This is the first in a multi-part series (I don’t know how many parts, yet—I’m just going to keep going until I run out of things to say) about online privacy standards. In it, I discuss the user perspective on privacy: namely, that most people just don’t care. In the complete series, I’ll cover some of the real privacy issues that need to be addressed and speculate on what an idealized privacy system might look like.

A couple of articles have come out recently indicating that, despite all of our hooting and hollering, most users just don’t care about privacy all that much.

Abbey Klaassen and Ira Teinowitz from AdAge, for example, had this to say:

When asked whether they care about privacy, consumers will almost always say yes, but internet privacy and data collection, unlike childhood obesity or pharmaceutical ads, has yet to become a consumer hot-button issue with real ramifications for marketers and media sellers. Even privacy advocates admit there’s not as much consumer outcry as there could — or should — be.

Louise Story discussed the issue in the New York Times as well:

Some observers say that many people do not really mind the targeting. Recent privacy surveys have found that younger people do not care as much about privacy as their parents do, but privacy groups say that is because people do not understand how much information is gathered.

?If people were shown all the stuff that?s been collected, I think they would be more appalled,? said Richard M. Smith, an Internet consultant who will speak on the F.T.C.?s opening panel.

Smith’s comment echoes the cry of privacy advocates everywhere: if people aren’t concerned, it’s because they’re not informed enough.

I believe, however, that the crux of the privacy problem lies elsewhere. Like many other apathetic Internet users, I have no issue with my personal information being used to serve targeted ads. In fact, more often than not, targeting makes me laugh—like the ads for Spam and Asparagus Goulash recipes that appear at the top of my Gmail junk mail folder.

The poll I ran recently supported this position, with 100% of respondents saying trust was more important than privacy.

No, the main privacy issue with personal information is what it could potentially be used for, and what could happen if the information fell into the wrong hands.

We’ve been giving our personal information to organizations for years: to our government, our banks, and our therapists. We give them this information because it helps them do their jobs better.

We’re willing to trust those organizations freely because we know that they have a highly vested interest in ensuring that our private information remains private. We also know that they are likely to have well-thought-out systems in place for maintaining the integrity of that information.

The problem with behavior tracking is not that we get to see relevant ads—that’s not a problem; it’s a bonus. In addition, it’s one of the only ways that Internet companies can continue to remain financially viable, according to the New York Times:

There are no longer many prime-time television programs that can reach most Americans. For media companies that have smaller audiences to offer to advertisers, there is more pressure for them to develop audiences with more specific interests and characteristics. From an economic standpoint, the drop in the total number of eyeballs means that the eyeballs that remain must become more valuable.

Media companies are reacting. They are creating ?verticals? within their Web sites to focus on specific topics. But they are also using targeting, often behavioral targeting, to provide more valuable eyeballs. Behavioral targeting tracks the sites people visit to deliver them more relevant ads later on.

…Many of the stodgiest Web sites are allowing networks like Tacoda, Revenue Science and 24/7 Real Media that place ads on their site use some form of targeting. That?s how they?re making each visitor more lucrative.

No, the problem isn’t targeted advertising. The problem is that we’ve got companies compiling and distributing personal information who don’t always have our best interests at heart, who don’t have to follow any regulations for maintaining the integrity of their data, and who don’t always have the resources or expertise to secure the information.

As consumers, we’re also feeding the problem, by freely giving up any and every detail about our personal lives, with little regard to the caliber of the company receiving the information.

In order to address this issue, we first have to understand it. In tomorrow’s post, I’ll discuss what some of the big e-companies are saying and doing about privacy. In the meantime, what’s your perspective? Do you care about behavior tracking, information exposure, and targeted advertising? Or is all of this the price you’re willing to pay to use the internet the way you do?

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 6th, 2007 at 12:45 am and is filed under People matter, Privacy. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.