British Telecom has been testing an interesting product from a company called Phorm . Phorm is not a household name yet but it could rapidly become one. Here's a piece from Phorm's Wikipedia entry:
to them.
Phorm claims the product in trial, called Webwise, is designed to make the internet safer and more relevant to internet users. Webwise is offered free of charge to participating ISP partner customers and includes relevant advertising features and enhanced protection against online fraud. Webwise works by giving users a unique identification. User browser habits are observed and then ads are targeted based on user browsing habits. The company says that all collected information is completely anonymous and Phorm (along with anyone else) will never be aware of any users identity or what that individual users has browsed.
Will British Telecom move forward now that the trial is complete? Here's a quote from a ZDNet piece:Some in Europe are fighting - anti-Phorm campaigner Alexander Hanff is quoted in theZDNet piece:
I pay for Internet access in my home and do not believe anyone should have access to my surfing habits except those I give it to. This stuff scares me.
For updates watch Hanff's blog linked here.