The Risks with Customer Data Collection

When checking out at a store, you usually give some sort of personal information about yourself. Whether it’s your phone number, email address, credit card number, or even your buying habits there is personal data being collected. There is the potential for this information being hacked and stolen, which calls into question the ethics and consequences if this were to happen.

I think that customer data is a good way to understand customer needs and something businesses should use. With the data collected, business are able to better cater to their customer’s needs. The detailed customer data can provide insight in what a customer buying. For example, if a woman was buying baby stuff from Target the data could be used in prompting the store to send her coupons for baby stuff. This gives her an incentive to keep coming back for her baby purchases. The danger with collecting and analysis of customer data can also lead to pushing customers away. Thinking a customer is more loyal than they are, and bombarding them with emails or calls can lead to a customer discontinuing their business with that company. If using customer data, it must be monitored to be beneficial for the company and in return the customer.

Although I believe that customer data is good for businesses and should be allowed, collecting that data also means the responsibility of protecting it. Consumer privacy must be a top priority of companies. There are laws and regulations protecting consumer’s privacy, but there have been instances where this isn’t enough to protect consumer’s personal information. Consumer’s privacy is a big topic in the news with the recent breach with Target’s databases, in which 70 million Target customers personal information was stolen. This major breach calls into question loyalty programs and data collection of businesses and whether that data is going to be protected. Target’s REDcard, the loyalty program card, has taken a big blow for many customers have become weary that their information would be safe. With this breach, customers are calling into question other businesses and loyalty programs whether there’s potential that these could also be hacked.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/101334854

http://www.forbes.com/sites/adrianswinscoe/2013/12/30/a-short-cautionary-tale-about-the-misuse-of-customer-data/