RapLeaf Is Back and Bad As Ever

itwbennett writes "Privacy blogger Dan Tynan opted out of data aggregator RapLeaf back in 2010 — and wrote about it. At the time, opting out seemed to work well enough. But fast forward a couple of years and ... they're baaaack. While testing a privacy service called Safe Shepherd, Tynan discovered that 'not only [is he] not opted out of RapLeaf's database, they've also gathered far more information about [him] than they had before.' And it's a pretty good bet some of the data came from Facebook apps, which is a practice that the company was slapped for in 2010 and claimed to no longer do."

Comments

Data harvesting: illegal, low-cost, high profits.

[h00manist]

Wikileaks showed us the way. The only thing left to talk about is public access to data, especially data on people in privileged positions.

Nothing can really be done to control black and gray market data. And, little or no actual control can be exerted on the "legal" companies and practices as well. Even if you manage to hide your own data through various means, it complicates and restricts life, and does nothing about the data of the rest of the population, which affects and includes your data.

The only real secrets are those of people who can afford the expenses of keeping secrets - corporations, governments, and their associated criminals.

No, the path is now to acquire public access to data on these people.