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True.com Wants Warnings On Personal Ads

Posted by timothy on from the parliament-of-whores dept.

An anonymous reader submits "News.com.com is reporting that personals company True.com is behind a push in several state legislatures to require everyone but them to include scary looking warnings above personals ads. I'm sure they're not the first, but this looks like a particularly slimy way to corner a market. And the unintended consequences look big, too: by my read of the proposed law, even Slashdot would need to include the warnings above user profile pages." In just a few weeks, this would sound like an April Fool's joke. I hope every legislator to whom this is being shopped is sent a copy of Declan's counter-example.

29 of 418 comments (clear)

  1. Awww.... by muka3D · · Score: 5, Funny

    So I won't be a 20-year old stud with massive guns anymore? Those were the days...

    Oh, I gotta go... The warden says my turn's up.

    1. Re:Awww.... by elasticwings · · Score: 5, Funny

      "We found that 20 percent of Internet users believe that some of the larger dating services do background checks when in fact they do not. We believe there's a false sense of security out there that needs to be corrected through disclosure." I can't believe that only 20% of people are that stupid. The number should be way higher than that.

  2. I'm way ahead of them. by Anonymous+Crowhead · · Score: 5, Funny

    With my fancy new sig.

    1. Re:I'm way ahead of them. by Ayaress · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Is that sig 12-point, though?

      Anyway, the law strikes me as kind of stupid. Something I found noteworthy from the article is that True.com's searches apparantly don't catch criminals who are using fake names. This makes me wonder what data they search by.

      Background searches just by name are possible, but they aren't reliable. For a simmilar slashdot thread, I decided to start putting my name into various sites, and now I know there's a sex offender in my state (Disclaimer: it's not me, so stfu) who happens to have my last name, a slightly different spelling of my first name, and my middle initial. If they're just doing this by name, am I going to get labled as a rapist? There are a lot of people with the same name (There's litterally a half a page in the Saginaw County phone book just for John, Jack, and J. Smiths), so there's the possibility of very humiliating false positives.

      The solution of course would be for them to ask for social security numbers, and we know where that discussion usually leads.

    2. Re:I'm way ahead of them. by ScrewMaster · · Score: 5, Funny

      This makes me wonder what data they search by.

      ChoicePoint.

      --
      The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
    3. Re:I'm way ahead of them. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Risk getting suid by customers.

      god damn h4cker customers.

  3. Be Cautious... by Avyakata · · Score: 4, Funny

    WARNING:

    Personal Profiles may contain personal data. Be warned.

  4. WE HAVE NOT CHECK IF THIS ARTICLE IS A DUPE by fembots · · Score: 5, Funny

    "WARNING: WE HAVE NOT CONDUCTED A FELONY-CONVICTION SEARCH OR FBI SEARCH ON THIS INDIVIDUAL." Who would want to set up a date after reading that?

    If Slashdot put up "WARNING: WE HAVE NOT CHECK IF THIS ARTICLE IS A DUPE", I'm sure we will still be happily reading and discussing it.

    --
    Rock that crushes, Paper & Scissors that don't matter.
  5. It's about time by stoolpigeon · · Score: 5, Funny

    I worry about all those Foes and Freaks-- I worry about the Fans too. I mean, they are just stalkers in the making-- putting their little colored dots around my name.

    I asked my mom what I should do and she said not to go to 'slushdort' any more but uncle troll said if I don't log in every day and keep visiting him at the holiday inn on week-end he'll hurt mister chips.

    These laws can only make the world a better place. If you are against them, you are against everything that is good.

    --
    It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
  6. People lie all the time. by still_sick · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Especially about themselves.

    No reasonably sensible person "needs" a warning to remind them of this fact.

    --
    ...Also, I didn't know Buggalo could fly.
  7. Warning We have not done a check on Herb Vest by srobert · · Score: 5, Funny

    Warning we haven't conducted a background check on Herb Vest of True.com to ascertain whether or not he is an ass-hole.

  8. In Addition... by Kozar_The_Malignant · · Score: 5, Funny
    We have also not:
    • Verified that the claimed physical attributes bear any relationship to reality,
    • Verified the claimed income bracket,
    • Verified the claimed IQ
    • Verified the claimed negative STD status
    • Verified the claimed unmarried state of the individual
    • Verified the the included photograph is the individual in question or even of the same race, gender, or species.
    As Jules the C once said, "Caveat Fornicator." Meet in a public place and go armed.
    --
    Some mornings it's hardly worth chewing through the restraints to get out of bed.
    1. Re:In Addition... by panaceaa · · Score: 4, Informative

      Verified the claimed income bracket

      The income bracket thing on Match.com is interesting. Is it primarily used so that people can make sure they're dating the same financial class as them, or for girls or guys to make sure they'll be provided for?

      I have always underestimated my income because I didn't want to attract the wrong type of girl. Plus if I say too high a number, my dates might expect fancy dinners when I'm just as content getting Indian food at a hole-in-the-wall.

      Have any guys here overestimated? Did you get any extra attention?

