Your privacy for a BMW

by Anna Pha

What brands of sanitary products do you or your daughter use? Are you 
affected by impotence, hair loss, cold sores, high cholesterol? What credit 
cards do you hold? What is the combined annual income of you and your 
partner? These are just a few of the intrusive and personal questions in a 
questionnaire being distributed by, and in the name of, Australia Post.

The questionnaire's title is "Australian Family Lifestyle Survey", marked 
with an eye-catching red tick. "Australia Post would like to invite you to 
take part in an important survey which covers lifestyles, opinions and 
purchase intentions of adult consumers throughout Australia", says its 
introduction with the tone of an official government form. A sort of 
census?

Highlighted in red print there is the claim that "Security and 
confidentiality are assured" and that "The strictest security is in place 
over your information. At no time will your complete survey details ever be 
revealed to outside sources."

And there's the rub. "Your complete survey details" may not be revealed to 
any one source, but some details will be revealed to all and sundry on 
mailout lists in the marketing world. That, on closer examination, is the 
aim of the whole exercise.

As an additional incentive to answer the questions, those completing the 
"Australian Family Lifestyle Survey" go into a draw for a BMW or one of 50 
AOL Internet Access Packs.

The questionnaire is sponsored by a number of private companies who will 
then use the information for their own purposes.

For example, one of the companies sponsoring (paying for) information 
collected (including names and addresses) sells insurance.

The form seeks details of cars in each household — age, make, model, place 
of purchase, kilometres on the clock, when insurance policy falls, who the 
insurance is with, who owns it, when it's likely the person will buy 
another car, etc.

Such information would enable the insurance company to customise 
advertising material, right down to offering a policy just before the old 
one became due.

It would assist a car dealer to know what price range you were in, whether 
you are likely to be BMW customer or were looking for an old bomb.

The section on which brand name and types of sanitary pads and tampons are 
used would equip an advertiser to send the appropriate free samples or 
advertising material to specific addresses.

There are other questions on financial matters; what you might consider 
purchasing by mail or telephone, where you shop, on health and fitness, 
music and leisure interests, magazines read, shampoos used and so on.

An outfit called Geospend is collecting the information using the name of 
Australia Post. This is a private company, owned by Australia Post, which 
offers "lifestyle data bases", "data mining", "direct mail targeting and 
market analysis and opportunities for businesses wanting to reach people 
with common purchasing habits". (Australia Post 1997-98 Annual Report)

The questionnaire does not name the companies who will receive your 
details. The information could also be sold to other third parties who 
approach Geospend.

Apart from the direct profits from the sale of personal data, Australia 
Post stands to make millions out of the additional advertising.

Business-to-household mail, also referred to as direct mail, is the fastest 
growing segment of the mail business. Advertising mail grew last year by 
21.2 percent; 14.1 per cent of all letter mail.

Geospend is looking at the European example, where half of all mail is 
advertising.

Highly commercialised, and partially privatised, Australia Post is using 
its public standing as a government authority to solicit the information.

The manager of Geospend told The Guardian that they had consulted 
with the Privacy Commission in drawing up the survey and that it complied 
with the Privacy Act.

But there is no control over who receives your personal information — debt 
collectors, real estate agents, security organisations, credit agencies, 
banks and insurance companies...

Few people realise the extent to which personal data is being amassed and 
sold on, not just by Geospend, but by Fly Buys, banks (on credit card 
holders) and other financial agencies.

There is little control over what happens to the data and no guarantee for 
privacy.