Briefs

Stealth software lets computers collect, sift and analyze mountains of information from purchases, loyalty cards--from a racetrack, for example--and other transactions, mainly to predict what customer

By Jon Van, Chicago Tribune, July 24, 2005

Quietly working in the background, today's computers can spot insurance fraud, thwart shoplifters and lure racing fans to spend more at the track.

With uncanny accuracy, computers predict behavior by sifting through mountains of data about customers collected by businesses. Called predictive analytics, this automated crystal ball gazing has become a $2.3 billion industry in the United States and is on track to reach $3 billion by 2008.

"It's gotten so important because the stakes have risen," said Robert Blumstein, an analyst with IDC, a marketing intelligence firm that predicted the growth.

Here is the rest of the story.