      I never actually met anyone from match.com in real life. I even subscribed for 3 months and emailed probably 20 different girls. Most didn't reply, and the closest I got to a date was a phone call with a girl who thought the world revolved around her. So if you're thinking about subscribing... don't expect miracles! I think only tall, dark and handsome guys do well online, but they don't really need dating sites anyway!

      --
      my blog
  9. Liability? by XorNand · · Score: 4, Interesting

    By stating that they *have* done a background check on a person, aren't they assuming liability (at least partially) if the person turns out to be a psycho?

    --
    Entrepreneur : (noun), French for "unemployed"
  10. Re:So? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    If my "Let Darwin sort them out" proposal would gain a little traction we'd all have a great deal more fun with our lives....

    We've tried that approach. He mostly just lies there, dead.

  11. Why stop there? by EnronHaliburton2004 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Personally, I won't use an online dating service until they assign a chaperone to every date. I would like my grandmother to sit on the couch between me and my date, just to make sure that nothing bad happens, like touching hands or getting pregnant.

    I'm an innocent girl and I lose my head when the date goes past 8PM.

    Can true.com make sure that my date washes his hand after using the bathroom?

    Oh, now I'm all flustered. I need to sit down. true.com, can you please give me a ride home?

    --
    94% of Repubs and 21% of Dems voted to renew the Patriot Act
  12. Re:declan's counter- what? by jangobongo · · Score: 4, Informative
    what are you talking about?

    I believe that what's being referred to is Declan McCullagh's (the author of the above article) counter example:
    • It would be just as easy to argue that True.com should be required to post labels on each page: "WARNING: TRUE.COM'S BACKGROUND SEARCHES WILL NOT IDENTIFY CRIMINALS USING FAKE NAMES. AND THE COST TO RUN THEM MAY BE PASSED ON TO YOU."
    in response to True.com CEO Herb Vest's proposal:
    • Those sites would be required to stamp this stark warning atop every e-mail and personal ad, in no less than 12-point type: "WARNING: WE HAVE NOT CONDUCTED A FELONY-CONVICTION SEARCH OR FBI SEARCH ON THIS INDIVIDUAL."
    --

    Sig cancelled due to lack of interest
  13. Total Upfront Disclosure of All Your Past Mistakes by srobert · · Score: 5, Insightful

    How many of you are in a successful relationship that would have never gotten off the ground if you had been required to reveal all of your past upon meeting your mate? When we first meet someone, most of us would like to keep some of our skeletons in the closet, at least until the other has grown to know us as we are now. It would be unfair if a potential new mate's opinion of me were based upon horrible mistakes that I made early in my life.

  14. Let the legislators know how stupid this is.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    California Sponsor: Asm. Fran Pavley (assemblymember.pavley@assembly.ca.gov)
    Michigan Sponsor: Rep. Jim Howell (jhowell@house.mi.gov)
    Texas Sponsor: Sen. John Corona (john.carona@senate.state.tx.us)
    Virginia Sponsor: Rep. Joe T. May (Del_May@house.state.va.us)

    Let your voices be heard!

  15. broader is better by mottie · · Score: 4, Funny

    Back when I was single I wished that there were warnings like:

    WARNING PERSON IS USING PICTURE FROM 3 YEARS AGO AND HAS SINCE BECOME ADDICTED TO CHOCOLATE CAKE

    or

    WARNING PERSON HAS NOT BEEN SCREENED FOR EXCESSIVE BODY ODOR

    and finally

    WARNING PERSON HAS AN IQ BELOW 50 AND LOVES TALKING ABOUT THEMSELF

  16. No, no... by Ayaress · · Score: 5, Funny

    I checked. He is.

  17. 20% of Internet users... by Steffan · · Score: 4, Insightful
    "We found that 20 percent of Internet users believe that some of the larger dating services do background checks when in fact they do not. We believe there's a false sense of security out there that needs to be corrected through disclosure."
    In other news, 20% of internet users believe that clicking on Bonzi Buddy could win them a prize.
  18. Why stop at dating? by clevershark · · Score: 4, Funny

    I'd certainly like to see that sort of warning on electoral posters.

    --

    My sig is too lon

  19. Failed in Virginia by lax-goalie · · Score: 5, Informative

    I saw this one close up. True.com's hired a professional lobbyist to try to push a bill through in Virginia, and it resulted in this: The Online Dating Safety Act, HB2467

    I was bird-dogging the House Science and Technology Committee meeting the day they dealt with it, and had a front-row seat on the results. Even among the most socially conservative legislators, it was seen as a company trying to legislate their business model for competitive purposes. Gotta hand it to the lobbyist, he took the True.com reps to all the right people. But in the end, it didn't really matter. When the bill came up, there was lots of snickering, and the bill died a quick and painless death.

  20. What about the more fundamental warnings? by fbform · · Score: 5, Funny

    Good Lord! This proposal makes as much sense as the 20th century physics warnings:

    NOTICE: Due To Its Mass, This Product Warps Space and Time in Its Vicinity.

