Security

With the rapid growth of mobile phone usage, retailers everywhere have started to pay more attention to the advantages of incorporating mobile marketing into their advertising campaigns.  Through the use of mobile coupons consumers are able to cut costs on the go and learn about the latest discounts at their favorite stores and restaurants.

However, these are no ordinary coupons.  By signing up for mobile discounts, many consumers do not realize these coupons have evolved into a method for companies to track customers and learn more about their spending habits.  While personalized mobile advertisements may seem harmless to consumers, they do come with a hidden cost; your privacy.

Much different from the coupons you cut out of the Sunday paper, these new digital coupons use special bar codes loaded with information regarding when it was obtained, where it was used and sometimes even the search term used to find it.  According to Ariana Eunjung Cha, business correspondent to the Washington Post, many retailers are now combining this information with “guesses about your age, sex and income, buying history, web sites you’ve visited, and your current location” in order to generate personalized customer profiles.

Companies say this new wave of mobile marketing will allow them to produce advertisements created uniquely for each individual.  Moreover, customers no longer have to cut coupons but rather will be able to effortlessly carrying them wherever they go merely by bringing their cell phones with them.

However, consumer advocacy groups argue that if not regulated mobile marketing, and, in this particular case, “behavioral targeting” can be used to exploit consumer information and can quickly transform into an invasion of privacy.  The question is, as in most debates regarding privacy, where do we draw the line?  The problem is most mobile marketing campaigns are still in the early stages of production and there is very little uniformity as to how exactly they work.

Robert Drescher, Chief executive of mobile coupon company Cellfire explained how much marketing companies already know: “We can already tell if you are near or inside a store and can give you particular offers, but that’s the kind of thing we’re moving fairly cautiously on so that the user can get to know us and trust us first”.  With this new technology, retailers can guess what exact products you might need, and can therefore target you with specific and effective advertisements and offers.

The bottom line is that there are clear pros and cons of the rapid growth of digital coupons, but the new wave of mobile marketing will continue to thrive as long as sales of smartphones continue to rise.  On the plus side, you will spend less time searching for discounts and deals for the products you are looking for and won’t have to worry about dragging around stacks of coupons in order to save money.

On the other hand, retailers now have access to more detailed personal information in order to create these deals.  Customers need to decide for themselves:  If you are concerned with privacy issues, here are a couple things you should know to keep marketing companies away from your personal info:

•  Pay close attention to the fine print when signing up for special offers and coupons – many consumers unknowingly give permission to their personal information when presented with a good deal. Be sure to always read the fine-print before adding a mobile coupon application.
• Don’t worry too much, nearly all programs are “opt-in”, meaning that you actually have to sign up to participate in these programs.  Keep in mind that this may also include opting-in to individual offers.
• Be wary of sending text messages to special numbers promising cheaper deals because you may be signing over usable information (i.e. “COUPONS” to 44554). If you choose to do this you may want to consider signing up for an identity protection service such as Intelius IDProtect.

It is clear that recent years have brought a boom in the amount of information available to companies on the internet.  Individuals just need to be aware of these changes so that they can decide for themselves where they need to be most careful.

It seems that online dating has fast become the new way for singles to meet that special someone. A recent study, published in Online Dating Magazine, suggests that more than 120,000 marriages occur each year as a result of online dating. I mean, who doesn’t know someone that met their significant other online? This new online Mecca for singles is not however, foolproof. We are all aware of the risks – article after article is published cautioning online daters not to give out personal information on online dating sites and  to meet their date the first few times in a public place. The fact is these concerns could all but be rendered unnecessary if online dating sites ran consumer background checks on all their members.

In a recent scandal surrounding Match.com, convicted murder Abraham Fortune set up a seemingly normal profile on the popular online dating site. The retired San Antonio, TX salvage yard owner was looking for love, that is, until a local reporter recognized and outted him.  Busy singles aren’t the only ones flocking to online dating sites – criminals and the already married are also acting on the trend. In fact, Dave Evans, editor of Online Dating Post, told the San Antonio Express that “every single dating website out there has child molesters and murders.”And yet, according to Stephaney Alexander whose website womansavers.com allows women to research a potential mate for free, despite the fact that many online dating websites don’t perform background checks, users feel relatively comfortable that they won’t run into criminals on the sites. “I can understand why daters are getting a false sense of security – they are paying a fee to be on their site.”

Many are hoping that this will lead to a revolution in the Online Dating industry. Julie Spira, cyber-dating expert and author of "The Perils of Cyber-Dating: Confessions of a Hopeful Romantic Looking for Love Online," told ABC that it would be helpful for sites to at least give users the option to do a background check on other members. But until this happens online daters need to take their safety into their own hands.

When reviewing potential matches on online dating sites take the following precautions before arranging to get to know any of your potential partners any further:

• If you’ve emailed back and forth with a potential partner a couple of times through a dating site there is a fair chance that you know their name, their age, and the city they live in. This is all the information you need to run a full consumer background check on Intelius.com. Intelius background check services have been recognized by Top 10 Reviews as the #1 background check service. These reports will provide you with any aliases that person may have, their marriage and divorce records, their criminal records and more.
• Use your potential partner’s name, city, and screen name to try and find their profile on other social networking sites. This can help you figure out if their online dating profile is consistent with the self they present on other networks.

