Lists, Lists, Lists

Spying on Keg Sales

2005-09-27T10:43:00.000-07:00

The Boston Licensing Board is expected to approve a measure that registers all sales of kegs. In order to purchase a barrel of beer, would-be partiers will soon be required to show ID and get on a list which will be shared with police.

While some might applaud the attempt to crack down on riotous parties, others have raised concerns about where reporting on consumption (or intended consumption that might be indicated by purchase) should stop. One humorous column by Beth Teitell suggested that we all have some form of shopping indulgence that we’d rather not put in a public record: from eating too much chocolate ice cream to using a bit of Botox.

Teitell, however, may represent a minority opinion. The trend is to track. In addition to keg sales in Boston, Oregon and Oklahoma have adopted measures to track purchases of Sudafed, a key ingredient in methamphetamine. At the federal level, there have been discussions about tracking the purchase of all prescription drugs.

While there may be benefit in understanding what homes may have certain substances (like beer or Sudafed), it is definitely worth deciding for yourself at what point reasonable caution becomes plain old paternalism…

FedEx Tracking More Than Packages

2005-06-13T15:26:00.000-07:00

What you ship to people via FedEx is being tracked. This is hardly news. FedEx makes a big deal of how you can follow a shipment via their website by typing in a package’s tracking number.

In today’s world of technology mission creep, however, all of the information collected by FedEx is now being used as a tool to fight terrorism.

Robert Block of the Wall Street Journal reports that if you send a package overseas, customs inspectors can look at your data in FedEx’s customer database and cross reference it with their own lists.

FedEx has also trained its 250,000 employees – including the drivers who walk into countless offices and homes - to watch out for suspicious shipments and report them to the Department of Homeland Security via their own version of a hotline.

And finally, when you sign the waiver to ship a package you also consent to having the packages inspected – without a warrant.

The civil liberties and privacy implications of making the contents and history of what you ship available to a government that is supposed not to repurpose data collected on its citizens doesn't impress FedEx’s CEO.

If you think there is an issue here, send your shipments with UPS – which at this point states that it does not share information except under court order.

Loyalty Cards Serve Up Another Suspect

2005-02-07T11:53:00.000-08:00

In my November newsletter, I talked about how loyalty card data was generally used only to help supermarkets assess inventory. However, I did mention the case of a firefighter who was charged with arson after loyalty card data showed he had recently purchase fire starters. (His wife recently confessed, clearing the firefighter, by the way.)

Just came across this new story in the Times Online: a magistrate purportedly found a Rolex watch in a supermarket which he took home and gave to his wife for her 60th birthday. Two years later, when the watch needed repair, he took it to a jeweler who saw from its serial number that the watch had been reported stolen. The police investigated and built a case from loyalty card data that showed that the watch’s rightful owner and the magistrate shopped at the same grocery store two hours apart on January 16, 2004…near the day the watch was reported missing.

In the absence of positive proof of purchase from the magistrate, the circumstance was enough to convict the man…who claims his innocence and plans to appeal.

A word of caution to anyone who thinks that they don’t care about tracking because they haven’t done anything wrong: Sometimes YOU aren’t the one who determines if that's the case.

Giving More Than Money To Charity

2005-02-07T11:51:00.000-08:00

Americans are notoriously generous. But sometimes giving money to one cause can also mean signing up for a stream of pleas from other needy groups. Why is this? A recent survey by Charity Navigator, found that of nearly 3,300 charities, as many as 75% sell or exchange the names of donors.

Bruce Mohl of The Boston Globe investigated further and found directors of charities like American Foundation for AIDS Research who said things like “Virtually all charities will exchange lists of donors.” Or “This is a pretty common practice. It’s how you identify new donors.” In other words, a lot of charities assume that when you make a donation, you are giving them more than money. You are giving them the right to share your name.

While most groups will honor a request not to have your name shared (the American Red Cross, the American Civil Liberties Union and Oxfam, to name but a few, all have opt-out policies), there are a few which don’t put the burden on you. These groups, like the Lance Armstrong Foundation, National Public Radio and the American Brain Tumor Association, should be applauded.

The California Experiment

2004-12-26T07:32:00.000-08:00

Starting with the New Year, businesses that are bigger than 20 employees and that serve customers in California are required to let these customers know who they share personal information with. If you ask them, these companies must supply you with a list of third party vendors who have gotten access to your name and number. This represents a truly dramatic shift in information tracking in which some of us are finally given a window into how our information really does go back and forth.

I plan to start sending out a letter requesting information starting next month. Stay tuned for a report on how the process works…

Return Denied!

2004-10-24T15:08:00.000-07:00

There is a new blacklist in the world of retailing. Now, in addition to checking your check writing history or your credit before processing payment, you might also be checked when try to return that impulse purchase you shouldn't have gotten or the shirt that, truthfully, is too small for you.

A California company called Return Exchange is tracking individual's shopping patterns to make guesses about whether a return by that shopper is legit or not. A Fortune article on Return Exchange states that retailers lose $16 billion a year to wardrobing (the process of buying an article of clothing, wearing it to a party or the like and returning it the next day) and plain old fraud. If you return too many items or do anything that looks like fraud, you may get flagged by the handful of companies, including Express, the Limited and the Sports Authority, known to be using Return Exchange. And you may get stuck with keeping whatever you purchased - stores have always reserved the right to deny returns but rarely have exercised it...until now.

As with other blacklist companies, what exactly goes into figuring out if you get flagged is something of a mystery. If you suspect you have a file, you can call 1-800-652-2331 to find out. And ask for their privacy policy while you're at it.

FTC Says Renter Blacklists Must Give You Free Reports

2004-07-31T11:41:00.000-07:00

The FTC has made it official. Effective December 1, 2004, nationwide specialty consumer reporting agencies – agencies that maintain specific files on consumers about employment history, tenant history, medical records, and insurance claims – must have a toll-free telephone number that you can call to request a free copy of anything they report on you. You are entitled to a free report once every 12 months.

The tough part, of course, is figuring out that these companies that affect whether you get a job or an apartment or insurance even exist in the first place...

(shameless plug: there is advice on this in my book)