obligated to be supplied in any interaction).

if you mean the physical handset (as in: dude, can i borrow your phone), obviously, there is a lot of information on it. i have my email, texts, dropbox and Gdrive all on there, with full contacts of my friends, as well as references to surviving social situations pasted on the main screen (which will raise questions) and scans and exerpts of several of my test results and diagnoses (which will answer the prior questions). those are way too personal to risk anyone seeing (the 2nd set), none of my friends/family or even therapists know about all of them.


P.S. "not even iPhone" is incorrect in relation to the call blocker; android does offer that ability, also selective blocking for both times, numbers and combos (disallow these numbers at those times)

It's personal because people can call you on it at any time.

It boggles my mind that anyone could see it as NOT personal.

Because for example I wouldn't like anyone to open my phone and see an WP page opened and know that I post and see what I post lol.