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I work in the advertising industry and can say with confidence that for most companies the value of this sort of data is far outweighed by the negative backlash

I work in the advertising industry and can say with confidence that for most companies the value of this sort of data is far outweighed by the negative backlash. Look for example at the way retailers initially flirted with in-store tracking and now are abandoning that technology. That fact coupled with the likely legislative reaction leads me to think that this practice won't last long. What concerns me most is the prospect of governments doing this sort of snooping. It will probably begin with a justification that the data are valuable for managing traffic patterns and for urban planning (or other seemingly harmless purposes). But then ultimately it will be used by the government for other purposes. It might actually be a good thing if in the short term a few companies abuse the technology to the point that the public wakes up to the amount of information broadcast by their wireless devices. Perhaps it will motivate the industry to add more security as a default setting (iCloud VPN anyone?).

slig 13y ago
> What concerns me most is the prospect of governments doing this sort of snooping. It will probably begin with a justification that the data are valuable for managing traffic patterns and for urban planning (or other seemingly harmless purposes) Can't just the government ask very nicely to TelCos for this kind of data?
- danielhughes 13y ago
  Sure the NSA can do that. But this kind of monitoring is accessible enough that even the smallest agencies and local governments can enjoy the same powers to abuse our privacy.
ronaldx 13y ago
It's evolutionary. If the industry keeps trying, and nobody complains too much about this particular implementation, then the advertising industry can continue pushing the boundaries. In-store tracking is too much for now, but if bin tracking turns out ok, then bin tracking can help justify in-store tracking later. This is an industry-wide version of what Facebook has been excellent at doing alone.

slig 13y ago

> What concerns me most is the prospect of governments doing this sort of snooping. It will probably begin with a justification that the data are valuable for managing traffic patterns and for urban planning (or other seemingly harmless purposes) Can't just the government ask very nicely to TelCos for this kind of data?

danielhughes 13y ago
Sure the NSA can do that. But this kind of monitoring is accessible enough that even the smallest agencies and local governments can enjoy the same powers to abuse our privacy.

ronaldx 13y ago

It's evolutionary. If the industry keeps trying, and nobody complains too much about this particular implementation, then the advertising industry can continue pushing the boundaries. In-store tracking is too much for now, but if bin tracking turns out ok, then bin tracking can help justify in-store tracking later. This is an industry-wide version of what Facebook has been excellent at doing alone.