Manipulating Voters

Your data and how it is used to gain your vote: How much do political parties know about you - and how is it used to try to sway your vote?

The Cambridge Analytica scandal threw light on how the Facebook data of millions was harvested and turned into a messaging tool. The revelations were criticised far and wide by politicians of all stripes. But now, a report from the UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) puts the spotlight on the relationship between data brokers and the politicians here.

Buying someone's name can lead to making guesses about their income, number of children and ethnicity - which is then used to tailor a political message for them. The report suggests that the [UK] Conservative Party is doing just that, using so-called "onomastic data": information derived from the study of people's names which could identify their ethnic origin or religion. It has done that for 10 million voters, most of whom will be unaware of exactly how their information is being used.

Political parties can legitimately hold personal data on individuals to help them campaign more effectively. But sophisticated data analytics software can now combine information about individuals from multiple sources to find more about their voting characteristics and interests - something some people may find disturbing.