College of Business

Abstract: Network advertising associations, consumer databases, data mining services and advertising exchanges play important roles in the online behavioural advertising industry. The participation of such third-party businesses in consumer profiling and generating targeted direct marketing communications raises significant consumer privacy and data protection concerns. This article analyzes the regulatory framework s of the European Union and the United States and legal developments on this topic to assess how well consumers’ privacy concerns are being addressed. It then provides recommendations for regulatory reform specific to third-party involvement in the behavioural advertising industry to enhance consumers’ privacy and data protection.

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