Social Network-Assisted Voyeurism

Maybe it’s a generational thing, but I’m a little put off by the latest iteration of social networking. It’s a service called Blippy. If you can imagine your credit card having its own Twitter account, you begin to get a sense of the concept.

Once a person signs up for Blippy, data on every purchase made with the registered credit card — what she bought, how much she spent and from whom she bought it — automatically pops up on Blippy.com for other users, friends, relatives and work associates to see. Users can link other accounts like Netflix and iTunes so that these transactions can be posted, as well.

Here’s the rub for me: Not only can people see your purchases, they can comment on them, too. If someone likes the new Dave Matthews Band CD you downloaded from iTunes, they’ll tell you so; someone with the opposite view will probably weigh in, too. I can’t help but wonder how I would feel if I just plunked down $700 for an HDTV, only to have fellow users criticize the brand I chose or chide me for paying too much. I have enough purchase anxiety already — do I really need more?

Judging from its early success, there are plenty of folks who think Blippy is pretty cool. It has attracted some high-profile investors, including Sequoia Capital and Twitter CEO Evan Williams, and it’s even gained some traction among retailers intrigued by the prospect of knowing what people are buying.

You can count me out, however: I think Blippy reaches a whole new level of social network-assisted voyeurism.

I’ve never been comfortable revealing much of my personal life on social networking sites; I really don’t think anyone cares what I ate for dinner or did over the weekend. I also can’t help but think of potential problems that this sort of transparency could trigger.

What if I tweet that I’m home watching TV, but because I’m desperately craving a bit of “me” time, I head to the mall. As soon as Blippy reveals that I’ve bought a pair of shoes, I’m busted! Suddenly a little white lie can turn into a big ‘ol mess. And, that’s harmless compared to a guy who tells his wife that he’s working late, but digs himself in a little deeper with each round he buys at the bar.

There’s a solution, of course. Blippy will provide a little sticker you can apply to the credit card to remind you that the purchase will be broadcast. If you want to keep the semi-spies at bay, you just need to switch to another card.

Maybe I’m looking at this from the wrong angle. Blippy could be a shot in the arm for honesty; better yet, it might encourage those of us who fear scrutiny or crave privacy to simply use cash.