Data Brokers: Are They Watching You?
Ever feel like your phone is listening to you? Well, you might not be far off. A recent video from the owner of a data brokerage business has highlighted just how much information these companies collect and analyze on billions of people.
Think about it: in 2019, Epsilon, a data broker, was snapped up by Publicis Groupe, a huge French advertising company. Then, Publicis bought another data and advertising firm, Lotame, planning to merge it all together. The goal? According to Publicis CEO Arthur Sadoun, it's to deliver "personalized messaging at scale" to a whopping 91% of adult internet users.
What Does "Personalized Messaging" Really Mean?
It means gathering tons of data about you. Sadoun's video about CoreAI, a software program, reveals the extent to which they can analyze and predict consumer habits.
He even introduces "Lola," a hypothetical user. According to Sadoun, they know "who she is, what she watches, what she reads, and who she lives with." But it doesn't stop there. They know "who she follows on social media, what she buys online and offline, where she buys, when she buys, and more importantly, why she buys."
It Gets Even Creepier
They know Lola has two kids, they drink premium juice, and the price is going up. They also know Lola's income isn't keeping up with inflation. CoreAI can predict she'll switch to a cheaper brand and then BAM! Ads for those brands start popping up.
But here's the kicker: it's not just Lola. They claim to do this with 91% of adults worldwide – that's nearly four billion people!
The Problem with Data Brokers
Lena Cohen from the Electronic Frontier Foundation puts it bluntly: data brokers collect "as much information as they can." The industry is under-regulated, opaque, and potentially dangerous.
Cohen emphasizes the "power/knowledge asymmetry." You have no idea what data they have on you, who they're selling it to, or what those buyers are doing with it.
The Need for Regulation
Currently, meaningful regulation is lacking. Cohen argues for a comprehensive federal privacy law in the U.S. and criticizes the lack of resources to enforce existing state-level privacy regulations.
She even suggests banning online behavioral advertising altogether, arguing that contextual advertising (based on the content of a webpage) should be sufficient. This would remove the financial incentive to constantly surveil users.
Source: Gizmodo