> It used to be totally fine for one shopkeeper to mention to another that he saw a customer looking for a particular item.
Huh? Outside of some tiny village the shopkeeper would not know the name and address of customers that are just browsing. If a shopkeeper hired private investigators to stalk those customers, following them around everywhere gathering as much personal information as possible, it would probably run afoul of some law.
Not only that, in this example the shopkeeper is simply helping the customer find what they are most likely requesting simply to be helpful. A more accurate example would have shopkeepers buying customer data from each other using a 3rd party entirely for their own benefit. This really isn't the same thing at all.
Huh? Outside of some tiny village the shopkeeper would not know the name and address of customers that are just browsing. If a shopkeeper hired private investigators to stalk those customers, following them around everywhere gathering as much personal information as possible, it would probably run afoul of some law.