The use of personal data in targeted advertising can cross ethical boundaries in several ways. Firstly, when personal data is collected without the knowledge or consent of the individual, it violates their privacy rights. This can occur through covert tracking of online activities, such as monitoring browsing history or purchasing behavior without explicit consent. Additionally, the use of sensitive personal information, such as health or financial data, for targeted advertising purposes can be particularly invasive and unethical. Furthermore, the profiling and targeting of vulnerable groups, such as children or individuals with specific vulnerabilities, can lead to exploitation and discrimination. Finally, the lack of transparency and control over how personal data is used for targeted advertising can erode trust between consumers and advertisers, leading to a breakdown in the ethical use of personal data.
To illustrate, imagine walking into a shopping mall where every store immediately knows your name, your recent purchases, and even your current mood. They use this information to bombard you with targeted advertisements, making you feel uncomfortable and exposed. This invasion of privacy and lack of control over your personal information is akin to the ethical boundaries crossed in targeted advertising. It’s like having your personal diary read by strangers who then use that intimate knowledge to manipulate and influence your decisions without your consent.
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