Wakoopa is Creeping Me Out

The launch was today. Users can now sign up at Wakoopa and download a file which will run in the background, monitoring the applications you are using. Initially I really liked the idea. Wakoopa shows you the most popular applications, giving you the opportunity to discover better software. Applications can be tagged so you could find out which free ZIP archiver or text editor is used most frequently. There is also the appeal of seeing your habits displayed in simple charts. Tracking my music listening on last.fm has been really cool. It shows the artists I've been listening to lately and has also helped me find other artists to add to my playlist. On your profile page, visitors can also see what song you are listening to at that very moment.

For some reason, visitors seeing which applications you are running right now is creepy.

Maybe it feels too invasive. Maybe I don't want people to know that I use calculator, or that I don't use Photoshop very often. Maybe I saw a lot of "who's watching the watchers" content from Nine Inch Nails' "Year Zero" marketing campaign yesterday. I think most of the feeling comes from the thought of some one being able to look at my profile page and get a pretty good idea of what I'm working on. There probably isn't anyone who cares enough to bother, but the fact that the information is available is all that matters.

Our application usage habits are a part of our personal identity, much like our shopping habits which are tracked using supermarket loyalty cards. Credit card companies use your transaction history to identify you, enabling them to tell when your card has been compromised after only a handful of fraudulent purchases. "You are what you buy."

To their credit, Wakoopa has a friendly privacy page which gives some comfort and informs you that they are part of the Attention Trust Foundation. I haven't heard of this organization before but I'm glad people have been giving this stuff serious thought.

I don't know what potential harm a service like Wakoopa could cause but I'll definitely think about it before I weigh the risks of installing their tracker.