Author Topic: Data Mining of Credit Card or online purchases  (Read 3631 times)

MrMoneyMullet

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Data Mining of Credit Card or online purchases
« on: April 22, 2013, 12:41:25 PM »
Found a link somewhere to this article in the Atlantic, which talks about data mining of all your trackable purchases so that marketing snipers can offer you customized spam (which theoretically makes it more likely that you'll purchase).

I read a few months ago about some credit card company exec admitting that he doesn't use a credit card when buying fast food, I think due to the possibility that in the future, insurance companies will have access to this information and could customize your premiums or health care coverage based on purchase behavior. I'll add a link if I can find that article. For most mustachians, this might mean lower health care premiums than people who eat out all the time, I guess.

I do my discretionary spending (personal fun money) in cash for budgeting purposes, but I've also found myself generally leery of using credit cards for certain things. Anyone else changed behavior due to this tracking, or have any other insight on potential benefits/dangers of this type of tracking for mustachians?

I also seem to remember a Calvin & Hobbes strip in which Calvin's Dad buys a book with cash to avoid tracking... but I can't find it. If anyone does, please share!!

Paul der Krake

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Re: Data Mining of Credit Card or online purchases
« Reply #1 on: April 22, 2013, 12:56:01 PM »
I use cash to purchase tobacco. It happens so rarely (once a year maybe?) it probably doesn't matter, but better safe than sorry. Every major grocery store knows my grocery habits ridiculously well too. They send me email specials and I regularly take advantage of them since those are items I would buy anyway.

It's pretty cool yet scary that they could use your purchases to profile you. Example: A gas purchase one hour after a transaction at a local bar. Quick, this guy is more likely to have a DUI, jack up his rates!

Just FYI, http://www.mybanktracker.com/news/2012/04/05/five-companies-control-money/

Jamesqf

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Re: Data Mining of Credit Card or online purchases
« Reply #2 on: April 22, 2013, 10:04:20 PM »
I'm not terribly worried, given the current level of spam targeting.  Today's batch of spam included life insurance (I'm single with no kids, why the heck would I want life insurance?), weight loss (I'm at a good weight now), cable TV (don't own a TV), and today's winner, Christian Mingle online dating (I'm agnostic and/or pagan).

Amazon at least sends me spam about things I might actually want, but usually days or weeks after I bought the item from them.

Bigote

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Re: Data Mining of Credit Card or online purchases
« Reply #3 on: April 23, 2013, 01:58:41 AM »
I've done the opposite as the OP - I've pushed much spending from cash to card over the past few years.  My problem is I don't track cash spending, so in my expense spreadsheet I just get this large 'cash' bucket.  Now that I have reduced that, I have a much better idea of where the money is going.

EMP

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Re: Data Mining of Credit Card or online purchases
« Reply #4 on: April 23, 2013, 03:14:27 AM »
http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1993/12/07

Also this is going to make me paranoid.

pbkmaine

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Re: Data Mining of Credit Card or online purchases
« Reply #5 on: April 23, 2013, 04:03:52 AM »
Wow. I get a lot of Viagra ads at work. And I'm female. Wonder what THAT means.

MrMoneyMullet

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Re: Data Mining of Credit Card or online purchases
« Reply #6 on: April 23, 2013, 07:33:46 AM »
Wow. I get a lot of Viagra ads at work. And I'm female. Wonder what THAT means.

:) Maybe that's based on purchase history of IP addresses at your office location.... !