Head of Product and Market Technique
Alex joined Department as a Developer Advocate in 2016, and helped construct the corporate’s early developer relations and long-tail adoption methods. He works intently with groups throughout the group to assist form Department’s place within the cellular ecosystem, writes the Cellular Development E-newsletter, and tweets usually about mobile-related matters at @alexdbauer.
Sep 14, 2022
Not too long ago, one in every of our fellow cellular measurement companions (MMPs) has been within the information for a unpleasant purpose: on August 29, the FTC sued Kochava for promoting delicate client information.
Extra particularly, the FTC alleges that Kochava has been promoting geolocation information that “can be utilized to determine folks and hint their actions.”
At Department, we usually attempt to keep away from commenting on conditions like these. Nonetheless, the headlines for this story are alarming sufficient that plenty of our clients have reached out to us with questions. They need to know what this information means for Department, and what it’d imply for them.
In different phrases, clients are asking if the info of their very own customers may additionally be on the market.
This reply may be very easy, so I need to be sure it’s fully and impeccably clear: Department doesn’t promote our clients’ person information. We by no means have, and we by no means will. This has been one in every of our core ideas going again to the start of the corporate.
However how did this example occur?
I may finish this weblog put up proper right here. However I do know at the very least a number of readers will need to perceive why we’re having this dialog within the first place. The advert tech ecosystem is complicated, and we don’t at all times do an excellent job of explaining issues in a means that is sensible for folks outdoors the circle.
In Kochava’s case, the FTC lawsuit stems from a unique line of enterprise often called the Kochava Collective. That is fully separate from Kochava’s MMP (which supplies advert attribution), and doesn’t embody any information collected by their MMP product (for a full rationalization, right here is the open letter from Kochava’s CEO).
Why does this matter? Preserving buyer information personal and confidential is inherent to an MMP’s existence. In reality, this can be a elementary tenet of what it means to be a cellular measurement associate: we exist to function your trusted impartial arbiter, performing in your behalf to offer correct and unbiased advert measurement. And simply to keep away from any confusion, there isn’t a legitimate purpose why an MMP would want entry to a person’s exact location coordinates (you possibly can’t ship this type of geolocation information to Department even in the event you wished to — we will’t use it, and we don’t need it).
Sadly, the excellence between Kochava’s MMP providing and the Kochava Collective is sort of universally getting misplaced within the noise.
As a model, what must you be desirous about for the long run?
Tales like this one usually are not precisely new for the adtech {industry}, however the significance of person privateness has solely grown over the previous two years. This implies it can turn out to be much more crucial for manufacturers to rigorously think about the distributors they associate with, and to grasp not solely the chance of the merchandise they’re utilizing, but additionally any reputational dangers regarding the distributors that they choose.
Sure, any respectable MMP will maintain your person information personal and confidential. That’s true by definition at the moment, and is unlikely to alter in future. However on this new world, the place privateness has turn out to be an insanely complicated, three physique downside and information tales about person privateness and information safety can unfold like wildfire, firms have to have a look at an excellent greater image: are there different areas of reputational publicity regarding this vendor that would damage my model?
On the finish of the day, you can not succeed within the digital world with out working with companions, so it’s crucial to ensure you’re protecting good firm. At Department, our dedication is to be an industry-leading MMP and a associate you could be proud to work with.
Head of Product and Market Technique
Alex joined Department as a Developer Advocate in 2016, and helped construct the corporate’s early developer relations and long-tail adoption methods. He works intently with groups throughout the group to assist form Department’s place within the cellular ecosystem, writes the Cellular Development E-newsletter, and tweets usually about mobile-related matters at @alexdbauer.
Sep 14, 2022
