PRIVACY

I didn’t realize the extent of just how much new media effects privacy but in actuality the 2 go hand and hand. I'm a hairstylist at the Drybar and I was talking to a client of mine about her job which she works as a marketing director for an app. The premise of the app is that the actual app itself is free and provides services such as free games or free music downloads. But like my mother always said "aint nothing in the world free". I know you guys are wondering how do these type of apps make money if they aren't even charging people to use the app? Well this answer lies in the way the 21st century works today. There are so many businesses and with all this competition for consumer support, advertisers and marketers must constantly find new ways to reach the consumer base in order to increase visibility for their business. Now a days new media is playing increasingly important roles in this process for instance I can't remember a website that I regularly use that doesn’t use cookies to store my information in order to keep track of my preferences. The app company that my client works for, work similarly to cookies where they are able to store information from your phone such as the preference of site you use, how often do you view these sites, what apps are on you phone and even things like which apps you use more often. This app then takes that information and creates a data base to categorize information to then sale to advertisers and marketers alike. There are huge privacy concerns when it comes to business models based on consumer information because companies like the one discussed above don’t usually express explicit consent to store a user's information and then sell it for profit. This information is usually located in the terms of use section that only appears when you are purchasing the app which you must agree to if not you are not granted access to the app. I truly don’t think this "back people In a corner" model is fair because one must choose to either except the terms of the app or likve without the software that they may or may not need to utlize to make a day go smoother. My call of action is that the developers of these software companies should give consumers an option whether or not they want to.