The FTC has sent mandatory notices for information to eight companies it says engages in “surveillance pricing”, the process by which prices are rapidly changed using AI based on data about customer behavior and characteristics. This process, the FTC claims, allows companies to charge different customers different prices for the same product.

The list includes Mastercard, JPMorgan Chase, Accenture and consulting giant McKinsey. It also includes software firm Task, which counts McDonald’s and Starbucks as clients; Revionics, which works with Home Depot, Tractor Supply and grocery chain Hannaford; Bloomreach, which services FreshDirect, Total Wine and Puma; and Pros, which was named Microsoft’s internet service vendor of the year this year. “Firms that harvest Americans’ personal data can put people’s privacy at risk,” FTC Chair Lina Khan said in a news release. “Now firms could be exploiting this vast trove of personal information to charge people higher prices.”

  • CosmicTurtle0@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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    2 months ago

    We really need to make data worthless to these companies. There is an OS called qubes that allows you to isolate each application to its own container. I’d really love the ability to have each session with each website be its own container. Like Firefox tab containers but on steroids with each website being isolated.

    • 4am
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      2 months ago

      Bluefin/Aurora Linux does this, but it’s a bit nerdy