The Middle Ground Answer

The requirements for effective privacy protection are simple and concise. If implemented correctly, a few alterations can produce a mutually beneficial result for consumers and businesses. The Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA) set forth guidelines for determining appropriate privacy protection, based on other wired industry privacy standards. The association wants consumers to feel comfortable and safe using wireless technology and believes that the onus for providing comfort and safety falls on all industry players. The CTIA proposed four principles to the FCC and suggested that the standards be used for managing how vendors, manufacturers, service providers, and carriers collect and use location-based and personal information. The principles are as follows:

Inform all customers about the collection and use of their information.

Allow a meaningful opportunity for consumers to agree to the collection or use of the information (before using it).

Protect the security and integrity of any data collected, allow customers access to the data, and give them the opportunity to refute and revise data about themselves.

Keep privacy rules consistent across platforms, applications, technologies, and use cases so that users do not have undue burden following privacy options.

These principles should be applied to any system being designed. They have high-level and low-level technical implications, coupled with a widespread effect on business. Consumers will demand privacy. Building it in from the start saves time and money and gives your product or system an attractive market differentiator.

We are certainly not advocating against any sort of personalized marketing we assert only that controlling the delivery and receipt of this information should be left up to each individual. A recipe for success in using your customers' personal information to provide additional recommendations should combine the principles just listed. Personalization, consent, and control are of utmost importance in this day and age. As we mentioned when discussing the need for a comprehensive, provable, and well-tailored security plan, customers will demand it. No longer is there tolerance for security and privacy weaknesses in products or services. Consumers want a guarantee they can trust before handing over their money. Who can blame them? Effective privacy practices and policies enable consumers to maintain the control they need but do not obstruct businesses or marketing effectiveness.