Tuesday, June 15, 2004
Search weapons aim at privacy - News - ZDNet: "COMMENTARY--To some, personalization signals a new era of search, in which people can quickly navigate through the Web's vast reaches. To others, it is an ominous harbinger of encroachment on consumers' right to online privacy.
No doubt the personalization of search results has emerged as one of the most promising weapons in the search market business. But are consumers being asked to give up too much personal information in exchange for more relevant search results?
Web sites now routinely ask consumers to provide personal information in exchange for access to premium content, free e-mail, contests and more. Consumers have responded to these requests by readily providing that information...
...Search services themselves also share the burden of making personalized search safe for consumers. Services must continue to earn the trust that consumers place in them by ensuring that their information will be used exclusively to benefit the search experience and will not be shared with third parties for any reason.
In general, we as consumers have become desensitized to the information we give up because we're so used to providing it to the companies we patronize. It's not unique to the world of the Internet either. The fact is you can't buy batteries in a Radio Shack without being asked for personal information, including your name, phone number and ZIP code.
The search wars and the advent of personalized search are drawing attention both for their promise and for their potential pitfalls. Regardless of who emerges victorious, the use of personal information will continue to be at the forefront of technology innovation. As long as people are able to remain anonymous--and search services properly safeguard the information collected-—then supplying insight into who we are and what we prefer should not sound privacy alarm bells..."
No doubt the personalization of search results has emerged as one of the most promising weapons in the search market business. But are consumers being asked to give up too much personal information in exchange for more relevant search results?
Web sites now routinely ask consumers to provide personal information in exchange for access to premium content, free e-mail, contests and more. Consumers have responded to these requests by readily providing that information...
...Search services themselves also share the burden of making personalized search safe for consumers. Services must continue to earn the trust that consumers place in them by ensuring that their information will be used exclusively to benefit the search experience and will not be shared with third parties for any reason.
In general, we as consumers have become desensitized to the information we give up because we're so used to providing it to the companies we patronize. It's not unique to the world of the Internet either. The fact is you can't buy batteries in a Radio Shack without being asked for personal information, including your name, phone number and ZIP code.
The search wars and the advent of personalized search are drawing attention both for their promise and for their potential pitfalls. Regardless of who emerges victorious, the use of personal information will continue to be at the forefront of technology innovation. As long as people are able to remain anonymous--and search services properly safeguard the information collected-—then supplying insight into who we are and what we prefer should not sound privacy alarm bells..."
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