Consumer Data Protection
By: Nicklaus Ziskind
Tags: Advertising And Marketing, Consumer, Advertising, Consumer Behavior, Data

A new landscape on the internet is being created, one without third-party cookies. As the internet evolves, consumer data protection is one of the most critical issues discussed today. Consumers’ browsing habits leave an incredibly informative and valuable footprint to the website’s users frequent. However, as the information consumers provide becomes increasingly valuable, they must understand what data is being collected and limit it.

The Legality of Consumer Protection

The average consumer might believe there are regulations and rules in place in favor of protecting a user’s data, but this is not the case. In reality, there is no such federal mandate in the United States, and the enforcement falls under the FTC clause of “deceptive practices or acts.” If a website makes no mention of data privacy on-site, its products, or its advertising, there can be no violation proven by the FTC regarding collecting consumer data.

Other nations have surpassed the United States in protecting consumer data. In the European Union, the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) seeks to put users in control of their data by requiring notice of data collection and the right to rectify data taken. A similar piece of legislation was enacted in California called the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). The CCPA offers a right to disclosure, right to deletion, opt-out, and a right to nondiscrimination. One prime example of a company that abides by this law and empowers consumers is Twitter. Twitter is CCPA compliant by giving users the ability to request their data be deleted and opt-out of their data sold to third parties. As data protection becomes a more relevant and pressing issue globally, many companies will follow Twitter’s footsteps.

How can a consumer limit data sharing?

Besides third-party resources designed to limit the amount of data shared, consumers can alter settings to curb this impending information leak. The information collection is vast, including but not limited to: locations frequented, web pages browsed, time spent looking at specific images, and so much more than the average consumer is unaware of. There are countless ways to protect and limit the data shared; below are several tactics that WishingWell feels protect consumers the most.

1. Alter your phone’s location settings. Many consumers fail to understand that apps they use everyday track their location in ways people could never imagine. Apps, such as Find My iPhone and Google Maps, track a user’s location and how long they spent at a specific place to understand their habits as a consumer and ultimately optimize advertising.

2. Limit Ad Tracking. Under settings on a consumer’s iPhone or Android is “Limit Ad Tracking” under the advertising preference. Turning this off will not eliminate a user from seeing ads, but it will reset their advertising ID and, for the most part, end targeted ads.

3. Turn on “private” browsing. Browsing privately on a mobile device or computer will limit the amount of data that is collected. These browsers inherently limit tracking, analytics, and advertising. Using a private browser will limit the digital footprint that a consumer leaves on the internet.

4. Check social media accounts. Social media accounts are likely oversharing information the average consumer didn’t even know was relevant. Consumers must access their privacy settings and ensure that only the data they wish to be shared is collected. Here, consumers can “opt-out” of several preferences that make them more susceptible to targeted ads.

5. Manage app permissions. Every single app consumers download collects information; limiting this information is key to not oversharing data. Applications such as Siri, Uber, and Google Maps all collect more data than required. 99% of the time, this data is being sent to advertisers to build a more accurate profile and ultimately better target ads.

Third-Party Data Protection

Browsers:

Despite Google Chrome’s excellent user interface, using the browser means accepting a trade-off with privacy. There are plenty of alternative browsers available, many of which take user privacy and data collection into consideration. Popular browsers such as Safari and Firefox have already chosen to eliminate third-party cookies. Still, several browsers have made it their mission to provide a safe, secure, and private browsing experience. Built-in ad-blocking tools, automatic cache clearing, disabled location tracking, and other tools can make the browsing experience safer and faster. Companies such as Epic, Opera, and Vivaldi offer some or all of these features on their browser apps. Some claim to be up to 2–3x as fast as Chrome since they don’t need to spend time analyzing each search for advertising revenue. Simple research into the browser ecosystem can improve the experience and de-incentivize the internet’s aggressive advertising system.

Image From: Govtech.com

WishingWell recommends checking out the Brave browser. Brave is based on Chrome’s chromium software and provides an intuitive alternative that acts very similarly to Chrome without the intrusiveness. This means users can expect a familiar interface and experience complete with extensions, macro commands, and all the most beloved Chrome features. The company supports desktop browser apps for all major operating systems and mobile browser apps for iOS and Android. On top of that, the browser provides more advanced features such as encrypted private routing on the TOR network (follow WishingWell to learn more about encryption and secure browsing shortly), and opt-in advertising that rewards users for viewing ads with a cryptocurrency.

VPNs:

IP addresses are an anchor in the current data collection environment. Companies use these addresses to specify individual internet-connected devices. Every device connected to a network sends this unique identifier when accessing resources on the internet. Companies collecting data can map and aggregate this data to build out user profiles for targeting. Not only does an IP address help organize internet activity, but it can also be used for geolocation, checking the device’s current operating system, internet service provider, and even firewall settings. To protect this data, use a virtual private network (VPN). VPN services provide varying degrees of protection to mask IP addresses. By sending requests through a VPN, traffic from a public IP address (the one with all of your data) is sent to a private network before accessing resources; then, the information is sent back to the device through the VPN. For example, a user connects to a VPN and requests Google.com. This request first goes to the VPN provider, the VPN requests Google, Google sends the VPN’s response, and the VPN sends the response back to your device.

There are tons of VPN providers available with a diverse set of features and pricing models. Users can install the software on almost any device, whether a mobile device, browser extension, desktop, or even a home’s internet router. On top of anonymity, providers can feature encryption, firewalls, malware detection, and more. We recommend ExpressVPN’s full-scale service, but here are some other free options provided below:

HotSpotShield: https://www.hotspotshield.com/

TunnelBear: https://www.tunnelbear.com/

General Tips:

In general, regardless of browser choice or VPN connections, users can protect their data by educating themselves on how their data is being collected and used. However, the most important thing consumers can do is inform themselves and practice safe web browsing. By following some of the suggestions above, consumers place an additional layer between their data and the companies looking to exploit it. Feel free to drop a comment below and tell other consumers the precautions and techniques you’re using to protect data.

*WishingWell may be an affiliate marketer of the links provided. By registering with some of the links below, WishingWell does earn a small commission.*