美国国家公共电台 NPR Digital Ambulance Chasers? Law Firms Send Ads To Patients' Phones Inside ERs

 

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

These days, not even doctor visits are safe from data tracking by advertisers. As Bobby Allyn of member station WHYY reports, personal injury law firms in particular see opportunity there, while others see an invasion of privacy.

BOBBY ALLYN, BYLINE¹: You may have had the experience before. You're in the toothpaste aisle² of a grocery store. And all of a sudden, advertisements for Colgate are flashing on your Facebook feed. Now the next time you're in an emergency room, you might feel just as digitally stalked when you look at your phone and see ads from personal injury law firms fishing for your business. Here's the potentially creepy part. You're only getting fed the ads because somebody knows you're in the ER. And if they could, they'd install a 3-D ad to grab your attention.

BILL KAKIS: It's really the closest thing (laughter) I think that an attorney can (laughter) do to putting a digital kiosk inside of an emergency room.

ALLYN: That's Bill Kakis. He's a Long Island-based digital marketer who recently made deals with personal injury law firms in the Philadelphia area to send ads to people in emergency rooms. Other law firms and marketing³ companies from Tennessee to San Francisco are also testing this out in hospital settings.

KAKIS: Is everybody in an emergency room going to need an attorney? Absolutely not. But people that are going to need a personal injury attorney are more than likely at some point going to end up in an emergency room.

ALLYN: The advertiser knows where you are by using technology known as geofencing. In this case, they draw a digital circle around a hospital. And when you cross into it, ads start popping up on websites you go to on your phone. The advertisers know your location by grabbing your phone ID from Wi-Fi, cell data or an app using GPS. Retailers⁴ have been using this for years. And Kakis says it's, quote, "totally legit" to expand it to hospitals. But attorney general of Massachusetts Maura Healey doesn't think so.

MAURA HEALEY: Private medical information should not be exploited in this way, especially when it's gathered secretly without consumers' knowledge - without knowledge or consent.

ALLYN: Healey's office was the first in the country to crack down on geofencing technology in healthcare spaces. Prosecutors⁵ there banned a Massachusetts-based digital advertising⁶ firm from the state after it sent people who entered Planned Parenthood clinics advertisements such as, you have choices, from a Christian⁷ pregnancy⁸ counseling and adoption⁹ agency.

Talking to people coming in and out of emergency rooms, one thing is clear. Some people find these kinds of targeted ads are preying¹⁰ on people when they are the most vulnerable. Take Joe Finnegan. He was recently leaving a hospital in Philadelphia and says, as a patient, he thinks his trip should be private.

JOE FINNEGAN: You couldn't put a physical fence up. Why would you be able to put a cyber fence up? I don't get it.

ALLYN: Finnegan says unknowingly crossing into an area where he's being digitally monitored freaks him out.

FINNEGAN: If they're tracking every move in that regard, what else are they watching?

ALLYN: It's a relatable feeling, says Bill McGeveran. He teaches Internet and technology law at the University of Minnesota. He says it's one thing to feel like you're being watched in a grocery store. But for many consumers, it seems far more intrusive¹¹ when it creeps into the more personal parts of life.

BILL MCGEVERAN: Information about health, sexuality, finances, political views people feel really differently about than they do about the brand of toothpaste they prefer.

ALLYN: McGeveran says the Federal Trade Commission could clamp down if information is being shared in a sneaky way. But he says the feds have been slow to combat phone tracking in hospitals. Meanwhile, Kakis, the advertiser, says business is booming. He says the digital ads aimed at people in emergency rooms are catching¹² on fast.

KAKIS: Within a few weeks, we pretty much (laughter) had every hospital picking up (laughter) in downstate New York area.

ALLYN: He says in his initial talks with law firms looking for clients, he's used this pitch before. What's your target demographic for injured people? Well, there isn't one because everybody gets injured. For NPR News, I'm Bobby Allyn in Philadelphia.

(SOUNDBITE OF RODRIGO Y GABRIELA'S "THE SOUNDMAKER")

1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

3 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

4 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

5 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

6 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

7 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

8 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

9 adoption   

n.采用，采纳，通过；收养

参考例句：

• An adoption agency had sent the boys to two different families.一个收养机构把他们送给两个不同的家庭。
• The adoption of this policy would relieve them of a tremendous burden.采取这一政策会给他们解除一个巨大的负担。

10 preying   

v.掠食( prey的现在分词 )；掠食；折磨；（人）靠欺诈为生

参考例句：

• This problem has been preying on my mind all day. 这个问题让我伤了整整一天脑筋。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• For a while he let his eyes idly follow the preying bird. 他自己的眼睛随着寻食的鸟毫无目的地看了一会儿。 来自辞典例句

11 intrusive   

adj.打搅的；侵扰的

参考例句：

• The cameras were not an intrusive presence.那些摄像机的存在并不令人反感。
• Staffs are courteous but never intrusive.员工谦恭有礼却从不让人感到唐突。

12 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。