Location -based marketing: companies track you

We spoke about this with Anne-Sophie Letellier, digital security specialist, senior information security analyst at CBC/Radio-Canada.

How is geolocation data collected?

Every time we want to download an application, we must, as a user, agree to the terms of use and a privacy policy. This is when the application will, in a way, ask us to access our data.

When we talk about geolocation, we are referring to the data collected because the application has access to the GPS module of our cell phone. But it can also be done by our IP address, i.e. the address of a mobile device on a network and on the Internet, which can give an approximate geographical indication.

Businesses can also gain access to your location without going through your phone’s GPS module, by triangulating through nearby cell towers.

How is this geolocation data used?

The answer may be different for each of the companies concerned. But, as a general rule, what we often see is for marketing purposes. This data collection provides information about potential customers.

They can indicate, for example, which ones these people store most often, what time they are most likely to be at home, etc. All this information will help various companies, mainly for advertising purposes, to promote targeted advertising.

For example, we would know if a person likes to drink alcohol, if the geolocation indicates that they often go to SAQ, that they often go to bars. If a person goes to the hospital often, it can be said that they are at risk of having a health problem and they can be referred to pharmaceutical advertisements. Here all this information can be very useful for advertisers.

Are these practices well managed?

Our personal data protection laws are not appropriate to respond to this fact. We don’t have a regulatory body that can decide. The Privacy Commissioner of Canada can make recommendations, but after that, it has to be done in each case. There is no framework that is very clear and defined. So it’s very easy for businesses to take advantage of that.

This is something that, we hope, will be resolved relatively quickly because, in Quebec and in Canada, there are steps currently being taken to update these laws.

On the other hand, small, medium and even large companies will say: Listen, we also need to collect this data to earn our products.. And so, when these laws are disputed, we end up, on the one hand, the protection of privacy and, on the other hand, the popular value of innovation; and here often pinch the shoe. The ideal is to find other ways for businesses to earn.

As a user, how do you protect yourself?

There are many things to do as an individual. Some operating systems have developed in their operation a way to block this monitoring. Whenever there is a little pop up who said : Ask the app not to track you, accept. There are limitations here, as many applications start looking for ways [ce blocage].

Then, it’s important to show a certain digital minimalism. Let’s take the Tim Hortons app as an example. Realize that the application, in terms of its use, tells users that it only collects their geolocation data when the application is turned on. However, according to the privacy commissioners ’investigation, the application collects geolocation data at all times, whether it is open or closed. This is quite problematic and can also be thought of as something that can happen for many other applications.

So, if you’re not going to use an application, it’s good practice to delete it, because you’re avoiding giving the company access to a data source that could be mismanaging it. As a user, you have no control over what the company does. We give our permission, but once we have downloaded the application, we also give it access to various elements of our phone, including geolocation.

The comments collected were edited for clarity and brevity.