Welcome to Batten’s Batten Down Dialogues podcast, where we cover a wide range of informative and eye-opening security topics, stories, and insights that will make you rethink your state of security.
In this episode, Alex Stroud, Batten’s Head of Product, chats with Marketing Exec Ben Green, about online privacy and how it relates to the larger viability of companies needing to reach their target customers.
This week’s episode starts with discussing how companies have changed their marketing strategies to meet consumers’ needs during a global pandemic.
Then, we pivot to talking about the real reason companies can target their customers with personalized advertisements on the internet.
We finish by examining how we, as consumers, can protect our data and our internet profiles.
There are two types of marketing data: the data that naturally follows you around the internet and is typically anonymized, and then the data you give companies.
—Ben Green
Key Takeaways
Over the past few years, our phones made us believe that they listened to our every move. Suddenly, our Facebook ads are marketing products to us based on what we’re shopping for. This misconception has made us all a little more suspicious. Ben explains how easy it is for companies to access our every move on the internet.
As online shopping becomes more popular, companies are trying to maintain a personal relationship with customers. Seeing an ad on our Facebook of what we may be looking for saves us time and energy. However, we need to know how much control we have over our internet behaviors. Phone companies such as Apple have allowed users to control which apps can have tracking permissions on their devices.
As consumers, we must be able to draw the line that companies can cross when it comes to our privacy. Simply changing the settings on our phones or being more mindful of our internet activity can help us be more in control.
Prepare today for peace of mind tomorrow.
Get occasional tips about keeping your family and home safe — delivered to your inbox.
Ben’s Tips for Online Privacy
- Be mindful of which social media applications you use. It is essential to know how social media sites such as Facebook or Instagram use your data. If you are concerned about your internet privacy, research the data usage and tracking policies for your accounts on these sites.
- Switch the settings on your phone. For example, if your phone connects to the internet, make sure you visit your privacy settings and disable app tracking permissions.
- Turn on Private Mode while browsing the internet. Through cookies, companies have been able to track users’ internet activity to give them more personalized ads. While most companies have good intentions, you have ultimate control of your internet privacy by simply turning on a private mode through your browser or by adding a private browser like DuckDuckGo to your chrome extension, which we use at Batten. Learn more about private browsers here.
Check out the podcast on either of these platforms:
