Have you ever been sitting on the couch talking to a friend about a certain subject and then a few moments later you check your social media and an ad for that subject pops up? Well same, and this is due to an algorithm called “Voice Sniffer” which allows for smart devices to record and analyze your audio data. It picks up on keywords like “love”, “bought”, “dislike”, and a few others where advertiser or content creators can use the keywords to select or customize content that is likely relevant to the user.
This has led to companies acting unethically and illegally by breaching customers privacy and sending that data along to other companies. An example of this would be with Facebook and Cambridge Analytica where they were able to access over 17.5 million data sets from only 56,000 installs as each of which provided access to an average of 332 friends. Another example, the companies that provided the popular game, Angry Birds, have been using this app to track users movements 24/7 and passing this information along to other companies acting as mini tracking devices. These apps collect information about where people travel throughout the day.
I believe that this current model of online advertising is dangerous for our society. Overall I would give it a 4 out of 5 on the scale of dangerous because I think it is causing more harm than good by violating our privacy and listening to our smart devices. Marketers are able to convince that a customer needs a product by showing them only bias review. They are also able to look at our search history to get a better understanding of who we are and send advertise us products based on those searches. I think that this could lead to unethical and even worse illegal activity which could hurt customers and brands.
Code of Ethics for Digital Markers:
- Honest
- Transparent
- Know your audience
- Don’t be Bias
- Privacy
- Reputation
- Maintain a high standard
- Imagine the impact
References:
Miller, Rea. “Amazon Patent Reveals ‘Voice Sniffer Algorithm’ That Could Analyze Conversations.” ABC News, ABC News Network, 3 Apr. 2018, https://abcnews.go.com/Business/amazon-patent-reveals-voice-sniffer-algorithm-analyze-conversations/story?id=54175793.
Boote, Tim. “What Have Ethics Got to Do with Digital Marketing?” Digital Marketing Magazine, 17 Jan. 2017, http://digitalmarketingmagazine.co.uk/digital-marketing-features/what-have-ethics-got-to-do-with-digital-marketing/4031.
Samuel, Alexandra. “The Shady Data-Gathering Tactics Used by Cambridge Analytica Were an Open Secret to Online Marketers. I Know, Because I Was One.” The Verge, The Verge, 25 Mar. 2018, https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/25/17161726/facebook-cambridge-analytica-data-online-marketers.
“The End of Privacy.” Philosophy Talk, https://www.philosophytalk.org/blog/end-privacy.