These tips are designed to help you avoid criminals, married men and women, and sex offenders and  to help you determine if a person’s profile is an accurate representation of themselves. However, the only way you can know for sure if the person you’ve met online is the one for you is to get to know them.  Good luck!

You, the customer, are vital to us.  We have created the following Customer Bill of Rights as our pledge to you.

The Right to Transparency

You have the right to be provided accurate product information so you can make an intelligent and informed choice about whether to order a product from us. Product information presented by us will be complete, accurate, and up-to-date.

The Right to Satisfaction

You have the right to expect that our products fully meet our representation and explanation of them.  When it comes to any of our products, we say what we do and we do what we say.  If for any reason you are dissatisfied, you have the right to change or cancel our service and any request for a refund will be promptly, fairly and reasonably addressed.

The Right to Customer Service

You have the right to timely communication with a live customer service representative by telephone or by e-mail at no charge; to be treated with courtesy, respect, and fairness; and receive prompt response to your questions or concerns.

The Right to Privacy

We care about how your personal information is handled. We review our privacy policy regularly to ensure it meets industry standards and we seek input on our privacy policy from you our customer, leading consumer groups, and privacy advocates.

Intelius stands by our Customer Bill of Rights

Our Chief Privacy Officer is also our chief customer advocate and, at the direction of our Board of Directors, it is his job to make sure we say what we do and do what we say.  If you have any questions about our Customer Bill of Rights, he can be reached at customers@intelius.com.

As always, large multinational public events generate heightened concern for personal security. The 2010 World Cup being held in Rustenburg, South Africa is no exception. The FIFA approved comprehensive security plan is broken into seven phases. The first phase began in 2004 when South Africa was selected to host this year's World Cup Tournament. The plan includes 41,000 Police Officers and $74.5 Million USD in hi-tech equipment. All the planning in the world however, can't insure the month-long event will go off without a hitch.

The committee’s overwhelming focus has been on protecting the attendees against the potential for violent crime, however, even with all the preparations security does not appear to be very tight. Just yesterday, according to the Huffington Post, attendees witnessed several people setting off the metal detectors on their way into the stadium and then being waved in by smiling security guards without being asked to do so much as empty their pockets! For attendees with credentials, people with advanced tickets that have passed 'pre-screening' checks, bag checks are often cursory or are not done at all. Monday the stadium stewards walked out in protest of low pay or their work, leaving the stadium more-or-less unguarded during the Italy-Paraguay match.

This latent security should leave attendees of the World Cup concerned, however, by following certain guidelines you can increase your chances of both enjoying the World Cup and staying safe.

• Be mindful of your surroundings. As everyone knows, beer is a big part of soccer, but that doesn't mean that your entire group should go 'wild' and every game. Sure you don't have to drive, but South Africa can be dangerous and with so many tourists in town for the World Cup, you can bet that prospective criminals will be on the look out for anyone who seems to be enjoying themselves too much.  So drink moderately at the games or, if that doesn't work, elect a rotating DN (designated navigator) to keep you on track to your hotel. Regardless of whether you've been drinking, always keep an eye on where you are, where you're going, and who's around you.

• Try to 'blend in' with the crowd. When you're walking around, either before or after a match, try to blend in with those around you. Be mindful of your personal space, keep any valuables in inside pockets, but try not to call too much attention to yourself by being overly loud, pointing, or by straying out of tourist areas.

• Stay in groups and on the beaten path. Don't go anywhere alone. At the very least bring a buddy, but a group of about 4 or 5 people is probably the safest bet. If your guide book or hotel tells you to stay out of certain areas, stay out of them. If security guards or police are ushering you away from a particular place, obey their instructions. Exercise common sense and good judgement while walking around the city.

• Don't flaunt your wealth. American's are a prime target to a potential criminal because of their suspected wealth. While you can't change being American, you can change how you are precieved as a victim. So keep you money out of sight, and don't spend wildly while you're out in the city. Research tipping culture before you go to a pub or restaurant so you know how much is normal. Leaving too large of a tip can mark you as both inexperienced and wealthy. Also, as hard as it might be to resist, don't give too much money to people on the street - it can attract un-wanted attention.

• If your wallet is stolen, report it immediately to your bank. If you notice that your credit cards or passport are missing report them immediately to the local consulate or your home bank. The sooner you report them the less likely you are to have your identity stolen or to be a victim of monetary theft. Before you go (if you are going for the later part of the month) consider investing in an Identity Protection Service, that way, even if your credit and personal information is stolen you will not be at risk for identity theft or fraud.

• Maintain regular email contact with those back home. This is both for your safety and for the peace of mind of your family and friends back home. Arange to send an email to them on a regular basis - perhaps every 2-3 days. Agree that if you don't check in with in 24 hours of the agreed day, your freind or family member will report you missing to the authorities.

It's more than likely that you'll be safe for the duration of your stay in South Africa, however, the above precautions will give you and those at home some peace-of-mind while you're away. Just remember to respect the cultural and civil environment in which you are now a visitor!