You Call It “Sharing.” I Call It “Brazenly Selling”

How Citibank Handles Its Customers’ Personal Information

[Editor’s Note: The views expressed here are solely those of Ross Kaplan, and do not represent Edina Realty, Berkshire Hathaway (“Berkshire”), or any other entity referenced. Edina Realty is a subsidiary of Berkshire.]

“A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”

–“Romeo & Juliet”; Shakespeare

Americans are taught practically from the crib to share.

“Share your toys,” “share your snack,” “share your (lunch) table.”

As adults, thanks to technology, we can now share our homes (Airbnb); our cars (Uber, Lyft); and, for the so inclined, the minutiae of our daily lives (Facebook).

You might even say that we live in a “sharing economy.”

Channeling Mr. Rogers

Which is no doubt why Citicorp, when it comes to disclosing how it handles customers’ personal information, opts for the word “share.”

Instead of, say, “sell.”

Citigroup informs clients:

“If you are a new customer, we can begin sharing your information 30 days from the date we sent this notice. When you are no longer our customer, we continue to share your information as described in this notice. However, you can contact us anytime to limit our sharing.”

How . . . innocuous.

Where things get more nefarious is the bank’s opt-out policy — i.e., customers’ ability to “limit Citibank’s sharing.”

So, while customers can limit what Citibank shares with affiliates and nonaffiliates for marketing purposes, they cannot limit Citibank’s sharing either for Citibank’s own marketing purposes, or joint marketing with other financial companies.

Opt In vs. Opt Out

My two-fold reaction to the above:  1) why do companies — not consumers — have the final say over how their data is shared used?; and 2) why is the default an “opt out” option, buried in the fine print, rather than an opt-in option?

Agree with me?

Please feel free to share this piece with your friends, acquaintances, and — most importantly — your elected officials . . .

P.S.: While you’re at it, let those elected officials know that you strongly support the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), which was created by Congress to look out for consumers — and is now under assault, essentially for doing its job all too well.

See also, “The Wall Street Journal Whiffs on Warren.”

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