Forrester Research has seen the future, and the future is “personal data management.” In a new report, the prestigious research organization says that shifts in the economy will allow consumers to gain control over all of the data available about them online. This will be achieved primarily though the use of “personal data lockers,” or individual repositories where individuals can store and access their data to share and sell with marketers.

Currently, the data economy (which generates billions of dollars annually) is unfairly balanced in favor of marketers. Often, consumers don’t understand how their data is being tracked, collected, and sold, while those that do understand the complexities of data tracking don’t have the resources to protect their information.

As more and more consumers become aware of the significant cost associated with sharing data, they will dig in their heels and demand more control over their personal information. Rather than slowing the economy, however, this change will further spur the growth of a “privacy economy,” which will empower consumers to engage with companies on their own terms and, with time, give marketers even better and more actionable data.

Here at Reputation.com, we are happy to be leading the way in this new privacy economy. As we explained when we announced our Series D funding, Reputation.com is dedicated to developing innovative new technologies that allow consumers to control how they appear online. Currently, we are working toward this goal through the development of a Data Privacy Vault.

As the Forrester report points out, consumers will begin to take control of their data when doing is convenient and offers them some demonstrable value. Reputation.com’s advances in the personal data management field will allow this to happen.

In today’s Quick Hits, Facebook gets heat from Congress and Spotify gets heat from Facebook users. Meanwhile, Hollywood tries to capitalize on Facebook’s popularity and a survey shows the corporate security risks involving social media use.

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Congress Asks FTC to Investigate Facebook Tracking Cookies

Congressmen Edward Markey and Joe Barton have asked the FTC to investigate Facebook following reports that the company was tracking users even while they were logged off of the service. In a statement, Markey and Barton wrote, “as co-Chairs of the Congressional Bi-Partisan Privacy Caucus, we believe that tracking user behavior without their consent or knowledge raises serious privacy concerns. When users log out of Facebook, they are under the expectation that Facebook is no longer monitoring their activities. We believe this impression should be the reality. Facebook users should not be tracked without their permission.” In response, Facebook changed the log-out process so that it doesn’t store cookies for logged-out users.

Warner Bros Web Series Incorporates Facebook User Data Into the Story

In an interesting experiment, director McG is incorporating Facebook data into his new teen-oriented web series “Aim High.” According to McG, the series will pull data from a user’s profile to augment the series and give it a personal touch. Quoting McG, “music that the characters are listening to comes from your playlist, pictures on the walls, TV screens and picture frames inside the show are from your profile.” The planned “social series” is an attempt by Hollywood studios to tap into the popularity of social media technology, which has been siphoning viewers from TV and films.

Spotify Backtracks on Facebook-Only Authentication, Adds Private Listening Mode

Spotify users were in an uproar this week when the company announced that it was only allowing users to log-in to the service via Facebook. This move was widely criticized as it made a user’s Spotify playlist instantly accessible to Facebook friends via Facebook’s new “frictionless sharing” feature. Because users want to keep their listening preferences private, Spotify backed off and created a private listening mode. So, while you still have to log-in to the site through Facebook, you don’t have to share your listening stream publicly.

Social Media Use Increases Corporate Security Risks

According to a new global study by the Ponemon Institute, more than half of the 4,640 organizations polled indicated an increase in computer attacks as a result of workers using social networks. According to the study, “about a quarter of those respondents said the attacks rose by more than 50 percent” due to social media. The attacks mostly came via “social engineering,” which involves a deliberate attempt to target an individual using information in their profile to gain their trust and get them to click on a malicious link.

In today’s Quick Hits, we share thoughts on Facebook’s f8 announcements, a survey showing opposition to Facebook’s news feed changes, a story about the online reputation perils of college newspapers, and the Australian government’s concerns over Internet privacy.

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Facebook Profile Overhaul Raises Privacy Concerns

Yesterday at the company’s annual f8 developer’s conference, Facebook premiered a drastically new look for its profiles called “Timeline.” Timeline allows users to see everything they’ve posted on Facebook over the course of their time on the site, making much more information available to friends and followers. While many were excited about this change, others were concerned about the privacy implications of having so much data readily available. Facebook expert Mari Smith discussed the changes with USA Today and touched on these privacy concerns. Quoting the article, “Among her own vast online community, [Smith] said she’d heard complaints that Facebook was asking users to share too much information and that there were overtones of Big Brother.”

