Between Google releasing its new privacy policy and Facebook filing for an IPO (which estimates that user information could be worth $75 billion to $100 billion), there has been a renewed discussion about personal information on the internet. The consensus seems to be that, in this new age of social technology, the price we pay for a dynamic virtual world is a loss of privacy and anonymity. Is this a bad thing? Are there trade-offs that make this price worth it?
Screenshot from "Take This Lollipop"
Not according to the website “Take This Lollipop.”
This website asks for access to your Facebook account (which is standard procedure for any other Facebook app, including Farmville and The Washington Post Social Reader), then delivers you a customized video featuring a sweaty, crazy-eyed man rifling through your Facebook profile. By the end of your personalized horror movie, you’ll find yourself questioning why you ever shared so much personal information online.
An amazing display of interactivity, the creepy video is designed to exploit your deepest, darkest fears about Facebook privacy and the security of your online information. According to creator Jason Zada, who also created the “Elf Yourself” online campaign for OfficeMax, “When you see your personal information in an environment where you normally wouldn’t, it creates a strong emotional response. It’s tied into the fears about privacy and personal info that we have now that we live online.” Since its initial launch in October of 2011, “Take This Lollipop” has garnered millions of “victims.”
What do you think this demonstrates to us about our security online?
Have you tried “Take This Lollipop” yet? If not, give it a try and let me know what you think. After all, this guy is waiting for you…
Antisocial Behavior 
Omg, so creepy! I think I’ll try this. I think the Lollipop campaign demonstrates that we don’t really know exactly how companies are using information and what they know about us. But is there really any way to be anonymous anymore? Even our Google searches are tracked…
Hey you just blogged something close to mine! lol Let’s cross-link! Check out my posting! http://kwakhyun.blogspot.com/2012/02/one-thing-that-never-changes.html
Great minds think alike!
This is terrifying. When I first heard of this site, I remember thinking, “This is how horror movies begin.”
It’s a creative way to, as you said, highlight the security of our online information. But isn’t it also an example of how companies can push conventional ideas of interacting with consumers? In addition to the creep factor, this site does show the level of customization and personalization possible with access to platforms like Facebook. Now imagine if CPG companies used the same technology to advertise their products to a very specific targeted consumer base? And each consumer’s experience watching the video is uniquely theirs?
I have heard of this before but am not brave enough to try it out! I think this does make a good point. I, for one, am very hesitant about approving any apps that require access privileges to my Facebook and Twitter accounts; that’s probably one of the reasons why I never quite got caught up by the Farmville craze! But I do sometimes think that privacy is all but impossible online, no matter what you do!
I’m pretty much in the same boat as farmtoforkdc. I want to see it, but I’m definitely to nervous to actually go through with it. I don’t have any apps on my facebook and pretty much have the bare minimum amount of information (I know, it’s a really boring profile). I feel like people who put all their information out there, etc should be cognizant of the consequences. I have friends that update their whole life on facebook/twitter (going to starbucks, gym, class, checking into restaurants on foursquare). They’re basically telling everyone their habits, their favorite places to go, etc. I’m just waiting for a Hollywood to produce a murder movie on the “twitter” or “facebook” killer…
Thank you so much for sharing this because I never would have found it on my own. I agree with the other commenters — too nervous to check it out but definitely going to edit my profiles.
Thanks for sharing this Courtney! I totally agree with both farmtoforkdc and notimefor10. I am always very hesitant with apps…which can sometimes be a little annoying. I always see interesting articles that come up in washington post social reader, click on them, and then decide not to sign up for the app so I can’t get to the article. I often wonder what will happen to our facebook profiles in 20 or 30 years. Will my kids be looking at photos from my first semester in college? has facebook become such a big part of how we communicate that it’s now a permanent part of our lives? who knows, but it’s scary to think that one of the biggest assets facebook has, is this insane amout of information on so many people. I don’t hesitate much to post pictures or links or statuses, but the geotagging stuff freaks me out. I don’t want people to know exactly where I am at any given time!
I’m so torn – I feel like to plug in, we have to play the game, and as consumers, there’s little we can do except ask people in government to put stronger protections on our personal data. But go too far and you end up with SOPA PIPA…