We've all had that creepiest of consumer experiences: you buy a bag of diapers one week and get deluged with offers for college-savings plans the next. Sometimes that kind of data-driven marketing can be convenient, but consider its nastier permutations. Would you want your life-insurance company to know how much you spent on cheeseburgers and liquor last year? If a bank knew you were a lousy comparison shopper, do you think it might try to give you a higher rate for an auto loan? These are scenarios privacy experts worry about every day, and they say the rest of us should be concerned, too. Financial giants hold every detail of your financial life, and they're mostly free to spread it around at will. Now, thanks to the consolidation of banks, insurance companies and brokers-and their investment in massive software systems-they are poised to start using that information more profitably than ever.
展开▼