Facebook Users Hate Changes by 5 to 1 Ratio

According to a national phone survey, Facebook users dislike the company’s recent changes to the News Feed by a ratio of 5 to 1. Though the sample size of the survey was small compared to Facebook’s global userbase, it begs an intriguing question. If people are upset over changes to the news feed, how will they feel when the entire profile changes to the Timeline model shown at yesterday’s f8 conference?

Digitization of College Newspapers Causing Reputation Problems for Alumni

By and large, people are different during their college years than they are as professionals. But, as more and more colleges put their newspaper archives online, alumni are learning that the things they did in college are catching up with them and, in some cases, damaging their online reputations. This article from USA Today discusses how college newspaper articles, both old and new, can cause reputation problems for college students and graduates.

Australian Privacy Watchdog Gives Warning on Facebook Privacy

Add Australia to the list of countries that have taken exception with the amount of personal data that Facebook and other social networking websites collect about users. According to The Australian, Australian Privacy Commissioner Timothy Pilgrim recently issued a statement saying that “social networking sites needed to ensure their users knew exactly how and when their personal information would be used.” Pilgrim’s concern, echoed by academics, is that erosion of privacy will be normalized unless people are made explicitly aware of how much information they are sharing online.

In today’s Quick Hits, we talk about a new bullying prevention campaign, an interesting poll about teen attitudes online, a smart privacy change from Foursquare, and the hidden privacy risks of popular technology.

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Facebook and Time Warner Launch Anti-Bullying App

Yesterday, Facebook and Time Warner launched an anti-bullying app called “Stop Bullying: Speak Up.” According to ABC News, the app “offers resources on prevention, and asks children and adults to take an online pledge to speak up if they see bullying.” Cyberbullying is a major concern for children and teens online, and has been cited as a factor in a number of high-profile teen suicides. Facebook’s position as the hub of social life for many teens makes it important for the company to spend time on anti-bullying measures.

Poll Shows Young People Don’t Care About Online Slurs

According to a new Associated Press-MTV poll surveying 14 to 24-year-olds, 71% of respondents said they are more likely “to use slurs online or in text messages than in person” and that “only about half say they are likely to ask someone using such language online to stop.” This apparent disregard has led some experts to worry that young people are becoming desensitized to abusive language and are risking their reputations by using the language online.

Foursquare Makes Privacy Change to Hide Home Addresses

Foursquare recently enacted a new privacy change that allows users to check-in to their homes on the service without exposing their exact location. According to Mashable, “applying the ‘Home’ category will keep the actual address of the venue private to just the user and his or her friends, as well as allow the user to edit the venue or delete it altogether.” This step, while long overdue, is logical and may help bring in more privacy-conscious users to the check-in service.

Can You Use Technology and Protect Your Privacy?

In a comprehensive piece for The Today Show website, Christina DesMarais talks about the privacy concerns associated with a number of popular technologies. Listing everything from cell phones to fax machines, DesMarais explains how modern technology can put your privacy at risk and the steps you should take to help mitigate the amount of information about you online.

In today’s Quick Hits, we talk about the differences between European and American privacy policies, a congressional privacy hearing, why “Daily Deals” might be bad for small businesses, and one man’s experience writing about the hacker collective Anonymous.

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Lessons from Europe on Internet Privacy

In an interesting segment for Marketplace radio, Paul Schwartz, a law professor at the University of California, Berkeley, and a director of the Berkeley Center for Law & Technology, talks about the differences between European and American privacy policies and how the U.S. could learn from Europe’s more comprehensive privacy laws.

Consumer Advocates Criticize Congressional Privacy Hearing

USA Today tech reporter Byron Acohido writes that consumer privacy groups are upset with Rep. Mary Bono Mack’s planned congressional hearing today to discuss Internet privacy issues. According to the report, critics are concerned that the hearing “is being staged to give short shrift to how Europe has championed privacy rights for individual citizens” and that the hearing has an industry-focused agenda that doesn’t adequately take into account consumer concerns. In her defense, Bono Mack says she is trying to find “a sweet spot between too much regulation and no regulation at all,” a tricky balancing act that has plagued numerous privacy proposals.

