http://social.thewherebusiness.com/content/crux-lbs-privacy-issue
The privacy debate surrounding location-based services (LBS) is not so much about letting users know that they are being tracked and allowing them to opt in or out, according to Kris Kolodziej, a consultant in Silicon valley. He says it is more about how their location data is being used, and by whom.
For users, the issue may boil down to which advertisers have access to their information and how they might exploit it.
Kolodziej believes the LBS privacy issue is a major obstacle in the way of wider LBS implementation and adoption.
On the matter of the US Congress pushing for an opt-in privacy bill, he comments: "LBS providers realised early enough that they can't assume it's OK to locate and track users without asking first." In addition, he points out: "Handset makers have the opt-in functionality natively built-in. It asks every time someone tries to access the user's location. Even early on, feature J2ME phones gave users the option to disable GPS."
However, this may not be enough to reassure users, says Kolodziej: "While location opt-in and opt-out may seem enough, many users - even iPhone users - feel that it is deceitful, saying that even though location-aware apps do ask to use their current location, they don't ask if the location data can be shared to a third party for behavioural analysis purposes - in other words, sold to advertisers.
"The key issue is user awareness of the complete situation. Users should not only have the option to opt-out, but also should have full control of the collected data. It should be up to the user whether their location data can be shared with the service provider, either to get the app free or to get a better user experience via a personalised service."
He adds: "Without full consent, consumers are already considering these apps to be spyware."
