A
new day is coming for users of Social Media and companies that profit from our
data.
California
has plans to implement European-style privacy law that would allow customer to
know what Social Media comapneis and Websites know about them a noted in the
article “California
Governor Wants Users To Profit From Online Data”,
Published Thursday February 14, 2019, The Jamaica Gleaner.
The coming law would require that companies:
1. Tell
customers upon request what personal data they have collected and why
2. Which
categories of third parties have received it
3. Allow
consumers to delete their information and not sell it
But...what
if you wanted a slice of the action? After all, those free social media services
are paid for by these Silicon Valley tech giants collecting your data...so why
can you not get a cut of the profit?
Apps and device
signatures - Third party advertisers making billions from your data
This
seems to be the arguement of California Governor Gavin Newsom, who is seeking
to do just that as noted in his first State of the State speech Tuesday January
12th 2019, quote: “Companies that make billions of dollars
collecting, curating and monetising our personal data have a duty to protect
it...... California’s consumers should also be able to share in the wealth that
is created from their data.”
Tech
companies, for example, sell the data to outside businesses that send targeted
ads to users. This data is often collected from apps that collect the data even
when you opt out of their advertising and access to your Smartphone as noted in
“These
Android apps have been tracking you, even when you say stop”,
published February 14 2019 by Laura Hautala, CNET.
According to research from the International Computer Science Institute, some 17,000 Android apps are collecting your Smartphone’s unique device signatures:
1. MAC
address
2. IMEI
3. Android
ID
This
data allows these apps to create a permanent record of the activity on your
device. They can then resell this data to third party advertisers who can
continuously send you advertising. By right, they are only allowed by Google to
use the Advertising ID assigned to developers for their apps.
But
according to research from the International Computer Science Institute, less
than 30% of these 17,000 Android apps surveyed follow Google's best practices
for developers.
You
can clear your Advertising ID in much the same way you can clear browser
cookies as explained in my blog
article entitled “How
to Delete Safari, Google Chrome, Firefox and Opera browser history on an iPhone”.
Clearing
this Advertising ID could stop advertisers from building up data about you over
time. But you can't reset other identifiers, like the MAC address and IMEI.
How smartphone data is
used by Advertisers - MAC address, IMEI and Android ID track you forever
The
MAC (media access control) address is a unique identifier assigned to a network
interface controller (NIC) in your Smartphone.
It
is used for communications at the data link layer of a network segment for
internet connections with devices such as Wi-Fi routers. MAC addresses are used
as a network address for most IEEE 802 network technologies, including
Ethernet, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
The IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) is a 15- or 17-digit code that uniquely identifies mobile phone sets. The IMEI code can enable a GSM (Global System for Mobile communication) or UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service) network to block a stolen phone from initiating calls.
The
Android ID can be reset, but only if you run a factory reset of your device to
erase data before you resell a Smartphone as described in my blog
article entitled “How
to erase personal information from your Android smartphone before selling”.
If
this is even a bit true, advertising networks can send you advertising as long
as you have the phone. So ultimately something has to give; either you accept
giving up your privacy for free services while Silicon Valley makes billions
from studying your personal data or they share the profits with you....as the
“Free” services have to be financed one way or the other.
Quitting
your Smartphone may be good for you in the long run to combat Smartphone
addiction as explained in my blog
article entitled “How
to deal with Smartphone Addiction as Wearables trend indicates it is getting
worse”.....but I doubt you'll be doing that anytime
soon....
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