Report Shows How Daily Deals Can Damage a Small Business Online Reputation

Econsultancy shares the findings of a new MIT Technology Review report that shows how a “Daily Deal” offering can negatively impact a business’ online reputation on consumer review websites. According to the report, “ Groupon deal seems to have an adverse impact on reputation as measured by Yelp ratings. Their analysis shows that while the number of reviews increases signifificantly due to daily deals, average rating scores from reviewers who mention daily deals are about 10% lower than scores of their peers.” These findings suggest that small business owners should be very careful about how they use “Daily Deal” services, particularly with regard to their online reputations.

The Dangers of Writing a Book About Anonymous

In a Huffington Post column, Cole Stryker talks about the many threats he’s received from the hacker group Anonymous following the publication of his book “Epic Win for Anonymous: How 4chan’s Army Conquered the Web.” Stryker writes that he wasn’t, and still isn’t, afraid of Anonymous, writing that the group is “actually pretty ineffectual when you don’t give them the tools they need to engage in ‘life-ruining tactics,’ also known as data mining or social engineering. There are no nude pics of me being passed around on 4chan because there are no nude pics of me anywhere.”

In today’s Quick Hits, an A-List starlet becomes the victim of an embarrassing cell phone hack, an Internet troll is given a jail sentence for mocking dead teens online, and FOSI has some uplifting information on teens and online safety.

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Scarlett Johansson Working with FBI After Nude Cellphone Photos Leaked Online

TMZ reports that A-List actress Scarlett Johansson is seeking assistance from the FBI to help track down the individual responsible for hacking into her cell phone and posting self-taken nude photos online. Johansson isn’t the first celebrity to have nude photos wind up online. Actresses Vanessa Hudgens and Jessica Alba also have been the victims of hackers seeking out illicit images.

Family Online Safety Institute Survey Shows 96% of Parents Talk to Kids About Online Safety

A new survey from the Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI) found that 96% of parents have had a conversation with their kids about what they should and should not do online. The survey also revealed that 93% of parents set rules about Internet use. These findings suggest that more parents are becoming aware of the importance of online safety issues and taking smart, proactive steps to protect their kids online.

Facebook Representatives Gear Up for Congressional Hearing

Facebook representatives are scheduled to appear before a congressional hearing today on the subject of children’s online safety. According to CBS News, “The appearance by Facebook officials follows one last week by Google Chairman Eric Schmidt, who also met with members of Congress about privacy issues.” At issue is how websites track information about Internet users while they browse the Web. Several members of Congress believe that there should be laws in place to prevent Web companies from collecting data on children. Web companies have disagreed with this stance, arguing that legislation will be too unwieldy.

Facebook Introduces Smart Lists Privacy Feature

Yesterday, Facebook announced a new privacy feature that is similar in function to Google+’s “Social Circles” feature. According to the Washington Post, “the optional features include smart lists, which automatically group a users’ friends into work, school, family and location-based groups, which can be edited by the user.” Facebook’s recent push to offer more privacy controls comes on the heels of Google’s launch of Google+, which was widely praised for its intuitive privacy settings.

25-Year-Old Internet Troll Jailed for Mocking Dead Teens Online

In the U.K., a 25-year-old man has been jailed for 18 weeks after he was arrested for sending mocking messages to the families of two dead teenagers online. The man, who did not know the victims and lived alone, pleaded guilty to two counts of sending malicious communications. In his ruling, the judge stated that the offenses were so serious that “only a custodial sentence could be justified.” As part of the sentence, the man must also refrain from using social networking websites for five years and inform police when he acquires a new computer or web-enabled phone.

In today’s Quick Hits, we talk about a new Microsoft study, a huge privacy breach involving 20,000 hospital patients, and one Applebee’s worker’s stand for self-expression online.

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Microsoft Study Shows More Than Half of U.S. Teens Don’t Consider Consequences of Online Actions

A new Microsoft study shows that “before posting personal information online, more than half of U.S. teens and parents don’t truly consider the potential consequences of their actions.” The study also showed that while teens recognize “the importance of limiting what they share online,” they still reveal more personal data than their parents and that 6 in 10 teens admit to having “friends” online that they have never met in real life. This data reveals the importance of online reputation management and digital citizenship – two important issues that Microsoft is addressing through a new white paper called “Fostering Digital Citizenship” and a Teen Reputation Guide.

