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The Good and Bad of Data Collection
Nephilium writes "Reason magazine has dedicated their latest issue to a discussion of privacy and data collection. They sent subscribers a customized cover of the magazine [as previously covered on Slashdot]. Some good points as to the benefits and drawbacks of who is sharing your information." The sample targeted advertisements are for non-profit organizations, but it may not be long until someone figures out how much companies will pay to utilize this sort of targeting.
Isn't google doing the same thing with their GMail service?
The sample targeted advertisements are for non-profit organizations, but it may not be long until someone figures out how much companies will pay to utilize this sort of targeting.
I'd much rather have ads sent to me about things that I might actually want or be interested in. For example, sending feminine hygine ads to me is a waste of their time and mine.
Double your readership ;)
You are in a maze of twisted little posts, all alike.
I agree, there is almost no privacy in the US for this sort of thing. But if you have already given your information to be hoarded in databases, and cross linked with other databases, then there is little one can do to regain their privacy.
Wired Magazine a year or so ago, I remember, had a page on how to regain privacy. Some of those tips included:
- Gaining access to a fake SSN
- Not using a Cell phone
- Never using a credit card
- Do not have a mortgage
Something most Americans are incapable of doing without moving to the woods and living off the land.
-- johntracy.com, because everybody else is wrong.
I've never seen any other magazine that's done this and must say it looks pretty awesome. Ummm...how did they get the satellite photo though? I thought the satellite photos were restricted to government only or corporations that owned their own satellites like television and phone companies...any information on how they did it? I want to be able to take pictures of my house. :)
Imagine that..... wanting to buy something, going to the store, and picking the damned thing out YOURSELF, instead of people pushing stuff at you 24/7 ..... now there's a concept..
One thing the whole FICO-based credit system has working in its favor is that it is very truely blind. The decision maker doesn't get to look at you physically at all, it's not even a person anymore. Simply put, if the prediction formula gives you enough points you're accepted, and if it doesn't you're declined. Race, age, gender, religion, sexuality... who cares.
Of course, the system isn't perfect, it's subject to GIGO just like any other computer system. However, compared to human decision making, it's a whole lot of a more fair process on the whole.
Yeah, I know...boo hisss....but I couldn't help myself.
They sent subscribers a customized cover of the magazine...The sample targeted advertisements are for non-profit organizations...
What bothers me the most about this is not the notion of loss of privacy, it is loss of *Choice*. When I worked as the only IT Staff at a non-profit (coincedance noted) I wanted all the information I could get, in whatever format to try to make the best and (unfortunately) least-expensive solutions.
This is just the biggest "brand" or brand name, being shoved down our throats.
I have a theory that the truth is never told during the nine-to-five hours. -- Hunter S. Thompson
A Sat photo of my house I mean. I've been looking for sat image poster for a while now but all the available pics are from the 1980's. Anyone know who has recent sat images for sale? thanks
My days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle...
While the magazine claimed to have my location it actually was a picture of my uncle's house half a mile down the road. Guess my privacy is safe for a while longer ;).
There is nothing wrong with being gay. It's getting caught where the trouble lies.
It's easy to complain about a subjective loss of privacy. It's more difficult to appreciate how information swapping accelerates economic activity. Like many other aspects of modern society, benefits are dispersed, amounting to a penny saved here or a dollar discounted there. But those sums add up quickly.
There's almost the tone, here, that privacy and info-swapping are at odds with each other. What a shame.
<grrr>
Al Franken's next book after that started...
"Lying Liars and the Lies they targeted at Me", or something like that.
The role of the writer is not to say what we can all say, but what we are unable to say. -Anais Nin
Reason's cover didn't quite get ashcroft's house correctly. It should be this pic (or big 1800x1500 version). Not as scary when they know your work location and not your house.
(from this cryptome eyeball - it is a lot of data since it covers 4 places, please don't slashdot)
HIV Crosses Species Barrier... into Muppets
Because information sharing is pervasive (and getting more so as time goes by) we, as consumers, are caught in a bind: If we demand more privacy, the cost will go up; if we don't demand that privacy, abuse of the system will cause all sorts of problems, too many to list here. Of course, this is a problem only for people who care.
Personally, I find myself caring about privacy in some cases and not in others. It's a trade off decision. What I want is the ability to protect my privacy when I do care, at the instant of the transaction with the merchant, even if I've dealt with that particular merchant in the past. In face-to-face transactions of low monetary value, I can use cash. But what about online transactions, or the purchase of more expensive items?
What I'd like to have is an anonymous credit card. One that's tied to a "numbered account" somewhere, managed by an institution that cares only about its numbered accounts. Money is transferred into an account, and the institution pays the credit card bills for that account. Period. Given our cryptographic skills now, someone should be able to provide blind transfers that do the job nicely.
Of course, this type of system could be abused. But it's a different kind of abuse, and my privacy is safe.
