Adam Kalsey

This is the blog of Adam Kalsey. Unusual depth and complexity. Rich, full body with a hint of nutty earthiness.

Security & Privacy

Web bug education

26 Nov 2002

USATODAY.com - Voluntary guidelines drafted to limit Web tracking tool: Microsoft, the US post office, and others have created a set of voluntary guidelines that require companies to reveal their use of Web bugs and the information tracked by them. Web bugs are images, often invisible in your browser, that track Web site viewers.

My first reaction was one of disbelief. Are companies that use hidden tracking tools trustworthy enough to disclose them? Isn’t that like asking a car theif to let you know before he hotwires your Toyota?

After thinking about it, the idea began to make sense. Several of my consulting clients use Web bugs on their Web sites and in their email without a second thought. These aren’t bad companies and they aren’t trying to comprimise the priviacy of their customers. They have no idea that the reports they read showing them how many people opened their latest newsletter requires technology that violates the basic privacy expectations of their customers.

When I explained to one client that most consumers have no idea that each time they open a newsletter, their email program reports their email address and the date and time the message was opened. Once the client understood that consumers had a reasonable expectation of privacy, they took steps to notify their customers of their tracking methods and gave them the option of unsubscribing from the newsletter.

The anti-Web bug initiative will be ignored by unscrupulous marketers, but it will also serve to educate everyone else.

Recently Written

Your OKR Cascade is Breaking Your Strategy
Aug 1: Most companies cascade OKRs down their org chart thinking it creates alignment. Instead, it fragments strategy and marginalizes supporting teams. Here's what works better than the waterfall approach.
Your Prioritization Problem Is a Strategy Problem
Jul 23: Most teams struggle with prioritization because they're trying to optimize for everything at once. The real problem isn't having too many options—it's not having a clear strategy to choose between them. Without strategy, every decision feels equally important. With strategy, most decisions become obvious.
Behind schedule
Jul 21: Your team is 6 weeks late and still missing features. The solution isn't working harder—it's accepting that your deadlines were fake all along. Ship what you have. Cut ruthlessly. Stop letting "one more day" turn into one more month.
VC’s Future Lies In Building Winners
Jun 21: AI and megafunds are about to kill the traditional venture model, forcing smaller VCs to stop hunting for hidden gems and start rolling up their sleeves to fix broken companies instead.
Should individual people have OKRs?
May 14: A good OKR describes and measures an outcome, but it can be challenging to create an outcome-focused OKR for an individual.
10 OKR traps and how to avoid them
May 8: I’ve helped lots of teams implement OKRs or fix a broken OKR process. Here are the 10 most common problems I see, and what to do instead.
AI is Smart, But Wisdom Requires Judgement
May 3: AI can process data at lightning speed, but wisdom comes from human judgment—picking the best imperfect option when facts alone don’t point the way.
Decoding Product Leadership Titles
Mar 18: Not all product leadership titles mean what they sound like. ‘Head of Product’ can mean anything from a senior PM to a true VP. Here’s how to tell the difference.

Older...

What I'm Reading