Stanford University Medical Breach Affects 20,000 Patients

The New York Times reports that “a medical privacy breach at Stanford University’s hospital in Palo Alto, Calif., led to the public posting of medical records for 20,000 emergency room patients, including names and diagnosis codes, on a commercial Web site for nearly a year.” This isn’t the first time that medical data has been exposed online. The Times writes that “records compiled by the Department of Health and Human Services reveal that personal medical data for more than 11 million people has been improperly exposed during the last two years alone.”

Applebee’s Worker Threatened with Termination for Refusal to Sign Agreement Prohibiting Negative Comments

An Applebee’s worker claims that his job has been threatened by his refusal to sign an agreement from his employer that restricts his right to post negative content about Applebee’s online. The man, who has had no problems with the company in the past, says that he is concerned the agreement would stifle his freedom of expression. The Applebee’s story comes at an interesting time. The National Labor Relations Board recently issued a report outlining when companies can and can’t fire employees for their online profiles and a judge ruled that several non-profit employees were unjustly fired for their Facebook comments.

Facebook Explains Difficulty of Policing Under-13 Age Restriction

The Children’s Online Privacy and Protection Act (COPPA) requires companies to block children under the age of 13 from accessing their websites. But this is often easier said than done, especially if you’re Facebook, the world’s largest social networking website. This article from ZDNet discusses how Facebook approaches the problem and why the website claims that “it is difficult is to implement age restrictions on the Internet and that there is no single solution to ensuring younger children don’t circumvent a system or lie about their age.”

Mobile App ‘Blendr’ Helps Users Hook Up

New York Times tech reporter Jenna Wortham writes about a new mobile app called Blendr, which combines social networking with location check-in technology to help users “find someone to meet nearby, right now.” The app includes some privacy restrictions, including the ability to narrowly tailor what type of person can access one’s profile, but it is still likely something that a privacy-conscious individual would be leery to use. Nevertheless, the creator of Blendr’s previous mobile app Grindr (which offers a similar service for the gay community) has been very successful with 2.6 million users, proving the viability of the concept.

In today’s Quick Hits, we talk about Twitter’s spam problem, why Americans aren’t using location check-in services, and the budding world of photo hacking.

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3.5 Billion Malicious Messages Shared on Twitter Every Day

Security company BitDefender thinks Twitter has a spam problem. According to statistics compiled by the firm, and reported in The Daily Mail, one percent of the 350 billion message impressions on Twitter each day, “are malicious, containing spam, or links to sites containing viruses or other malicious software. That means that 3.5 billion nasty Tweets are sent every day. For an average user that can mean up to 17 dangerous Tweets per day.” The article notes that the use of URL shorteners has greatly increased the number of malicious messages on the site.

Apps and Social Networks Pose Privacy Risks to Kids

USA Today tech reporter Byron Acohido explains how mobile apps and social networking sites pose risks to children under the age of 13 and often risk violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The article also highlights the disconnect between children and parents online. Quoting the story, “A recent survey by anti-virus firm AVG found roughly half of children ages 6 through 9 regularly interact with friends online, yet 58% of their parents admitted to not being knowledgeable about social networks.”

Ohio Women Settles Invasion of Privacy Lawsuit Involving Nude Images on Stolen Laptop

An Ohio women has settled an invasion of privacy lawsuit with a software manufacturer and police department after she claimed that “her privacy was violated when [the company] grabbed sexually explicit images of her and her boyfriend from a computer she didn’t know was stolen.” The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. As technology advances, questions of privacy are becoming more and more complicated. This story, with its multiple twists and turns, would have been very interesting.

Photo Hacking is a Hot New Field for Start-ups

With photo sharing being one of the biggest and most time-consuming hobbies on the Internet, it’s no wonder that CNN has highlighted photo hacking as a hotbed of new innovation in the start-up economy. This article from CNN Money discusses how several popular start-up companies are breaking down the idea of photo sharing and rebuilding it in new and interesting ways. Sometimes, these photo hacking exercises push the boundaries of personal privacy, especially when they involve facial recognition. Despite privacy concerns, companies continue to invest in this “gray area” of software development.

Location Services Not Catching on in the U.S.

Location check-in services aren’t catching on in the United States according to new research from the Pew Internet & American Life Project. The Pew data shows that 23% of Americans are using location data for things like maps and shopping, but only 4% are using check-in services to share their locations with friends online. The issue of personal privacy appears to be a big factor in Americans’ decision to not share their locations online.

