Data provides advantage, but it's also a liability. If you collect the data and store it, then it can leak out (perfect anonymization is a pipe dream). Or you c

Data provides advantage, but it's also a liability. If you collect the data and store it, then it can leak out (perfect anonymization is a pipe dream). Or you can get hacked. More generally, using collected data means you are making decisions based on something that some of your users don't want you to have. That may be fine if you're careful with the data and you provide something of value in return, but the minute you do something that your users don't like, then they can reasonably blame you for acting against their best interests. If you carry around a can of spray paint, don't be surprised if you get blamed for graffiti. (This doesn't respond directly to your post; I'm responding to the idea that data collection is a fine and good thing because it helps make browsing faster or more efficient and that's all that matters.)