When they pull up the address of my PO Box, I'll just shrug it off. Sure, my mailing address information is shared left and right (and without my consent), but at least I have a layer of abstraction between my physical residence and the mailing address people associate with me, so this scare tactic stuff ("they know where you are!") won't matter. It will have to be changed to, "they know where your postal mail is delivered!".
I first got a PO Box address in 2002, and the only thing I regret is that I didn't get one sooner. The UPS Store (formerly Mailboxes, Etc.) rents PO boxes out, too, and offer lots of other perks over the straight US Postal variety. For instance, you can call the store and ask them if you got any mail today, they'll check it and let you know, saving you the trip.
PAY FRIGGN CASH, GREEN, Dead Presidents,
Im serious, between paying cash where possible, that includes nearly EVERY local purchase, trade you key tags for grocery stores with your friends (as long as they arent valid for cashing checks)
No tinfoil here I just cant stand direct marketing, why in the hell should I give Radio Shack my phone number, I actually had a clerk say they HAD to ge one, 555-1212 or 867-5309 (867 is a local extension here) is my answer most of the time they dont even blink although some chuckle
Lay as low as possible, p[ay cash where possible and lie like hell when anyone asks any questions that could be used in targeted marketing.
Dont forget they found one of the 911 conspirators by his grocery store key thingy
Before everyone finds photos of my house and comes to beat me up, at least let me say that we only send to people already on mailing lists 99% of the time. The only real junk mail I've sent was ironically from a guy in a pyramid scheme trying to sell people...mailing lists! He called to complain after not one person responded to his mail. I guess he was at the bottom of the pyramid :)
English is easier said than done.
... your medical history, but the people who transcribe your doctor's dictation ... these people may be doing the transcription in countries where the U.S. privacy laws are unenforceable. Consider the following scenario as detailed by David Lazarus in the San Francisco Chronicle on April 2, 2004:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/ch ronicle/archive/2004/04/02/MNGI75VIEB1.DTL
Didn't we have this exact story on Slashdot last month?
And I'm not talking about those with prepaid minutes. There are some companies that offer flat rate, unlimited local calling, just like a land line, except wireless, and with no contracts. One such company is Cricket, in Memphis. $32 a month gets you the service after buying the phone at any Cricket store, or even Best Buy. Yeah, the activation CSR asks for a SSN, but it's very easy to give them a fake one (which is what I did), as well as giving them other fake info. You can pay in cash the month's service at any Cricket store, or even these Cash Advance places that are in cahoots with them.
We have very little privacy any more, and it's time to take a stand on what's left.
The most telling section was the description of how MBNA has benefited from information-sharing. How, if privacy advocates had their way, MBNA's profit model would be threatened. Well, you know what? I HATE MBNA! I detest them. They send me credit card applications continually, no matter what I do. I regularly return their postage-paid reply envelopes stuffed with whatever other trash comes in that day's mail, and if everyone else would do the same...maybe THAT would stop them. After all, who among us needs more credit? Are we not awash in it already?
I for one am quite happy to receive penis enlargement emails. Currently, I am simply HUGE, but I hope to become GARGANTUAN. In fact, I've been looking into a Soul on Ice codpiece (Eldridge Cleaver's fashion line, "a Cleaver sleeve," he called it.) Speaking of data collection, there's an article in the NYT says that a survey of federal agencies has found more than 120 programs that collect and analyze large amounts of personal data on individuals to predict their behavior (not including classified projects.)
"Who are in control, they are not in control of anything - they don't even control themselves!" - Glen Beck
You can minimise your data trail. Use cash. Don't subscribe to "loyalty" cards and marketing competitions. Don't use real/permanent email addresses.
However data collection on individuals is not necessarily a bad thing, especially if they are in a position of power.
e.g.
http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/
Deleted
A U.S. version of http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/ would be very nice.
Sorry guys, but I really dont need people telling me to buy things, targeted or not.
I'll buy what I want thank you very much....
...forums so much. You get every POV imaginable, and if it's a good forum, links-a-plenty to go check out. Keeps you from becoming stilted and narrow minded. It's MUCH better to at least be talking *with* someone, even arguing, then to be in a "me-too" only place where all you do is talk *about* "the other guys". Politics in particular, with news being a sub class of that obviously.
you could get totally anon cards from some banks in the caribbean. I've seen them (well, one), they were blank on the back. Number on the front, zero name on them. The US feds got them busted,or outlawed or something, too many people were using them to hide money they claim. Or so I recall from the noooze. Sorry, can't remember an exact name of one of them right now, but I guy I met had one (it was a Visa) and showed it to me, tried to get me interested in them, but I passed, not a high roller here, they are welcome to inspect my dozenaire account any time they want to..
I can "hide" my entire account in one pocket....
%^(
hmm, glad I waited before mashing "submit" I just checked Google apparently they still exist! Good luck!
I really like the idea of databasing all this analog data, so we can make more informed decisions. However, I don't think that people should be able to collect data on you without your permission, let alone knowledge and then claim ownership of your personal information. And especially not corporations, who can use it however they wish, for whatever is going to make them a profit, whether you like it or not.
