Privacy on the Web falls under scrutiny

by Paul Baldwin | Feb 11, 2000 8:00:00 AM

Tags: Paul Baldwin

Takeaway: In recent weeks, DoubleClick, an Internet advertising company, has been criticized by privacy advocates for its information-collection practices. What questions does this raise about your privacy on the Web?

In recent weeks, DoubleClick has received more than its share of attention from privacy advocates who claim that the company’s information-collection practices strip users of their anonymity.

In January, a California woman sued the company, accusing it of unlawfully obtaining and selling consumers’ personal information. The suit alleged that DoubleClick uses cookies, small text files placed on a computer, along with data it acquired from its purchase of Abacus Direct Corp., to identify Internet users by personal information.

Since last week, consumer advocacy groups have protested the company’s new privacy policy that acknowledges it will create a database of profiles that will contain users’ personal information, including their names and addresses.

While the company defends itself by claiming that the information collected will be seen only by DoubleClick, its claim has not assuaged the concerns about the erosion of privacy on the Internet.

What do you think?
TechRepublic takes your privacy on the Web very seriously. Our privacy policy states that we share no personal information you’ve given us without your consent.

We want to hear from you. What can the IT community do to uphold users’ privacy? What effect, if any, is this controversy having on the IT industry, your job, and the way you do business? Have users raised questions about cookies or other ways you gather information?

Post a comment below, or send us an e-mail and let us know.