| Electronic commerce will be pivotal to the economy in the 21st Century. With the dawn of electronic commerce, some consumers have become concerned about the disclosure, transfer, and sale of information that businesses have collected about them. These concerns allegedly are slowing the rate of expansion of electronic commerce, thus putting the future growth of the New Economy at risk. Over the past quarter century, government agencies in the United States, Canada, and Europe have studied the manner in which organizations collect and use personal information---their information practices---and the safeguards required to assure those practices are fair and provide adequate privacy protection. The result has been a series of reports, guidelines, and model codes that represent widely accepted principles concerning fair information practices. Although there are different versions of these principles, they share common ground, serving as the basis for current data protection and online privacy views, laws, and policies. This research project is a multiple case study of the incorporation of Fair Information Practice Principles in the privacy policies of three online organizations: Amazon.com, Dell.com, and PrivacyAlliance.org. While many individuals prefer anonymity, most are willing to give out their personal details in order to receive some service or product. The majority of consumers take offense when their personal information is mistreated. However, what is the right way to treat personal information? What should be the foundation of a good privacy strategy? How does an organization promote trust in their data practices utilizing a privacy policy notice? How does the privacy policy disclosure effectively incorporate notice, choice, access, and security---the four key elements of fair information practices? How do consumers, privacy experts, and marketing professionals evaluate the three privacy policies explored in this research project? The purpose of this study was to investigate these questions. This study focuses on the market for personal information used for advertising and marketing purposes. This market is affected by most of the regulatory and legislative proposals now under consideration. While much of the research is focused on electronic information gathered over the Internet, the analysis applies to off-line information as well. |
