Creepiness Factor

"The creepiness factor is a risk inherent in so-called behavioral targeting. This practice is based on marketers anonymously observing a user's behavior on the Internet and compiling a personal profile based on interests and behavior -- sites visited, searches conducted, articles read, even emails written and received. Based on their profiles, users receive advertising targeted specifically to them, regardless of where they travel on the web.

Consumer advocates worry that online data collection and tracking is going too far. Marketing executives counter that consumers benefit from seeing advertising relevant to their interests and contend that relinquishing some personal data is a reasonable trade-off for free access to Internet content, much of it supported by advertising."

I found this to be very interesting because in the article Fran Maier had just been diagnosed with a heart condition and a few days later she was getting junk mail about heart conditions and things to help it. If I would in her shoes I would be VERY creeped out and I would think someone is getting into personal information.

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1999