What you need to know about doxxing, the average internet user's nightmare

My entire body clenches when I hear the word doxxing. Each time I write something that, for whatever reason, upsets a corner of the internet, I wonder if my personal information — phone numbers, address, social security number, credit card information — will be made public, or doxxed. And if it is made public, then how will it be used?
Even though our identities on the internet are more public than ever, we are still individually afforded a certain amount of privacy. Our passwords, o