After the recent announcement of Ajusto – the Telematics-driven Usage-Based Insurance program from Desjardins – there were several posts that derided it as an invasion of privacy for drivers. But seriously, with everything else going on out in the interconnected world, does anyone really think that driving behaviour is private information? Or any behaviour, for that matter?
Can floss be wired, too?
As reported in Ad Age, Beam Technologies introduced a $49.95 tooth brush which has a unique feature: ” It syncs with a user’s smartphone to record brushing time, and that data can be tracked and shared with dentists, orthodontists and, eventually, insurance companies, all on an opt-in basis.”
The insurable interest? Presumably, this is a dental care coverage provider, and the article says, “Beam is conducting a pilot with an insurance firm and negotiating a deal to distribute the Beam Brushes to policyholders, who would agree to exchange usage data for incentives such as lower rates.”
Kevin O’Leary has it right …
It’s simple… Privacy is not a right as much as it’s a commodity that can be traded or sold. It’s up to consumers to make the decision of whether, and if so, for how much. As we posted back in January:
A recent survey conducted by Accenture on Holiday shopping patterns found that 75% of consumers prefer retailers which use personalized information and 61% of consumers would trade more private information to further improve their shopping experience.
Maybe what we all need is a good (information) broker …
Ted Harman, writing in the LinkedIn Canadian Insurance Broker Strategy Group, had an interesting take on the telematics data issue:
The truly remarkable aspect of this development in our marketplace is how fast the public allows third parties to collect intrusive personal data without any recourse to gaining access to the data and being able to use the data for personal benefit. Is there a business opportunity out there for a service provider looking to provide consumers with their own data they could use for submission to insurers for their insurance shopping needs?
What do you think?
When it comes to private information, does every byte have a price? Or is selling every bit of your information too hard to swallow?
