Creeping

Creeping, or creepiness, refers to surveillance or tracking practices that obtain personal, sometimes private, information and then use that information in ways that the public or individual persons do not anticipate or understand. In today’s Digital Age, almost everyone confronts unexpected and sometimes unwanted technology-based surveillance in places as diverse as the shopping mall, the airport, and, especially, the online world. For example, a web-based ad may suggest the exact item a person would like to buy. After pushing the “I’m Feeling Lucky” button on Google Flights, a person’s dream destination may pop up. Such seemingly unexpected outcomes are the result of a set of sophisticated online tracking and surveillance systems through which information is collected, stored, bought, and sold, and sometimes even hacked and ...