sadly, this is the reality we are going to be living in, even with this method of tracking is exposed.
If you think of your identity as database of thousands of data fields (Name, address, physical location, credit card #, gender, IP address, etc). Three datapoints, say age/gender/annual income, make good marketing data. But with 20+ datapoints or specific high value datapoints (SSN, full name, date of birth, credit card # for example), marketers can zero in on the exact person and track their buying habits.
Data points are added to your identity database day in and day out. Now think about the data points you didn't have 5-10 years ago, like social media and forum accounts, newer email addresses, Firefox and Chrome sync accounts, or in this case, a phone with a physical internet address (MAC address).
You might say that the dataset is too large and therefore you can hide in the chaos but don't forget that the industry of analyzing big data is booming as well as Moore's law halving the cost and doubling the power of computer power every year.
When you walk into a brick and mortar retail store like a Nordstrom, Cabela, or even Family Dollar, you're being tracked around the store. Not by an over-suspicious security guard, but by the store's wireless network, using your phone's Wi-Fi. The store then uses your phone to track you around the store, determine if you're a repeat visitor, see what departments you visit, and more. Here's how they do it, and how to stop them.
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