Editors: Evan Selinger, Jules Polonetsky, and Omer Tene
Publisher: Cambridge University Press – 601 pages
Book Review by: Sonu Chandiram
Consumer privacy is a hot topic of public debate these days. Consumers on social media are generally unaware of what types of information about them have been, or are being collected, and much less whether that collected data is being sold to companies that want to target certain consumer sectors to sell their products and services.
I believe most people are also unaware if collection and sale of data about them, particularly about their product and service preferences and buying behavior, is legal or not.
Data collection enthusiasts and advocates say that personal information – obtained not only from social media platforms but also from mobile devices, browsing websites, filling up forms on them, emailing, and other activities on the Internet, will “unlock path-breaking innovation.” This is of course a good prospect, as has often been said “change is good.”
However not everyone, especially consumer privacy advocates, see it that way. Government regulators and pro-consumer activists for example, point out that quite often, consumers want to keep certain points of information about themselves private.
They also contend that quite often, companies that collect data on their customers, are driven to empower themselves and create new revenue and profit streams, once they know what other products and services they buy.
This is called “up-selling” – selling more stuff to existing customers without having to look for new customers ! From a business owner’s perspective, data collection provides a lot of benefit. But consumers are wary that their personal information may be misused or worse, stolen
This voluminous book of more than 600 pages provides information about the many issues relating to consumer privacy, including the motivations, fears, and even ambivalent attitudes of different entities involved. It is an indispensable guide on consumer privacy matters.
Fifty-three specialists in consumer privacy and related areas – from all over the United States, Belgium, Germany, Israel, and the Netherlands – wrote or co-wrote the 32 chapters of this extensive work. The chapters are organized around five broad Parts, namely:
- Part I. Introduction
- Part II. The Pervasiveness and Value of Tracking Technologies
- Part III. Ethical and Legal Reservations About Tracking Technologies
- Part IV. International Perspectives
- Part V. New Approaches to Improve the Status Quo
The consequences on consumer privacy for the future and even in the present, are important. What happens now, in terms of new laws and regulations that are passed will guide the future. New communication devices are constantly being invented and new Internet social platforms are always developing. We quote what is written on the inside flap of this book to highlight the importance to you of becoming aware consumer privacy issues:
“As the Internet of Things matures and facial recognition, predictive analysis, big data, and wearable tracking grow in power, scale, and scope, a controversial ecosystem will exacerbate the acrimony over commercial data capture and analysis. The only productive way forward is to get a grip on the key problems right now and change the conversation.”
To empower yourself on matters pertaining to consumer privacy, get and read this book!
Editors:
Evan Selinger is a Professor of Philosophy at Rochester Institute of Technology and Senior Fellow at the Future of Privacy Forum. Selinger’s prolific research covers ethical issues concerning technology, science, the law, and expertise. Committed to public engagement, Selinger’s writing appears in Wired, The Atlantic, Slate, The Wall Street Journal, The Nation, The Guardian, Salon, CNN, Bloomberg Opinion, The BBC, The Christian Science Monitor, New Scientist, Aeon, Forbes, and HuffPost.
Jules Polonetsky serves as CEO of the Future of Privacy Forum, a non-profit organization that serves as a catalyst for privacy leadership and scholarship, advancing principled data practices in support of emerging technologies. FPF is supported by the chief privacy officers of more than 130 leading companies, several foundations, as well as by an advisory board comprised of the country’s leading academics and advocates. FPF’s current projects focus on Artificial Intelligence, Mobile, Location, Apps, the Internet of Things, Wearables, De-Identification, Connected Cars and Student Privacy.
Omer Tene is Vice President of Research and Education at the International Association of Privacy Professionals. He is a consultant to governments, regulatory agencies and businesses on privacy, cyber-security, and data management. He is an affiliate scholar at the Stanford Center for Internet and Society and Senior Fellow at the Future of Privacy Forum. He comes from Israel, where he was a professor at the College of Management School of Law.
