The Web of Marketing

Many folks are unaware of the marketing strategies employed across the Internet, which exploit personal information in a network of collaboration. Maybe this is because these exploitations of privacy are overshadowed by the more widespread fears of someone stealing credit card or bank account numbers while users shop online.

However, the fact is that many sites are part of a vast information sharing chain, using your personal information as the prize. This prize is called demographic information, one of the most powerful means of analysis available to marketing groups. The information might be only a name and e-mail address, or it might be your entire profile, including your home address, occupation, and Social Security number. On portal sites, the profile can contain the URLs you've visited and any other information gained from your surfing activities within the portal. Maybe you like that idea because you want a personalized surfing experience, right? Something tailored just for you? Well, you're not the only one who likes that idea—there are many organizations out there who just thrive on it.

Consumer profiling and marketing organizations would love to get a hold of this information. In fact, they will even pay a portal to get it. Then, one of two things happens. Either the portal hands over its consumer database and that's the end of it, or the portal agrees to work on a long-term contract, allowing the marketing organization to track visitors with its own methods and store that information in its own database.

This might concern you for several reasons. This data about you can be aggregated between multiple sources. The aggregated data, which might or might not be accurate, can be used by some person or organization to form opinions about you, target specific ads to you, and possibly even discriminate against you.

What if this information is released publicly, or to other parties you would not want to have it? The risks are high when you realize that many people believe what they see, read, and hear without question. In a country whose culture is driven largely by media and the media's unfortunate, anxious moves to get out information that might or might not be accurate, the subjects of the information are usually guilty until proven innocent. You might be at risk of consequences that include embarrassment; harassment; questioning by employers; and relationship problems with family, co-workers, and friends.

The point here is not to scare you, but to make you think about the sites you register with. Read their privacy policies; ask other people about their experiences; ask the site operators whether you need something clarified. Do not blindly trust that your information will be kept secret by the site or portal. You have a right to know how your data is being handled and what will happen with it should the site ever go belly-up. You also have the right to know whether the site is allowing third parties to interact with and monitor its visitors.