“Tracking” Cookies — Much ado about nothing much

I don’t think I’ve ever seen as much to do about nothing as I’ve seen recently over Google’s decision to combine all their separate privacy policies into one. And then there’s the flap over cookies. Cookies can’t identify you personally – no matter what you have read –  it isn’t true. They only way a cookie could be used to identify you personally is if you committed a crime, and a court order were issued to force your ISP to release your name and address, and other personal information. That’s the only way to tie your IP address to YOU.

So while the flap over Google’s privacy policy changes and cookies reaches even to the halls of the U.S. Congress – your favorite retailers are collecting data about you every time you shop. And they’ve done this for a long time. A very long time. Your favorite retailer doesn’t have to get a court order to tie the information they have with you — they have all your personal information because YOU gave it to them to save a few bucks. That plastic VIP Saver Card you carry is your retailer’s ticket to your personal information and they use it to sell you more goods and services. And that’s exactly why online advertisers use cookies — to show you ads that you’re more likely to click to sell you more goods and services. But unlike your favorite retailer, these online advertising networks don’t have your personal information — all they have is your ip address. And trust me — they’re not going to get a court order to sell you underwear.

I feel like we’re the voice crying out in the wilderness, trying to bring some truth to the insanity that’s going on over Google’s consolidation of they privacy policies and the growing cadre of fear-mongers who vilify cookies by making them seem tantamount to your birth certificate. It’s not true. All the uproar does is divert your attention to the really serious and dangerous things we all face every day on the Web: the scams; the phishing sites; the software bundles; the Trojans; the spyware; the malware; the keyloggers; the botnets; the rogue security software; the viruses and worms; and more.

I’m going to be like the guy who put his U.S. Social Security number on the sides of buses to advertise “Lifelock”. I’m going to put a cookie right here for everyone to see. I’m brave:

I’m telling you – I’m brave. I’m exposing all that important information right here where everyone can see it. (In case you’re wondering; I fetched this cookie from cache of about 1600 cookies stored in Google Chrome – using a little Nirsoft application called “Chrome Cookies View” which you can download here. And I forgot to mention — that’s a “tracking cookie’ too.

So you’re all worked up over these text files called cookies. And all the while you’re worried about Google’s privacy policy and your favorite stores are building a dossier on you that would make the CIA proud. Why don’t I hear any uproar over the privacy policy policies of retailers like Target, Walmart, Kroger and hundreds of others? Is it because there is such a mass misunderstanding of how the Internet works – or is it because you can actually walk into Target and see and touch the things inside. Does the fear of the unknown play a part in this? And is the uproar caused by opportunists like bloggers and pseudo-journalists who manipulate readers’ fear by using half-truths and sensationalism (and the financial benefits that accrue from writing articles that instill fear)?

Retailers are getting a free-pass. They’re buying your personal information with their VIP Saver’s Cards — which have dozens of different names.

Read this article about a father who learned his teenage daughter was pregnant because Target knew more about her than he did:

How Target-ed advertising strips away our privacy 
By Arthur Caplan, Ph.D., msnbc.com contributor

“Your privacy is gone, and it’s never coming back.

A report that Target accidentally disclosed a teen girl’s pregnancy to her father shows the logical extreme to which retailers can take the search for more information about their customers.

This is what happens when you hand the cashier at your local drug store or grocery store any of a zillion plastic reward cards. Sure you get discounts, coupons or cash back. But you also hand over information that allows the retailer to create a complete personality profile based on your shopping habits.

That is what apparently happened to an unidentified high school girl who Target identified as pregnant from her pattern of purchases. According to a story in the New York Times Magazine, the girl’s father complained about a mailer sent to her featuring ads for maternity clothing and other items that might be needed by a mother-to be. The father complained to Target about the “error” but soon discovered that Target knew his teenage daughter was pregnant before he did…”

Read the rest of this article here.

You may argue that you gave your personal information to a retailer in exchange for better deals on goods and services. But I’ll bet you didn’t know the retailer is keeping track of everything you buy and using it to build a sophisticated profile of you. You’re being tracked all right, but it doesn’t only happen on the Web, it happens when you shop right down the block from where you live.