How Microsoft and Yahoo are selling politicians access to you
Posted in: Legal, Privacy & Security at 15/06/2012 14:03
Microsoft and Yahoo are selling political campaigns the ability to target voters online with tailored ads using names, ZIP codes, and other registration information that users provide when they sign up for free e-mail and other services.
The Web giants provide users no notification that their information is being used for political targeting.
In one sense, campaigns are doing a more sophisticated version of what they've always done through the post office -- sending political fliers to selected households. But the Internet allows for more subtle targeting. It relies not on e-mail but on advertisements that surfers may not realize have been customized for them.
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2012/06/how-microsoft-and-yahoo-are-selling-politicians-access-to-you/
