Websites track your online habits for good and bad reasons
Just about every piece of information about you has value: which soft drink you buy, what kind of car you drive, your income bracket, your medical information, your musical tastes and even what kind of mood you're in today. Some of this information is useful for: Making the service better for you. Selling you products or services. Scoping out the user demographics of sites, again with the goal of designing and targeting products or services more successfully to consumers. Employers or insurers who want to check your background or search your medical history, for example. They may search (or hire a company to search) for your information, unbeknownst to you. Some people feel that more targeted advertising simply makes sense — you avoid seeing ads for things that are useless or even offensive to you. But there's also the seedy side of the Internet, which includes criminals who compile catalogs of information about people who just bought expensive electronics. They can sell this information to thieves.
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Information about you and your Internet-connected devices is collected from a variety of sources. Some is information that you've posted to sites, some comes from other people who know you and some is placed online by companies, organizations and the government. Cancel You are leaving AARP.org and going to the website of our trusted provider. The provider’s terms, conditions and policies apply. Please return to AARP.org to learn more about other benefits. Your email address is now confirmed. You'll start receiving the latest news, benefits, events, and programs related to AARP's mission to empower people to choose how they live as they age. You can also by updating your account at anytime. You will be asked to register or log in. Cancel Offer Details Disclosures
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