SMS advertising or precise marketing: privacy and profit of paradox

CCTV "3 · 15" Party on junk SMS exposure, make people feel worries: who is disclosing our privacy, who can protect our privacy?

In this year's "3 · 15" party, domestic sending business company — are key focus wireless exposure, consumers of criticism awaited SMS advertising overnight become the target of public criticism. Like the LCD television advertisement, cell phone text message ads have been seen as advertising communication area "Blue Ocean", whose precision than the traditional media and Internet media have increased significantly, thus attracting a lot of advertisers. Press bar pricing model also highlights the price/performance advantages, which allow SMS advertisement immediately towards prosperity.

From CCTV reporters of the survey, almost all mobile phone users have received spam. People don't know is that these spam behind a significant industrial chain, to mobile phone users of personal privacy is treated as commodities wanton trafficking. Junk SMS sender not only national 2 million user's name, phone number, or even mastered the phone user's occupation, residence, income, consumption, orientation, and so on. They put these information classification, redirect spam SMS, proudly called "precise marketing", much to their surprise to people running rampant in the expectation that the personal information security posed a tremendous threat.

Junk SMS why so many? original, relative to traditional advertising and even other new media advertising, SMS advertisement of comparative advantage is quite obvious. First, you can implement a huge database to collect and precise, and then further excavation, precision marketing. Each phone number corresponds to a user, the user's gender, geographic area, age, various consumer and browsing habits, and other key characteristics, can be collected into the database and through other means to collect information with real-time updates in keeping together.

Second, the message can reach the mandatory receive, because each user base will browse SMS in a timely manner and, therefore, influence the audience is also high. According to Morgan Stanley, 2007 China Mobile advertising market with total revenue of about 7.8 billion RMB (approximately 1.1 million). According to the disclosure of focus media, according to market research company predicts that China daily unsolicited SMS advertising is about $ 10 billion.

Faced with endless harassment, couldn't let suspicions: who is betrayed our personal privacy, and how many privacy is compromised?

Typically, our personal privacy generally only your friends will know, some personal data even relatives and friends do not know. Unless another motive, or relatives and friends will not be arbitrarily to outside disclose the personal information. In addition, because life or work, we also often disclose personal privacy to the outside world, including some highly confidential personal privacy. If we apply for telephone numbers, bank account or purchase, is to fill in a real home address, work and social security number, and disclose in these forums is your real information.

Information on these individuals, businesses have the responsibility or obligation of confidentiality for consumers. But the reality is that many of our personal information is in these areas and occasions been compromised. Businesses not only failed to consumer privacy, even to their own interests to consumer personal information disclosure at will. May be inferred that no business support, spam sender will not be so easily master the user details.

In addition to junk SMS sender to master these personal privacy, there are a number of people with ulterior motives? Bank might put our deposit amount leaks, securities companies has the potential to make our investment information leaks out, or we wouldn't have received so many selling insurance by phone and trade stocks information? if the merchant does not customer personal information strictly confidential, and our personal privacy may be public and public awareness through a variety of ways.

So, who is the responsible for our privacy, the who is to protect consumers ' privacy is not compromised?

On the one hand, consumers to carefully protect your personal information, not to divulge their privacy; on the other hand is to assume the responsibility of protecting consumer privacy, which is a responsible business should at least do it; and, lastly, the relevant departments to act against consumer privacy investigation and disciplinary, increased and legislative protection of citizens ' right to privacy, the only way to put an end to all types of things against consumer privacy.

But our privacy legislative progress has been slow. To date, there is no special legislation on privacy. In the General principles of civil law and related judicial interpretation, the greater is the right to privacy as an attachment to the reputation and reputation as carriers, the right to privacy is an indirect protection. Whereas the protection of privacy on the Internet, but also in a blank stage. In this context, we can make the experience of other countries, thereby improving the ability of our privacy policy. United States, United Kingdom, Germany and other countries from the 1970s onwards, have adopted legislation on the protection of privacy. Among them, the United States is the adoption of regulatory requirements, to cell phones and pagers to publish the message of commercial organisations be required before sending the message the user explicitly permitted, as long as any commercial groups in violation of regulations, penalties of up to 600 million and one year of imprisonment.

Now, our country should improve privacy protection system as soon as possible, and the development of citizens ' privacy requirements and standards. Only attach importance to and strengthen the protection of privacy in order to let us enjoy Internet technology brings convenient, fast and business interests at the same time, achieving socio-economic development and the people's spirit world peace and happiness harmony between.