Search Engine Optometrists

I had to see a new optometrist this month, and as is usual with every healthcare professional, I needed to fill in yet another client information form.  Everything was as expected until I came to the very last question:

Would you be happy for us to create a Google+ account in your name?  You can change your password anytime.  With this account you can review us or any other product or service at any time.  Yes / No

We've seen companies astroturfing for a very long time - using fake reviews to bolster their products – but I’ve never seen anyone be quite so blatant about it.  There is no information on how they will manage these accounts, who else they might share the passwords with, and what other services they might review at any time.  Truly it boggles the mind.

Perhaps someone thought that SEO stood for Search Engine Optometrists.

In a world where identity matters, where health data is considered sacrosanct personally identifiable information, who would ask such a question, and more importantly, who would ever say yes?

 

Phil Kernick @philkernick

www.cqr.com