Amazon is predicting what you want and sending out free samples

Amazon is apparently beta-testing a new advertising strategy that leverages its logistics and delivery expertise with its massive treasure trove of consumer data. A report in Axios says Amazon has teamed up with advertisers Maybelline and Folgers to send free samples to users with a predilection for purchasing their products.  Analyzing data using AI, Amazon

Can public officials block citizens on social media? Nope.

The law is playing catch-up with many facets of digital technology and social media.  The latest battle has been over whether government officials can block people on Facebook. The 4th US Circuit Court of Appeal has upheld a lower court ruling that said it was unconstitutional for publicly elected officials to block citizens from their

For Online Reviews, Recency Matters

Online reviews matter.  92% of consumers say they look at reviews.  68% say positive reviews increase their trust. In addition to looking for positive reviews, we now know that consumers also value recent reviews in far greater numbers.  85% of those surveyed say that reviews dated more than three months old are no longer relevant.

Google wins, Facebook loses in lawsuits over use of Facial Recognition

Two different ruling in privacy cases over use of biometric data called “faceprints.” A federal judge threw out the lawsuit against Google.  The judge ruled that the Illinois consumers that sued were unable to prove any damages.  Lindabeth Rivera and Jospeh Weiss were the named plaintiffs in a class action suit that claimed Google violated

French regulators hit Google with $57 million fine for violations of GDPR

Google has been hit with a $57 million fine for violations of the EU’s GDRP privacy regulations.  CNIL (French data protection regulators) concluded that Google had failed to comply with the law. Lack of Transparency When setting up Android phones, the regulators said Google did not disclose “essential information” to users.  This includes things like

Is Facebook facing record fines for violating its FTC privacy agreement?

The Federal Trade Commission is looking at what could be record-setting fines against Facebook, according to the Washington Post. It has to do with the binding agreement the social media company signed in 2011 to protect personal data. The fine would be for violating that agreement. The biggest fine to date for violating an FTC

Tiktok Passes Facebook in App Downloads

TikTok has been downloaded more than 100 million times in the U.S. and claims 500 million monthly active users.  The social video app has surpassed Facebook when it comes to downloads. Facebook responded by launching Lasso, a similar product to try to compete. https://youtu.be/mlGS-WKCizU If you haven’t seen these videos, they are a departure from what

New data leak exposes 773 Million email accounts; How to check if you are at risk

Here we go again.  773 million email address and passwords have been leaked. Security expert Troy Hunt dropped this bombshell this week on his blog.  What he calls “Collection #1” is a set of email addresses and passwords that’s being shared on the dark web.  Spanning different providers, nearly three-quarters of a billion user names

Optimizing Ad Performance: Measuring ROI for Digital Campaigns

The promise of digital was more transparency and access to metrics that demonstrate whether something is working or not.  Too often, though, the metrics establish action without establishing conversions.  In other words, the metrics show that someone clicked on an ad, but doesn’t demonstrate whether they bought the product.  Clicks are great, but making the

Hackers are now hacking Connected TV Sets

Yup, it happened. Hackers have been able to hack TV sets.  The guy behind the hack called himself, The Hacker Giraffe, and managed to exploit a Google Chromecast vulnerability in devices and posted a privacy warning (and promoted PewDiePie, a YouTube celeb). According to Media Post, the hack takes advantage of router settings that make

How Much of the Internet is Fake?

Seriously.  If you haven’t read Max Reed’s article “How Much of the Internet Is Fake? Turns Out, a Lot of It, Actually” yet, stop what you’re doing and do it right now. Here are just a few of the gems Reed lays out: How much of the internet is fake? Studies generally suggest that, year