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The Lure and Danger of ‘Free’

We have all heard the saying ‘There is no such thing as a free lunch’ - yet, like flies to a jam pot, many of us are attracted to what seems to be ‘free’. Free WiFi, free apps (forever-free or 30 day free trial), free cloud storage, wonderful free phone apps... So where does the money come from to pay for the cost of these free offerings? What do you put at risk when you accept the offer? —particularly if it is your business that is put at risk.

By Peter Aggus

Peter, as an engineer & technology management consultant, has developed innovative & cost-effective solutions for clients in many industries.

The Lure

When Public WiFi services first appeared it was not unusual to have to provide a credit card or other payment method. Hotels added fees for Internet access in the same way as they charged for phone calls. Then along came two disruptors.

Firstly came the Millennial Generation (aka Gen Y), the first to grow up surrounded by the Internet and companies like Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, eBay and PayPal.

Secondly came the concept of the 100% connected world where there was no need to dial up or login ‘old school’ - rather one was just … connected.

Older generations expected to pay-as-you-go, whether for long distance phone calls or per km charges for rental cars. The new gen expected no such encumbrances. Everything should be free—and soon it was. Long distance telephone fees have virtually vanished and the internet ushered in a new era of worldwide instant connectivity—apparently for free.

A New Business Model

Many traditional companies, like landline telcos, did not see how it was possible to provide services for free. Many paid the price. But some of the new companies are highly profitable on apparently zero income. There has to be a catch... and there is.

The Danger

We have recently started to see the dark hidden side of the freebie giants. They collect masses of highly personal data about their users and sell that data to hungry marketers, keen to better target their markets.

This target marketing has been around since print media started supporting their costs more from advertising than from direct fees. What is new is the highly detailed profiles that the companies can now build and the intrusive way that data is gathered using implicit permissions given when users sign up. This data includes everything you do online, whom you talk to, even what you say. The ‘free’ mail and chat services not only read your messages, they analyse and sell the content, maybe every word, but certainly enough to identify you and where you are. Look at some of your e-mails, particularly business related ones and consider whether you want this content shared with unknown third parties.

Reducing Exposure

Always use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) when sending sensitive information over insecure networks like public WiFi. Company policy should require staff laptops to connect to the corporate network using VPN.

Avoid using free mail accounts for sensitive messages. Assume they are being read by 3rd parties (as they probably are) and you will not be surprised.

Above all—remember that Nothing is Free. Address all ‘free’ services in your acceptable use policy.

This article was published in the November 2019 edition of The TMC Advisor
- ISSN 2369-663X Volume:6 Issue:3

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