This week on the podcast, our eyes are opened to a remarkable online advertising practice called "real-time bidding". RTB is where an auction involving the sensitive information of online users is initiated as they load up a web page, with advertisers bidding for the space on the page.

Recent reports from Reset.Tech Australia and the Irish Council of Civil Liberties reveal the practice has led to the exposure of sensitive information about users - from purchasing habits through to real-time location and insights into their mental health - and is also fuelling scams and national security concerns.

We discuss the broader implications of this practice, and the options for managing the risks it poses.

Links:
Any Buyer Accepted (Reset.Tech Australia) https://au.reset.tech/news/any-buyer-accepted-unregulated-data-markets-create-personal-security-risks/
Australia’s Hidden Security Crisis (Irish Council of Civil Liberties) https://www.iccl.ie/digital-data/australias-hidden-security-crisis/
Scam Prevention Framework https://ministers.treasury.gov.au/ministers/stephen-jones-2022/media-releases/albanese-government-unveils-scams-prevention-framework
Article about US bill to ban sale of personal data to foreign adversaries (The Verge) https://www.theverge.com/2024/3/20/24106991/house-data-broker-foreign-adversaries-bill-passes

Credits:
Editing and post-production by Martin Franklin (East Coast Studio) eastcoaststudio.com.au
Music by Bensound.com

#120 The auction of you - How your data is sold daily to the highest bidder