by Susan Helen Moran

In a free market, competitive economy, Cyber Personas are valuable assets.

Most of us today are becoming personas inside Cyber Space. Private companies, Government agencies, and anyone who knows how can cross reference and compile any and every type of data from multiple sources related to one individual.

An individual’s biometrics, such as finger prints, voice patterns, facial features, and movement, can be used to develop a reflection or persona  of that individual inside Cyber Space. Edward Snowden in 2013 revealed that the NSA already had that capability, but what he did not say was that private companies did also.

Corporations are developing related capabilities today. Their objective is improved targeted marketing of their products and services to  specific individuals based on a profile or persona of individuals in a market segment.

Corporations can now integrate facial recognition software with security or surveillance cameras, cross reference the biometrics images with those in other databases to identify the individuals and quickly compile additional financial, social and even political information, as well as buying habits.

As mentioned, the implications of this Cyber Technology are ENORMOUS, both for good and for bad. Companies that can immediately and accurately gauge the buying habits and preferences of individual shoppers will outsell any less Cyber Savvy competitor.

THE BOTTOM LINE

A number of Market Analysts predict multi-million-dollar profit increases for companies that can win individual loyalty for their products and services over the next 10 years.  Doing that means exploiting any technology that will give them an edge over their competition. Targeted marketing based on cyber personas–built from detailed demographic, biometric, and financial data–is here to stay.