Mainstream Media Outlets Profile New Threats to Your Online Privacy
The subject of online privacy continues to show up in the headlines of major news outlets as new problems continue to mount. And‚ it’s not just about identity theft anymore‚ it’s about your freedom to access the Web and keep your search histories private‚ not from criminals‚ but from companies who are looking to profile you at every turn.
For example‚ Ebay sells your information within seconds of your search. If you’re looking for a 1975 Mustang‚ then you’re going to see ads based on your search. You may think that’s fine; it gets you to the information you need that much quicker‚ right? Yes and no. While it is great to get information at the click of the mouse‚ if you really look at what’s happening‚ there are other things to consider.
In a recently commissioned online privacy study by a well-known news outlet‚ results revealed that anyone who thinks they are searching the Internet from the anonymity of their home computer is anonymous in name only. Nowadays‚ websites profile you from the moment you log on to their site. Just keep reading to find out how dangerous this practice can be.
During the study‚ researchers were interested in finding out how much “behavioral data banks” can reveal about people who access the Web. For example‚ if you are behaviorally identified as a “male in a midlife crisis” from your searches‚ the ads you are shown are dramatically different than those for someone who is identified as a “young mother.” You get ads for Corvettes and hair transplants‚ and she gets ads for Minivans and daycare. These examples are pretty benign‚ but the results of the study are really shocking.
The researchers began with a small group of people who they asked to access a well known financial company’s website from their home without revealing any personal information. They were trying to find out if compiled database information was accurate enough to truly reveal the profiles of their test group. The researchers knew that technologies already in use allowed the website to know the user’s zip code and physical location of the computer within 1/5 of a second.
Armed with that data‚ and the information that is automatically passed between the user’s computer and the webpage‚ the system immediately looks at demographic information including income and socioeconomic status for the geographic area of the user. They use this formula to determine the creditworthiness of whoever is visiting their site. The practice is known as deanonymization and it is gaining a foothold in the way that companies do business.
Credit card companies already use the technology to determine which offer you’ll be shown when you land on their site. If your “behavioral data” tells them that you are a good credit candidate‚ you’ll get better cards‚ offers‚ interest rates‚ etc. If you are deemed to be less creditworthy‚ you are given offers for higher interest rates and less attractive cards. And‚ all of this happens before you ever log on to the site.
The final analysis of the test group revealed that the analytics on many of the subjects was pretty accurate based simply on the data they got from the users computer and the demographic data they knew immediately (zip code and location of the computer).
What’s the takeaway from this? When you’re online‚ someone’s watching—and recording—every move you make.