Since Cambridge Analytica heightened awareness of the value of personal data and its potential to be misused many have looked to protect personal privacy while preserving innovation. Technology solutions such as ad-blocking and intelligent tracking protection and regulatory solutions in the form of GDPR and CCPA have given new rights to citizens while attempting to limit data collection. These efforts have yielded benefits but have not significantly changed the collection and misuse of data. We may need to think differently about how to solve this challenge.

Technology

Ad-blockers and intelligent tracking protection built into browsers such as Firefox, Safari, and Brave or added via browser extensions can help limit personal data from being harvested online. Using these technologies requires a level of awareness and willingness to exert effort to protect privacy that is uncommon. According to May 2020 report from Blockthrough ad blocking actually declined from its peak of about 30% to close to 20% on desktops and on mobile only 3% of people block trackers in 2019.

Technology solutions could potentially be more effective if they were built into the dominant browser, Chrome, with 66% market share and dominate mobile OS, Android, with ~85% market share. Both, however, are developed and promoted by the online advertising giant Google which has strong economic interests to continue data collection. Google has worked to undermine privacy protecting technology making its way into the software most of the world uses to access the internet by depreciated APIs used by ad-blockers and making the software more difficult to find in its Play Store.

Regulation

Both the GDPR in Europe and the CCPA in California have been celebrated by privacy advocates for providing additional rights to citizens to control their personal information. Both laws also provide evidence of the public’s growing unease with wholesale collection of private data.

A common challenge with the well-meaning legislation is that it places the onus on individuals to take definitive action to protect their privacy in any meaningful way. In the case of CCPA a California resident would have to personally contact hundreds of data brokers, retailers, and advertisers to request they not sell their personal information. Only after providing detailed personal information to these companies which may include their social security numbers, photos of themselves, and email, phone, and mailing address might their request go through. Even the most hardened privacy advocates are unlikely to take up this effort.

The GDPR’s impact has also been found to be less that hoped for. The recently published review on the two year anniversary of the laws passage finds the law has had successes but has loopholes and is not easily enforced. Privacy International urged “enforcement, the closing of loopholes and the bolstering of other legal frameworks to support GDPR”.

A Simpler Way

Would a simple regulation that addresses the use and ability to profit from personal information instead of tackling its collection be more effective? Personal data is primarily purchased and collected by the advertising industry to deliver finely targeted advertisements. Large online advertising companies such as Facebook and Google already admit that microtargeting with personal data is being misused. Google voluntarily restricts targeting for political advertising while Facebook has called for legislation to do so.

If we were to simply ban the use of personal information beyond a few key items like age, gender and zip code for delivering ads there would be less reason to collect additional data. Advertising companies will still earn incredible profit from their contextually targeted ads (e.g. showing ads related to search terms or related to the topic of a post or news item being displayed on the screen) and coarse grained targeting.

The simplicity of the rule makes it easier to enforce and less prone to loopholes exploited by the sophisticated legal teams at the largest advertising companies.

We should understand that banning targeted advertising is not a panacea for protecting personal information. Other industries can still extract value from personal data such as insurance companies that may adjust prices up or down based on your data or retailers may offer discounts or enhanced services to its most profitable customers. Even so by restricting the most profitable and prevalent misuse of personal we can make a significant impact in protecting it.

What can you do to help?

1. Increase awareness of this issue. Use #BanTargetedAds in your favorite social media to help others understand and learn about this issue.
2. Let privacy organizations such as the EFF, Californian’s for Consumer Privacy, and others know you support them and the idea of banning targeted ads.
3. Switch to a privacy oriented browser such as Firefox or install an ad-blocker such as uBlock Origin. On mobile consider PrivacyPro.