How does AI affect privacy in online retail and e-commerce?

By Aman Priyanshu

AI has a significant impact on privacy in online retail and e-commerce. With the use of AI, retailers can collect and analyze vast amounts of customer data, including browsing history, purchase behavior, and personal preferences. While this can lead to more personalized shopping experiences and targeted advertising, it also raises concerns about privacy. AI algorithms can potentially make inferences about individuals, leading to the risk of privacy violations and data breaches. Additionally, there is the issue of consent and transparency, as customers may not always be aware of how their data is being used and shared in the AI-driven retail environment. Furthermore, there is a risk of algorithmic bias, where AI systems may inadvertently discriminate against certain groups based on their personal data, leading to privacy and ethical concerns.

To put it simply, imagine walking into a store where the salesperson knows everything about you, from your favorite color to your recent purchases, without you even telling them. This is how AI affects privacy in online retail and e-commerce. Just like a helpful salesperson can use this information to provide personalized recommendations, AI in online retail can analyze your data to offer tailored shopping experiences. However, there’s a fine line between helpful and intrusive, and if not managed carefully, it can feel like someone is constantly watching and making decisions for you without your consent. This raises concerns about fairness and respect for individual privacy, as everyone deserves the right to control their personal information, even in the digital shopping world.

Please note that the provided answer is a brief overview; for a comprehensive exploration of privacy, privacy-enhancing technologies, and privacy engineering, as well as the innovative contributions from our students at Carnegie Mellon’s Privacy Engineering program, we highly encourage you to delve into our in-depth articles available through our homepage at https://privacy-engineering-cmu.github.io/.

Author: My name is Aman Priyanshu, you can check out my website for more details or check out my other socials: LinkedIn and Twitter

Share: