Oct 12, 2018, 12:36 PM
(from Inside Higher Ed) Shiru cafés, opening this year near Ivy League and other universities, offer handmade coffee and tea drinks for free. In exchange, students show a university ID and share a small cache of personal information: name, age, email address, interests, major and graduation year, among other details. They also agree to be contacted by Shiru’s corporate sponsors, who underwrite the cafe drinks. Customers may also provide a rundown of their IT skills, previous internships and an indication of the size of company they might be interested in working for.
Shiru says it shares only aggregate, not individuals', information with sponsors, and that primary benefits from data sharing come from face-to-face meet ups between sponsors and students at the cafes. Critics say the information could be used for predatory advertising. The cafe near Brown University has registered nearly 75 percent of Brown students this semester.
Listen to the latest episode of the Net Assets podcast.
