Search Marketing and its Legal Risks

When it comes to search today, behavioral targeting and privacy issues dominate the legal landscape. “There’s a general squeamishness about behavioral targeting,” said Mark Rosenberg, counsel at Sills Cummis & Gross law firm, “and a lot of it’s based on a lack of understanding.”

The general rule of thumb when it comes to using personal identifying information (PII) is you need to ask the consumer’s permission through an opt-in process. But there’s always a public outcry when you merge PII with anonymous Web browsing, warned Roy Shkedi, founder and CEO of the media and advertising technology firm AlmondNet. “You need to tell people about online data acquisition.” Shkedi said self-regulation is the key, noting that all sites should have a privacy clause at the bottom. And if you do share PII, state that you do this anonymously and provide the terms of the agreement, as well as the opportunity for the consumer to opt out.