    WARNING: This Product Attracts Every Other Object in the universe, Including the Products of Other Manufacturers, with a Force Proportional to the Product of the Masses Divided by the Square of the Distance Between Them.

    CAUTION: The Mass of This Product Contains the Energy Equivalent of 85 Million Tons of TNT per Net Ounce of Weight. The Manufacturer warrants that this product is to be used only as matter and will not be responsible for injury or damage if it is converted into energy.

    HANDLE WITH CARE: This Product Contains Minute Electrically Charged Particles Moving at Velocities in Excess of Five Hundred Million Miles Per Hour.

    CONSUMER NOTICE: Due to the "Uncertainty Principle," it is impossible for the User to know precisely and simultaneously where this product is located and how fast it is moving.

    ADVISORY: There is an Extremely Remote Chance That, Through a Process Known as "Tunneling," This Product May Spontaneously Disappear from Its Present Location and Reappear at Any Other Place in the Universe, Including Your Neighbor's Domicile. The Manufacturer Will Not Be Responsible for Any Damage or Inconvenience That May Result.

    READ THIS BEFORE OPENING PACKAGE: According to Certain Suggested Versions of the Grand Unified Theory, the Primary Particles Constituting this Product May Decay to Nothingness Within the Next Four Hundred Million Years.

    THIS PRODUCT IS 100% MATTER: In the Unlikely Event That This Merchandise Should Contact Antimatter in Any Form, a Catastrophic Explosion Will Result. The Manufacturer cannot be held responsible for resulting injury or damages.

    PUBLIC NOTICE AS REQUIRED BY LAW: Any Use of This Product, in Any Manner Whatsoever, Will Increase the Aggregate Amount of Disorder in the Universe. Although No Liability Is Assumed Herein, the Consumer Is Warned That This Process Will Ultimately Lead to a state of "Warm Death" of the Universe.

    NOTE: The Most Fundamental Particles in This Product Are Held Together by a "Gluing" Force About Which Little is Currently Known and Whose Adhesive Power, therefore, Can Not Be Guaranteed Indefinitely. No responsibility is therefore assumed for the structural integrity of this product.

    ATTENTION: Notwithstanding Any Listing of Product Contents Found Hereupon, the Consumer is Advised That This Product Actually Consists of 99.9999999999% Empty Space.

    NEW GRAND UNIFIED THEORY DISCLAIMER: While the Manufacturer is Technically Entitled to Claim That This Product Is Ten-Dimensional, the Consumer Is Reminded That This Confers No Legal Rights Above and Beyond Those Applicable to Three-Dimensional Objects, Since the Seven New Dimensions Are "Rolled Up" into Such a Small "Area" That They Cannot Be Detected.

    PLEASE NOTE: Some Quantum Physics Theories Suggest That, When Unobserved, This Product May Cease to Exist or May Exist Only in a Vague and Undetermined State. Therefore all warranties are in effect only while this product is under the direct observation of a human being.

    COMPONENT EQUIVALENCY NOTICE: The Subatomic Particles (Electrons, Protons, etc.) Comprising This Product Are Exactly the Same in Every Measurable Respect as Those Used in the Products of Other Manufacturers, and Competitors' Claims to the Contrary are neither Justified nor Legitimate.

    HEALTH WARNING: Care Should Be Taken When Lifting This Product, Since Its Mass, and Thus Its Weight, Is Dependent on Its Velocity Relative to the User. The manufacturer cannot be held liable for injury or damage resulting from relativistic mass increase.

    IMPORTANT NOTICE TO PURCHASERS: The Entire Physical Universe,Including This Product, May One Day Collapse Back into an Infinitesimally Small Space. Should Another Universe Subsequently Reemerge, the Existence of This Product in That Universe, and its performance and suitability for any purpose, Cannot Be Guaranteed.

    --
    Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
    1. Re:What about the more fundamental warnings? by sir99 · · Score: 4, Funny

      So wait... One ounce of stuff is equivalent to 85 million tons of TNT, hence 85 million tons of TNT is equivalent to 2.3e20 tons of TNT is equivalent to 6.3e32 tons of TNT is equivalent to ... Hmm, that's a lot of TNT!

      --
      The ocean parts and the meteors come down
      Laid out in amber, baby.
  21. Aren't we talking about the Internet here? by ross.w · · Score: 4, Funny

    ...where the men are men, the women are men, and the little girls are FBI agents?

    --
    If my call is important, why am I talking to a recording?
  22. Re:declan's counter- what? by BorgCopyeditor · · Score: 4, Funny

    On a box of "I love you" candies:

    WARNING: CANDY MAY NOT BE IN LOVE WITH YOU!

    On a mirror:

    WARNING: OBJECTS ARE NOT ACTUALLY IN MIRROR!

    --
    Shop as usual. And avoid panic buying.
  23. Re:....must......resist...... by geminidomino · · Score: 4, Funny

    If you're allergic to peanuts and you need that warning (that is, the big label on the front that says "Dry Roasted Peanuts" doesn't quite drive the point home) then please, eat your fill.

    Refusing to do so will make Baby Darwin cry.