If the comments submitted to the Federal Communications Commission in response to its broadband privacy proposal are any indication, consumers feel a deep mistrust of the online ad industry. As Rick from Arizona declared: “There’s already too much theft of my personal information from internet advertising, etc. and it must be STOPPED.” The public comment […]
Transparency could be a way for brands to differentiate. Because building trust with consumers is about more than telling them why your brand is great and expecting them to just believe it. “Trust is earned in drops, but lost by the bucketful,” said Forrester principal analyst Fatemeh Khatibloo at Forrester’s Marketing Forum on Wednesday in […]
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Thursday formally approved its privacy proposal for Internet service providers, despite dissent from several commissioners. “It’s as if we all forgot how the Internet economy actually works today,” said FCC Commissioner Michael O’Rielly, who opposed the proposal aimed at curtailing how telcos and ISPs collect, share and monetize customer […]
All those telcos getting excited about tapping into their data just received a sober piece of news. On Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) proposed a new set of rules that could put tough restrictions on how broadband providers use customer data. Data collection has been top-of-mind for telcos as they endeavor to monetize the […]
That settles it: Verizon Wireless has agreed to pay regulators a $1.35 million fine for failing to be transparent around its use of supercookies. The Federal Communications (FCC) said Monday that it had reached a settlement with the telco following a probe that began in December 2014 after it was first revealed that Verizon was […]
It’s been a busy 10 months since AdExchanger published its inaugural Marketer’s Guide to Cross-Device Identity. Since then the market has seen significant developments, including technology evolution, merger activity and shots across the bow from government regulators. Below, we pick up where we left off with an important update to our overview of the […]
The so-called privacy paradox was a big topic of discussion at the Federal Trade Commission’s first PrivacyCon. The event, held Thursday in Washington, DC, brought together around 20 privacy and data researchers who presented their work on consumer privacy and security issues in the commercial sector to an audience of technologists, policymakers and regulators. “There […]
When it comes to cross-device, consumers and ad tech vendors speak very different languages. Consumers use words like “non-court ordered surveillance” and “insidious invasion of privacy,” while vendors and ad industry trade groups refer to “innovation in ad tech,” driving “the Internet economic engine” and delivering a “seamless digital experience.” There’s clearly a disconnect. In […]
Chief marketing officers and chief privacy officers have very different ways of looking at the world. “Are there any marketing folks in the room?” asked security professional Aubrey Turner, addressing roughly 50 privacy pros at an International Association of Privacy Professionals conference in Washington, DC, on Tuesday. No hands went up. “Good – because I’m […]
Concoct an unclear or purposefully bewildering privacy policy with a wonky opt-out mechanism and you might have the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) breathing down your neck. “Many companies are providing opt-outs and they need to be careful about what they’re saying and what it means to opt out,” said Maneesha Mithal, associate director for the […]
Does Verizon have access to rich user data? Undeniably. Will Verizon successfully capitalize on that opportunity? Questionable. After all, Verizon’s user data is only as valuable as its data practices. Verizon could certainly benefit in the wake of an acquisition spree that somewhat resembled a line of falling dominos – AOL into Verizon, Millennial Media […]
Technology is advancing so rapidly that industries have little time to update their privacy policies to comply with social norms, regulations and legislation, said Trevor Hughes, president and CEO of the International Association for Privacy Professionals (IAPP). Rapid technological development leads to what Hughes calls a public policy gap, where the leading edge of technology […]
As the ad industry girds for the mushrooming debate around privacy, consumer choice and ad blocking, it’s clear that existing opt-out mechanisms aren’t exactly cutting it, especially when it comes to cross-device. But although mobile adds another layer of complexity to the situation, online advertising is still reliant on a little .txt file called the […]
Fatemeh Khatibloo, principal analyst at Forrester, will appear at AdExchanger’s CleanAds I/O conference on June 3, an event addressing inventory quality and supply chain issues in the digital advertising ecosystem. As adland moves to clean up the supply chain and weed out fraud, the consumer perspective on data safety risks is becoming an afterthought. Fatemeh […]
Verizon’s zombie cookie is now killable. In a development initially reported by The New York Times, the telco will allow its users to opt out from what the privacy community and a censorious media referred to as a “zombie cookie.” Previously, there was no way to opt out of Verizon’s persistent tracking mechanism. Users could opt out of having […]
As the Internet of Things ramps up, the Federal Trade Commission isn’t far behind. In a report issued Tuesday, the FTC set out a series of privacy recommendations leveled at the IoT device-making community, including best practices on data collection, usage and storage. [Download the report.] Regulators and agencies are most concerned about the ubiquitous […]
Target. eBay. The Home Depot. Neiman Marcus. Michaels Stores. Sony Pictures Entertainment. Even Chick-fil-A. Data breaches, hacks and questionable cybersecurity became par for the course in 2014, removing the illusion that companies can easily protect themselves or their customers. According to Pew Research, 91% of consumers aren’t comfortable about how companies collect and use their personal […]
Germany is leading the attack in the EU’s deepening privacy war against Google. Late last Tuesday, a legal ruling levied by Hamburg data protection commissioner Johannes Caspar required that Google obtain Germans’ expressed permission in order to access their data, or face $1.27 million in fines. “Our requirements aim at a fair balance between the […]
When it comes to data collection, Apple is on the offensive… and, perhaps, the defensive. There’s no need to read between the lines of Tim Cook’s attack on the data monetizers of the world. As the Apple CEO stated in an open letter posted on Apple’s website Wednesday night: “We don’t build a profile based […]
A few days after Acxiom unveiled Aboutthedata.com, a website where people can review the (sometimes inaccurate) online data that the marketing firm has collected about them, Pew Internet has published a report suggesting internet users are trying to remain anonymous online. Out of a survey of 792 online users in the US, 86% of the […]
As the fallout from the news that that the National Security Agency has amassed a vast collection of phone and Internet activity records continues, AdExchanger asked several marketing and privacy experts for their thoughts on the impact that the NSA’s data collection program may have on perceptions of consumer data used for advertising purposes. Click […]
Mobile advertising and the need to further educate consumers about its services were key issues at the Digital Advertising Alliance’s first summit, held this week in Washington, DC. The DAA has planned to introduce a set of mobile advertising guidelines for several months and will do so soon, according to Managing Director Lou Mastria. “Mobile […]
Mozilla, maker of the Firefox web browser, must fix three areas within its third-party-cookie-blocking patch before it can be rolled out to users, according to Stanford graduate student Jonathan Mayer, who developed the patch. The problematic areas involve “underblocking,” i.e. inadvertently allowing unwanted tracking cookies past Firefox’s cookie blocking patch, Mayer explained in a blog […]
“The Debate” is a column focused on the current debate around ad targeting and consumer privacy. Today’s article is written by Russell Glass, CEO, Bizo. This article is about the importance of transparency. In that vein, let me start out by saying that I am the CEO of a company that specializes in business audience […]
Jim Brock is CEO of Privacy Choice, a web tools company focused on consumer privacy. AdExchanger.com: First, please share a bit of background on you. And how did you come up with the idea for Privacy Choice? JB: I’ve always been in and around ad-supported media, as a Yahoo! executive and as a founder, investor […]
