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06/08/2004: "Spyware"

Byrne linked to an article about spyware.

I do think spyware has a place, though I'm not sure what. I have a propensity to buy certain items, and when such items are on sale or when a new such item arrives on the market, I want to know. Intelligent spyware can predict which items interest me and smartly tell me what I want to know without my shuffling reams of slick newspaper ads.

Perhaps the problem is that the cost of advertising is borne by the seller; thus the information is owned by the seller. I wonder if there's a market for consumer paid spyware? It would have the intelligence to pick through the ads without ever forcing personal preferences into public databases.