Slashdot Mirror
What Data Mining Firms Know About You
storagedude writes "Time writer Joel Stein spent three months learning what data mining companies know about him. After learning everything the companies had profiled about him (some of it inaccurate) — social security number, age, marital status, religion, income, debt, interests, browsing and spending habits — he had a surprising reaction: complacency. '... oddly, the more I learned about data mining, the less concerned I was. Sure, I was surprised that all these companies are actually keeping permanent files on me. But I don't think they will do anything with them that does me any harm. There should be protections for vulnerable groups, and a government-enforced opt-out mechanism would be great for accountability. But I'm pretty sure that, like me, most people won't use that option. Of the people who actually find the Ads Preferences page — and these must be people pretty into privacy — only 1 in 8 asks to opt out of being tracked. The rest, apparently, just like to read privacy rules."
I don't trust any company is goal is to make a profit. Full stop.
Dear Hitler, I'm Jewish and I would like to opt-out of your anti-semitism movement. Thanks!
They know that I am female, 16, blond, my email address is billg@microsoft.com, and that I might not always be completely truthful in filling out web forms!
I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
Of the people who actually find the Ads Preferences page — and these must be people pretty into privacy — only 1 in 8 asks to opt out of being tracked.
That's probably because people who are into privacy know that opting out will most likely show up in somebody else's DB as another data point, i.e. somebody who's concerned about privacy.
Personally I'm more comfortable using no script, adlock plus, proxies, etc.
^^vv<><>BA
The problem isn't what the data mining companies would do with the data, themselves. I don't think it's even with what companies who buy their services would do, frankly...although I know that on Slashdot that may not be a widely-held or even popular belief. What's dangerous is that the data mining companies also provide data to the government. And why is that? Because the data mining companies collect and compile data that our government is forbidden from collecting directly without having to get legal authorization (like a warrant, for example). It's a workaround that circumvents controls meant to protect the privacy of individuals from their own rulers. Of course, I'm speaking from the perspective of someone in the USA; when it comes to civil rights, your mileage may vary.
For your security, this post has been encrypted with ROT-13, twice.
I'm am shocked by this. Everyone has done such a great job keeping their personal information private. Not using a SSN when unnecessary, not filling out random forms on the internet with personal information to win a free iPod. And everyone is smart with the type of information they post on social networking sites. I just don't see how this type of business model could even exist!
The threat isn't what they are going to do with your data; it is the potential that it presents.
Sure, there is no reason why they are going to one day say, "Hey! Let's look at So-and-so's record and see what we can do to him as a result."
However, what can happen is that one day you become a "person of interest" to someone somewhere for some reason (quite possibly entirely by mistake). Then you can expect that that entity is going to buy all the data they can on you and sift through every detail of it.
And don't forget that once this data exists, it pretty much never goes away. Terabytes are incredibly cheap these days, and data companies most likely invest in lots of backup and redundancy.
P.S. For kicks, also think about what may happen if such a company gets hacked. Enjoy.
start covertly using this data. They could do large amounts of damage "We're sorry, you eat fast food 4 days a week. You get charged a lard ass surcharge. Sure you only weight 170 lbs, but you're still at risk..."
UPS Sucks
But I don't think they will do anything with them that does me any harm
Which part about social security number, age, marital status, religion, income, debt, interests, browsing and spending habits did he not understand. All that info would give someone a sure fire way to steal their identity.
Data mining companies have already deduced from your slashdot ID's that you're probably still a virgin!
I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
the point being that such security is impossible to enforce across the board, so the only answer is to prevent companies from collecting it in the first place. they may keep it for the duration of a sale/service rendering until receipt of payment.. after that they must delete.. something like that.
They probably won't use their compiled profiles for things like blackmail, but you can bet your ass that this information is being sold to other companies, especially those the person does business with: banks, retail stores, probably even spammers, and maybe the government.
Data Miners wouldn't do it if there wasn't some way to profit from it. Joel Stein has struck a major blow to personal privacy, and passively helped usher in the insidious and pervasive personal data overuse that Philip K Dick imagined in Minority Report.
No, the company is a legal entity, quite possible the immortal sociopathic form of legal person known as a corporation.
One of my girlfriends works for Bank of America. She, and her co-workers I've met, are great. Yet the corporation is an evil corporate bastard.
How can a structure of great people turn out evil? The same way a structure of unconscious nerve cells can turn out to have a consciousness. The evil that a company does is (usually) an emergent property. It's not enough to trust the people -- you have to trust the structure, and for any large for-profit company that's a very foolish thing to do.
Tom Swiss | the infamous tms | my blog
You cannot wash away blood with blood