How Web Algorithms Predict Our Online Behavior

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The ease of shopping, watching video, and listening to music on the internet has become one of the biggest conveniences for consumers in the 21st century. With a few clicks, we can “window shop” online, read a couple of pages of a new book, or download the latest album. While internet commerce provides a great benefit to us, we rarely think about how Google can guess what we’re searching for or how Amazon.com knows what products we might be interested in buying. The answer is web algorithms.

Web algorithms are complex mathematical formulas that websites use to figure out the probability of our interests. Google uses algorithms to sort through unhelpful search engine results. A recent update called “Panda” caused a big stir earlier this year because it tweaked the company’s previous algorithm to remove search results that some considered to be low-quality, negatively impacting several websites.

Other websites such as Match.com also use web algorithms to pair up users with individuals of like interests and hobbies, which is crucial to its business model. Amazon.com analyzes web algorithms based on your previous purchases and the purchasing habits of other shoppers who’ve bought the same items as you to come up with a list of “recommendations” for you. Facebook performs a similar function to decide which items to display at the top of your news feed each day.

Some web analysts have voiced concerns about letting corporations “guess” our interests and likes online, saying that these companies are being allowed to impact consumers’ behaviors by suggesting which items they’d like – sort of a subliminal form of advertising. Others have expressed worry that companies could use these types of formulas for insidious purposes, including tracking of personal habits and actions.

Image c/o: thms.nl

EU Countries Impose Restrictions on Internet Cookies

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Two years ago, several members of the European Union agreed to pass a law that requires companies to ask for consumers’ permission before installing cookies on their computers. However, the law has yet to be fully implemented, since EU lawmakers and corporations can’t agree on whether consumers should be allowed to opt-out or opt-in to the provisions.

Internet cookies are bits of data that external websites place on your computer every time you visit them. Websites use this data to find out how many people visit their sites daily. E-commerce websites use cookies to keep track with the number of items you add to your cart or the particular items you’re browsing. This information stays on your computer, even when you leave the website. For example, when you visit Amazon.com and place items in your shopping cart, you can leave the site and come back to find those same items still in the cart. That’s possible because of the cookies the website stored on your computer.

Several EU countries decided to impose the restrictions on the use of cookies to keep consumers from being targeted by telemarketing associations based on their shopping habits and preferences. A sticking point for the implementation of the EU law has been the difficulty in getting U.S.-based websites to agree to the policy. Since the United States does not require corporations to request permission before installing cookies, American-based companies have been loath to cooperate with Europe’s new law.

The reluctance of U.S. websites to go along with the EU law has been a point of concern for the Federal Trade Commission, which has been soliciting public opinion about the issue of consumers’ privacy rights versus the “personal freedom” of advertisers. Largely, U.S. lawmakers have sided against the European directive, saying the restrictions have hampered the EU’s economic growth.

Image c/o: RambergMediaImages