The Pentagon has hired a little-known marketing firm called BeNOW to create a massive new database of young people to help with recruiting efforts. Current clients of BeNOW include Tower Records. Will the Pentagon tap into Tower's records to help expand its database?
From
CounterRecruiter.net:
The Pentagon has teamed up with a little-known marketing firm named BeNOW to create a massive new database to help military recruiters target potential recruits.
According to government records the database covers all high school students 16 years or older; current college students; anyone who has responded to recruiting ads since 1992; current military personnel and anyone in the process of enlisting.
The database includes an array of personal information including birth dates, Social Security numbers, e-mail addresses, grade point averages, ethnicity and what subjects the students are studying.
The Electronic Privacy Information Center and the American Civil Liberties have both slammed the proposal as a violation of the Privacy Act. (The ACLU described the database as "another example of the government's rampant and unregulated collection and use of our personal information.")
But little has been written about the private firm BeNOW that will be overseeing this massive database containing personal information about tens of millions of young people.
According to the BeNOW website, the Wakefield, Massachusetts-based company works on database marketing plans with Tower Records, Saab and MetLife. A look at the company's work with Tower Records may provide a clearer idea of how the Pentagon will use this new database to help market the military to young people.
Earlier this year Tower issued a press release touting its new relationship with BeNOW titled "Tower Records Tunes Into Customers With BeNOW":
Working with BeNOW, Tower Records will gather and consolidate customer information into a multi-channel marketing database that will allow more targeted communications and build customer relationships as part of its commitment to strengthening its image as a customer-centric company.
BeNOW`s MVP technology solution will deliver a single customer view using Tower stores and online data sources, increasing customer value while enlarging the company`s customer database.
Tower Records can then more easily tailor its direct marketing efforts, supported by advanced reporting, analytics and execution applications, and based on refined customer profiles as determined through BeNOW`s technology.
The BeNOW's ties to Tower Records also raises questions over whether the Pentagon would tap into these "customer profiles" created by BeNOW for Tower to get a better picture of potential recruits.
Will the database include info on your recent CD and DVD purchases?
And what other commercial databases will be used?
Read more at CounterRecruiter.net