The FTC recently conducted a workshop that looked into cross-device tracking and related technologies. Specifically it focused a lot on the potential privacy concerns that are clearly present with this type of technology. While the FTC certainly shared a lot of information during the workshop, they also talked freely about the fact that they are still working to fully understand these technologies and how they are used in the marketing and other industries.
Cross-device tracking is rapidly growing and advancing, which is leaving the FTC struggling to keep up to date with the latest uses and implementations. This, of course, makes it difficult for them to offer concrete recommendations or even file suits against companies violating best practices. With these limitations in mind, however, there is no doubt that marketers in all industries will want to keep up to date with the recommendations and requirements that they currently have in place.
One specific area that was covered in the workshop was the use of audio beacon technology. This is a rapidly growing option that marketers are using for in-store marketing. Allowing consumers to broadly opt out of any type of audio triggering on their mobile devices is going to be very important. Another item that was brought up related to this is the video beacons, which is just starting to become a marketing option that is used.
Another major issue discussed is that the lack of clarity offered by the FTC is essentially allowing marketers to set their own limitations. This has resulted in use of things like account login tracking, browser fingerprinting and other methods that are widely seen as problematic.
Joseph Lorenzo Hall, the Chief Technologist and director of the Internet Architecture Project also talked at the workshop. He said about these issues, “The security model of the web, all these unsanctioned forms of tracking that people don’t agree to and don’t have good ways to control, are fundamentally undermining trust. For some of us, it’s turning the web into this very adversarial environment that we typically associate with dissident communities, not consumers.”
Whether you’re a offline marketer, an online marketer or a combination of both, keeping up to date with what the FTC is doing is very important. They have been focusing on privacy issues quite significantly for some time now and it appears that they are turning some attention to this type of cross-device tracking going forward.
