How Cheapbills.com.au Leverages Consumer Data

When you engage with a comparison service like Cheapbills.com.au, you’re inevitably sharing a significant amount of personal and financial data. Understanding how this data is collected, processed, and potentially monetised is crucial, particularly when the platform includes services that clash with ethical principles. The core mechanism is data aggregation, where information provided by the user is used to fetch relevant deals from their panel of partners.

Data Collection Points

The website’s “How It Works” section outlines the initial data collection:

• Current Supplier Details: Name of your current energy supplier.
• Usage Habits: Information about your energy consumption, such as if you have solar panels, work from home, or drive an electric car. This helps them tailor suggestions.
• Current Pricing: What you’re currently paying for your utilities.
• Contact Information: Name, phone number, and potentially email, collected when you “Submit Your Details” or schedule a call.

For financial products, the data collection would extend significantly:

• Financial Standing: Income, employment details, credit history, existing debt, assets, and liabilities for home loans, credit cards, and other loans.
• Personal Identification: Often includes driver’s licence or passport details for identity verification when applying for financial products.

Data Processing and Comparison Logic

Once collected, this data is fed into Cheapbills.com.au’s comparison engine. The website states they “do the hard work for you and put together a selection of plans from the providers we work with.”

• Algorithmic Matching: The system uses algorithms to match your stated needs and usage patterns with the offerings from their partner providers.
• Curated Results: It’s important to remember their disclaimer: “CheapBills does not compare all brands in the market. We have selected Australia’s leading energy retailers to bring you the most competitive deals available.” This means the results are from a pre-selected panel, not the entire market.
• Contact Follow-Up: After processing, they “get in touch to run you through them,” suggesting a human element in explaining the options. This could involve sales agents who are incentivised to convert comparisons into signed contracts.

Monetisation of Data and Services

Comparison websites primarily generate revenue through affiliate commissions. When a user switches to a provider recommended by Cheapbills.com.au, the platform earns a fee from that provider.

• Referral Fees: For every successful switch (e.g., to a new electricity provider or a new NBN plan), Cheapbills.com.au receives a commission.
• Lead Generation Fees: For financial products like home loans or credit cards, they might earn a fee simply for generating a qualified lead that is passed on to a bank or lender, regardless of whether the loan is ultimately approved. This is where the ethical conflict becomes most pronounced, as facilitating leads for interest-based loans directly contradicts Islamic principles.
• Data Analysis and Insights: Aggregated, anonymised data on consumer preferences and switching patterns can also be valuable, potentially sold or used for market research insights.

Privacy Policy and User Rights

Like any legitimate online service, Cheapbills.com.au has a Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions. Users are encouraged to read these thoroughly to understand their rights regarding data. cheapbills.com.au Alternatives

• Data Usage: The policy should detail how user data is used, whether it’s shared with third parties, and for what purposes.
• Opt-Out Options: Users should have the option to opt-out of certain data uses or marketing communications.
• Data Security: Information on how user data is protected against unauthorised access.

Critical Note: From an ethical perspective, even if a user opts out of certain data uses, the fundamental act of providing personal information to a platform that also promotes interest-based financial products raises concerns. It supports the ecosystem of Riba, even if one avoids those specific services.