Online Consumer Data Collection

"Large amounts of consumer data can be collected, processed, and analyzed by operators of websites and mobile applications (apps) and third parties, which are entities other than the website or app primary operator (e.g., data brokers). Operators collect data for multiple purposes, including providing services, selling user data to third parties, or sending targeted ads directed to specific individuals.

The value of consumer data often comes from identifying users and linking their data from various sources to a common identifier. Operators can identify individuals using their personally identifiable information (PII)—such as name, address, or date of birth—and other identifiers, such as those associated with a particular device. Some federal laws prevent entities from collecting or sharing specific types of PII or identifiers in certain circumstances. However, in recent decades, the ubiquity of non-PII (data not directly linked to an individual’s identity, including anonymized or aggregated data) and the emergence of new data collection and tracking tools have made it easier to identify individuals.

Consumer data can be collected using various data collection and tracking tools, such as cookies, pixels, device and browser fingerprinting, application programming interfaces (APIs), and software development kits (SDKs). These tools can continuously collect different types of data, including identifiers, even when the consumer visits a different website or app. Some of these tools are necessary for websites and apps to provide services, and others typically are used for online advertising. Some of these tools can be used to help develop a website or app and offer services provided by other operators, which can increase competition. They also can be used to collect large amounts of data, particularly by third parties, causing some to raise consumer data privacy concerns.."
Consumer Data Collection