You added this later...and I never saw it till now...oh maybe I was blind earlier!
The government or IRS can look at me all day long...NOT my concern. It is the 3rd party that I worry about. I am sure that the
NSA has a key hidden somewhere to see my data...
I am OK with this.
But, am I ok with some hacker getting my info? No! And I do my best to protect against it. Thus, I stay away from services that provide no encryption on the "other end" (server side)...because IF that server is hacked, then everything about you is exposed for everyone to see and abuse.
You're correct on that last sentence...thus, I pick services that limit my exposure. That's my point.
Again, NSA knowing my credit card number (or any other sensitive info; e.g. SS#) is
not a concern of mine...BUT some hacker in China or Nigeria knowing my social security number IS a concern of mine. And that hacker is what I try my best to prevent.