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FTC Seeks Battle With Toysmart
wrenling writes: "Toysmart promised to never share their customer's data. They lied. They are seeking to sell their customer databases. The FTC voted today to begin a court battle with Toysmart to block them from doing so. CNN has more details in a CNNfn article."
By posting a privacy policy on the web site, the company has entered into a legally binding contract with anyone who uses the site. It is the same with a bricks and mortar food shop putting up "sale" signs in their windows or in adverts in the paper. If they publish a price, they are bound to honor it. Only the occasional misprint is allowed, and most shops will honor misprints rather than risk their business license.
So glad to hear some sane news coming from out of America for a change.
the AC
Hemos is like...sci-fi fans;he thinks technology is cool, but he hasn't bothered to understand the science it's based on
Let's see...
The Federal Trade Commission has a cadre of crack investigators backed up by masses of professional bureaucrats.
Toysmart has warehouses full of Sooper Soakers and a legion of G.I. Joes with Kung Fu Grip[tm].
My money's on Toysmart.
k.
--
"In spite of everything, I still believe that people
are really good at heart." - Anne Frank
"In spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart." - Anne Frank
So you tought that coming here and buying our crap merchandise ONCE, a miserable one time in your life was enough?
Look at what you acomplished, you moron! We are out of business now, thanks to you! Why haven't you come back? Why haven't you told your wife, your husband, your neighbours, your friends to come and buy from us? Why?
Know what, we will get even with you. Yes, just wait and see. We have you by the hand. We know where you live, we know your credicard number, we know your phone number.
We will go out and sell all this to highest bidder. No, I have a better idea yet. We will sell it to MEANEST bidder.
Your phone number will go to the worst direct marketeers in the country! Your address, to every church in your area. Your children's names will go directly to alt.sex.pedophilia.children.offer.themselves. Your wife's name we have already sent to a scort's online site. And your boss will be hearing about that sex toys you bought.
You made us suffer. Now taste our revenge. Next time you will thinking twice before failing to help an honest and good online store to trive.
I'm all about that, but this is getting impossible in this increasingly connected world. I was off the junkmail...er...DMA...lists for nearly a year until I moved. I was assured - several times, mind you - by US Postal Service staff that my new address would not be bought or sold.
Just think of all the people who have your info already: creditors (revolving credit), other creditors such as the phone company, power company, cellular service provider, cable company, magazine producers, banks, your ISP, InterNIC - the list is so long I can't name them all.
You have to tell every one of these companies that you don't want them to sell or rent your name. Companies are getting around that, however. They still share your information - but this time it's with "business partners." Look - don't fucking give my information to anyone without explicitly asking me first.
And even if you do tell everyone to not sell your info, you'll probably still get junkmail and telemarketing calls - especially if you have a legitimate address in your InterNIC record. There are some jerks who poll InterNIC WHOIS records for addresses to add to junkmail lists. Also if you try to sell a car in a newspaper you'll get calls from people all over the country who use computers to poll online classifieds and -- illegally, mind you (see Junkbusters regarding the TCPA) -- use automated systems to call any phone numbers listed. I know - I got over 10 calls -- ALL automated -- from businesses trying to get me to pay them 40 bucks to have my vehicle ad blasted all over creation.
I'm sure it's no wonder to you that I'm all about the FTC going after these pricks.
There is a parallel, in my view, between this and "click-through" and "shrinkwrap" licensing schemes.
From a common sense standpoint, the FTC has to win this battle. If they don't, this would not only make privacy policies essentially unenforceable, but other types of non-signature contracts as well.
If a company is able to arbitrarily go against their posted privacy policy, then consumers should be able to do the same in reverse for any other similar type of contract. IE, I should be able to click on one of Microsoft's "I Agree" buttons on one of their click-through licenses, and then feel free to go against it at a whim. They are both equally valid contracts, requiring exactly the same effort to "agree" to them (clicking on a little button on a webpage), and both employing the same tactic for proof of identity (they take your word for it).
It would be in any software company's best interests to fight on the FTC's side on this one.
>about it?
You aren't *supposed* to think anything about it.
Go ahead... think any damn thing you please. No one'll burn you at the stake. Form an opinion for yourself, and don't wait for the libertarian gurus to form one for you. Just because you belong to a particular political party/religion/group does NOT mean you MUST adjust your entire thought processes to fit it's doctrine.
OTOH, some of those same entities *DO* beleive that everyone MUST think alike. And will go to great lengths to silence/excommunicate their critics. Which is why I will never support groups like the republican or democrat parties, the christian church, peta, cult of scientology, micro$oft, etc.
But, the last I checked, there was nothing in the libertarian philosophy that said you MUST accept, beleive in, and think in line with, EVERY aspect of the philosophy.
john
Resistance is NOT futile!!!
Haiku:
I am not a drone.
Remove the collective if
Imagine all the people...
National Public radio news had a long story on this on Friday.
One of the possibilities identified is that a judge might allow the sale of the very valuable data (this sort of thing goes for 15 bucks a name,) to a company that agrees to uphold the same garauntee.
The issues are complicated here, as the shareholders want some return of their investment, and this is one of the most valuable assets the company has.
Our promise
At toysmart.com, we take great pride in our relationships with our customers and pledge to maintain your privacy while visiting our site. Personal information voluntarily submitted by visitors to our site, such as name, address, billing information and shopping preferences, is never shared with a third party. All information obtained by toysmart.com is used only to personalize your experience online. This information is received via the following areas of our site: My toysmart and the Gift Center. When you place additional orders, our site will update your order history, which you can view in My toysmart. If you sign up for the gift registry, information you submit will be added to your personal profile. Other than these two instances, the information that you provide us is not supplemented in any way.
Right Now, our government is doing things you think only other governments do.
This is a straw man. Contract enforcement is one of the few government functions generally accepted as proper by libertarians. Toysmart promised not to sell their data -- if they try to do it anyway, nail 'em.
/.
/. If the government wants us to respect the law, it should set a better example.
Even if they promised, in no uncertain terms, not to sell your info?
If they break a straightforward promise like that, what other things are they going to be dishonest about?
Too bad the corporate structure prevents executives, managers (AND SHAREHOLDERS) from doing a little jailtime for violating the law.