If there was some place I could opt-in for certain deals on groceries or whatever, I would sign up. What I don't like is spying on people to try to find this stuff out "to benefit you, the consumer". I'm even for the centralization of most of this information, but within a regulated federal agency where there's accountability and transparency. I'm not too trusting of government, but I think if there were records which you had control over say.. your employment information.. You just allow Company X's HR department permission to read 5 years of your employment history. As long as I had control as to who outside the agency had access to it, I wouldn't have to fill out 10 different applications like I am now.
I think the idea is good, just the methods and the control need drastic change to make it work.
Did the Institute for Justice's "eminent domain" ad remind anyone else of the beginning of H2G2? I guess a hyperspace bypass isn't that bad of an eminent domain abuse compared to building a limousine garage for that Vogon, Donald Trump.
"Give a man a fish and he will ask for tartar sauce and French fries!"
On the same lines, a user's complete travel plans can also be reconstructed, as a user browses from motels and inns during his halts, using a notebook for example. Ofcourse there is P3P(Platform for Privacy Preferences) to control such kind of usage. But rarely do people use it. For those interested in knowing more: http://www.csee.umbc.edu/~kolari1/iswc/iswc/ might be of interest. It details a possible direction to privacy protection, by letting users share knowledge about websites and their privacy reputation.
Never went far enough for a good reason (they basically outlawed electronic spam to private addresses but not to businesses). The reason for this is that the UK government makes money from the electoral register information by selling it to direct marketing companies for postal spam(e.g. MBNA credit card offers - yay!). It would be more than a little hypocritical to criminalize a practice the government regularly makes money from .... aneeway ...
It also sells the information to amongst others Equifax. According to recent studies over those opposed to the way information is collected, over 1/3 of all Equifax records are inaccurate enough to adversely influence a credit decision.
I recently found out that for the past six years, even though I pay over $200 per month in local tax, Equifax didn't have that information on file. This meant that I was listed as having effectively avoided paying council tax for that period. I started to examine who was to take responsibility for this "oversight".
Well, the Data Protection Act is very clear on this - no-one takes responsibility for the accuracy of the data. Not Equifax, not the local council, not even the people providing the information (or failing to provide the information). No-one. It is a veritable black hole of responsibility. A key point of the "Data Protection Act 1998" is that it is not there to protect the data subject, but to protect the data controller (yep, Equifax) from recourse by the data subject.
Who is the "data subject"? Well, that's YOU of course.
Agencies like Equifax are answerable to no-one and they have a lot of not quite so accurate information on you which they use to make influential decisions on how you live. They are the single best candidate (and best latter-day substitute) for the incompetent and overpaid bureacrat.
"It's not your information. It's information about you" - John Ford, Vice President, Equifax
The USGS photos on mapper.acme.com (same data as terraserver-usa.com) date from about 1996.
-russ
Don't piss off The Angry Economist
Where I work, we try to do this sort of thing for our customers.
We DO NOT have massive stockpiles of individuals private information, as most of your tinfoil heads might assume. Instead the client will give us a list of customer names (and nothing else) which we just send to the queue of our custom software that generates the images for us. Then its off to the printers.
So, in this instance you dont have to head to the drawer with your renoylds wrap.
The center of the circle in that pic is in the middle of the street.
I'd feel much more comfortable with the data collection if abusers faced criminal charges rather than (or on top of) civil/monetary charges.
When a corporation's executive management faces jail time for violating an individual's rights as opposed to their insurance company paying out a settlement I think the potential for abuse would decline. Of course, there would also need to be serious oversight similar to that of the SEC (yeah yeah, I know: where were they with Enron?).
I remember my family getting ads from Time-Life, Publishers Clearinghouse and others with highly customized content. Like nearly 30 years ago. Stuff like this:
The cheesier versions had all of the fixed text pre-printed in a dot matrix font intended to look like the customized text. In those versions, the customized text was just as obvious as the example above.
And while the customized part of the pitch only amounted to one or two pages, the magazine connection has been around for a similarly long time. Plenty of magazines have shipped regional versions based on address for decades.
The real news, and sad news it is, is that anyone considers Reason's example earth-shattering. Those who do, have been had without their knowledge for a very long time.
http://daac.gsfc.nasa.gov/
Gobs and gobs of satellite data are available here - i worked at a small company that made heavy use of this. Takes some effort to figure out all the gobbledygoop, but the effort is all it costs to get data.
I have found that most pitches /whatever that were supposedly customized for my tastes were so general as to be worthless.
I wonder if the majority of the people are so easily pigeonholed as the adv people would like to think.
with chinese embassy maps
what, it was about terrorists right? who's taken away more of your freedom, bin laden or ashcroft?
There is now a box on the electoral register which allows you to opt out of the commercially available register (you still appear on the local paper copy at the Town Hall and also on the copy held for electoral purposes)
Don't forget to also go ex-directory for your telephone number