In today’s Quick Hits, we talk about a new anti-bullying campaign, why celebrities should change their online passwords, the fine line politicians walk on Twitter, and how healthcare professionals are usually responsible for health information breaches.

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Teen Singer Cody Simpson Leads Anti-Bullying Initiative

Popular teen singer Cody Simpson is putting his influence and massive online following to good use as the leader of a new anti-bullying initiative called Defeat the Label. Simpson joins numerous other celebrities in the campaign, which seeks to put a stop to bullying among kids and teens. Bullying, particularly online bullying, has become a severe problem for the nation’s youth, represented tragically by the high-profile suicides of numerous teens such as Phoebe Prince.

Anonymous Splinter Group Attacking Celebrities

A spin-off group of the hacker collective Anonymous has its sights set on Hollywood and has already scored some high-profile hacks. According to PCWorld, the group has posted celebrity phone numbers, a film script for a movie currently in production, and even nude photos of the female rapper Kreayshawn. The group’s motives don’t seem to extend much beyond a desire to embarrass celebrities and bask in the subsequent media attention.

Politician Apologizes After Calling Constituent Idiot

A UK politician has apologized after calling a constituent the “village idiot” on Twitter following a debate about the National Health Service (NHS). The incident demonstrates the fine line public figures, particularly politicians, walk between engaging in discourse online and saying something that can damage their online reputations.

Insiders Responsible for Growing Number of Patient Privacy Breaches

According to the 2011 Survey of Patient Privacy Breaches from Veriphyr, “more than 70 percent of organizations surveyed were targets of one or more breaches of PHI within the last 12 months. And, insiders were responsible for the majority of breaches, with 35 percent taking an unauthorized look at medical data of fellow employees and 27 percent peeking at records of friends and relatives.”

In today’s Quick Hits, we have two stories on the risky relationship between teachers and social networking as well as some information on Internet tracking, location tracking, and which of your Facebook friends is most likely to expose your private information.

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Schoolteacher’s Double Life as Stripper Discovered Online

A UK sex-ed teacher was found guilty of “unacceptable professional conduct” after students discovered him in an adult video online. The teacher, who also worked as a stripper using a different name, was temporarily suspended pending a hearing, but is still allowed to teach. The school council acknowledged his argument that his personal life has no bearing on his professional qualifications as a teacher, but insisted that he discontinue his extracurricular activities anyway in keeping with the “widely held public view that such work is not acceptable conduct for a teacher.”

Teachers in Dayton, Ohio Banned from Friending Students Online

The New York Daily News reports that, “a new policy in the Dayton Public School systems bars instructors from friending their students on Facebook, along with instant messaging or texting with the kids.” This policy echos a similar proposition from the state of Missouri, which banned teachers from interacting with students online. Last week, that law was temporarily halted by a federal judge. The difference between the Dayton policy and the state-wide Missouri law is that the Dayton policy only extended to the school district and that it specifically barred “friending,” as opposed to all online contact.

How to Tell Which of Your Facebook Friends is a Blabbermouth

Some of your friends are more apt to gossip than others, but how can you be sure which ones might spill your secrets? The Globe and Mail shares a report from Pritam Gundecha at Arizona State University. According to Gundecha’s analysis, you should look at what your friend is sharing to help cue you as to their privacy awareness. For example, “around 80 per cent of users are happy to disclose their gender, but less than 1 per cent share their home address. That suggests people publicizing their address aren’t particularly privacy-conscious and you might want to avoid them.”

Interactive Advertising Bureau Do Not Track Button Faces Criticism

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) recently released a button that advertisers can place in their ads that allows users to opt-out of Internet tracking. The do not track button is one of several self-regulatory efforts aimed at preventing legislative action against online trackers. However, the button may not be effective and has already seen criticism from consumer privacy groups. According to The Street, Carmen Balber, Washington director for Consumer Watchdog, criticized the program saying, ”this industry program is another example of the failure of self-regulation to protect consumers from unwanted monitoring of every move they make on the internet and their mobile devices.”

Microsoft Accused of Tracking Location Data

CNET’s Declan McCullagh reports that security researcher Samy Kamkar has discovered that Microsoft is tracking users’ locations via software in its mobile devices. Quoting CNET, “the Camera application sends the device’s location–complete with latitude and longitude, a unique ID, and nearby Wi-Fi access points–to Microsoft even when the user has not given the app permission to do so.” Microsoft hasn’t commented on the claim.