Target Marketing and Consumer Privacy

Abstract

As the amount of information grows exponentially with each day, the growing concern for the protection of personal privacy has gained the attention of governments, as well as the masses. Through Internet trackers like cookies and web bugs, marketers are able to compile surprisingly precise profiles on virtually any Internet user, forcing regulations to emerge into a previously self-regulated field. Data tracking helps advertisements become more effective, in turn keeping services on the Internet sufficiently funded, and free of charge to the user. Also, data tracking allows for relevant advertisements to be targeted towards people who would be most likely interested in what is being advertised. Voluntary and involuntary means of data collection create controversial and moral dilemmas, especially dealing with children and their inability to make responsible judgments. Furthermore, taking into account Europe’s Privacy Directive we can now get a sense of how such regulations affect the flow of personal information, and the repercussions that they have in relation to advertisement success and personal privacy.

The collection of Internet users’ personal electronic information has proven to be the most crucial aspect of modern target marketing. By tracking the users online activity, a company can efficiently pair an advertisement or product with its viable consumers. Users voluntarily forfeit obvious information to companies like Amazon when they purchase products online. These companies then take the purchase history and use it to recommend similar products or services, essentially personalizing and streamlining the user’s overall experience. Internet tracking tools like cookies, web bugs and other spyware are far more invasive however, and can record the user’s online activity without their knowledge or explicit consent. These involuntary methods of data collection are virtually unregulated in most countries, allowing for potentially...