Google To Monitor Surfing Habits For Ad-Serving

superglaze (ZDNet UK) writes "Google is gearing up to launch cookie-based 'interest-based' advertising, which involves monitoring the user's passage across various WebSense partner sites. The idea is to have better-targeted advertising, which is not a million miles away from what Phorm is trying to do — the difference, it seems at first glance, is that Google is being relatively up-front about its intentions."

Comments

I thought they'd been doing this for years

[plover]

Isn't that how Doubleclick made their fortune?

evil?

[tritonman]

I don't get what is so evil about using cookies to determine what kind of advertisements you would be more interested in. I don't mind having ads more tailored to my interests.

Re:evil?

[vishbar]

It's evil because it violates your privacy, and there's really no easy way to opt-out. Thankfully we at Slashdot are most likely gifted with the technological acumen to block these cookies...many others, however, won't. If I choose to browse porn while my kids/wife/whatever are asleep, I don't want Google keeping a record of that (and showing my kids a "targeted" advertisement for Hairy Hardcore Latinas Gone Loco 3.5). If it in any way gets into the wrong hands (or Google decides to switch their business strategy/privacy policy) then I could be seriously screwed if I decide to run for public office.

Re:evil?

[Onaga]

I would rather have tech and sci-fi books marketed to me when I go to Amazon. The big sale on may actually be the price tipping point for me to buy that. I don't really care about a big sale on that blue gem pendant necklace with 18k chain links. So yes, targeted marketing seems good.

The other side of the fence says, "ZOMG, there is a database with my surfing habits that can be accessed by the government and companies with money willing to pay for it." Some people may not care. Others think that this will allow Big Brother to build a fluff case against them. The middle group just thinks it is a private activity that should not be monitored by others.

I'm in more of the middle group. I have conversations with my wife all the time that are private. Nothing shameful or perverse, but just amicably intimate. I want them kept private, not indexed. I believe that is the heart of most of the objection.

Re:evil?

[value_added]

I don't want Google keeping a record of that (and showing my kids a "targeted" advertisement for Hairy Hardcore Latinas Gone Loco 3.5)

My first thought (modulo the "hairy" part), but I doubt that the makers of such entertainment advertise much.

I'd keep an open mind, personally. When I visit the Amazon site, for example, I receive plenty of targetted advertising. Some of it is useful (interesting new hardware), some of it absurd (recommending a book on Microsoft Server 2008 because I bought the Sendmail Bat book), but generally, I find Amazon's attempts to be both amusing and, oddly, welcome. Same goes for the emails they send me.

Face it, one of the biggest reason why most of us detest advertising is that it's wielded like a baseball bat. On TV, watching CBS' 60 Minutes invites a barrage of testimonials for geriatric pharmaceuticals (I'm not old!), a prime time show will attack me with ads for pickup trucks (I don't live on a farm), and the sponsors of most any sporting event insist their beer doesn't taste like piss and that I should drink it. Small wonder I stay away from commercial television where possible.

Mind you, there's plenty of legitimate reasons to hate advertising, but I think the non-targetted aspect is one of the biggest.

Re:evil?

[digitalunity]

Not all advertising is manipulation. For example, look at coupons for your local Cub Foods or Krogers in the newspaper. The coupons are basically the retailer notifying you that if you bring in the coupon, they will allow you to purchase a specific product for a reduced price.

The coupons are often for things you would not normally purchase, but with a reduced price the product may offer a better value and thus be worthy of your purchase. There is no manipulation involved in this case.

Another example are advertisements in the newspaper for car dealerships, offering one car for a low price. However, when you arrive at the dealership that car is "on a test drive" or "sold" but they push the malleable consumer into looking at or even purchasing another more expensive car. That is manipulation, because the consumer is baited to the dealership under false pretenses.

In my opinion, all advertisements that are designed to encourage an emotional response is manipulation because you are appealing to subjective emotions in what should be an objective purchasing decision. I don't mind targeted ads that show me things I may want to buy, if they provide an honest objective reason why I might want to buy the product.

Re:evil?

[Hatta]

Not all advertising is manipulation. For example, look at coupons for your local Cub Foods or Krogers in the newspaper. The coupons are basically the retailer notifying you that if you bring in the coupon, they will allow you to purchase a specific product for a reduced price.

It's still manipulation. Creating the perception that I'm getting a deal will make me more likely to buy something I would not have otherwise.

Not as bad as Phorm for one simple reason

[vincanis]

While potentially problematic, this behavior by Google does not rise to the level of Phorm for two simple reasons. First, rather than sitting with your ISP and tracking your browsing regardless of site, this technique will only apply to the (admittedly large) number of sites containing Google ads. Second, the release of a browser opt-out plugin is far beyond anything which would have been allowed for Phorm.

The remaining question for users is: Has someone yet developed a plugin to block google ads entirely? And if not, how long will it take now?

Sign me up please

[Jaqenn]

Perhaps I undervalue my security and privacy, but I keep hoping for an increase in the targeted advertising I experience.

I don't want to refinance my house. I don't want to find relationships online. I don't want to find old classmates. I don't want to earn money by signing up for free trials. Even though I don't want these things, I see these ads a lot.

I like videogames and boardgames. I like anime. I like paintball. I like cooking. I already go out of my way to learn about new products and discounts in these areas.

I would love to surrender information about my interests in order to replace the ads I don't care about with ads that I do care about.

Re:Sign me up please

[John Hasler]

I would consider doing that as well, but there is one problem: I have never seen an ad I care about.

Reset your Google filter preferences

[Mathinker]

Google does give you a preference ("SafeSearch") which you can set at three different levels. And yes, I understand that it probably fails sometimes. But I believe that can happen even if you didn't search for porn the previous night. Ergo, children's use of the net needs to be supervised in some way, IMO. (Appropriate to the parents' beliefs and the situation of the child, of course.)