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Apple CEO Tim Cook Calls For Laws To Tackle 'Shadow Economy' of Data Firms (time.com)
Apple's chief executive has called for regulation to tackle the "shadow economy" of data brokers -- intermediaries who trade in the personal information of largely unsuspecting consumers -- as the company continues its push to be seen as supportive of privacy. Tim Cook, in an op-ed for Time Magazine published on Thursday, said: One of the biggest challenges in protecting privacy is that many of the violations are invisible. For example, you might have bought a product from an online retailer -- something most of us have done. But what the retailer doesn't tell you is that it then turned around and sold or transferred information about your purchase to a "data broker" -- a company that exists purely to collect your information, package it and sell it to yet another buyer. The trail disappears before you even know there is a trail. Right now, all of these secondary markets for your information exist in a shadow economy that's largely unchecked -- out of sight of consumers, regulators and lawmakers.
Let's be clear: you never signed up for that. We think every user should have the chance to say, "Wait a minute. That's my information that you're selling, and I didn't consent." Meaningful, comprehensive federal privacy legislation should not only aim to put consumers in control of their data, it should also shine a light on actors trafficking in your data behind the scenes. Some state laws are looking to accomplish just that, but right now there is no federal standard protecting Americans from these practices. That's why we believe the Federal Trade Commission should establish a data-broker clearinghouse, requiring all data brokers to register, enabling consumers to track the transactions that have bundled and sold their data from place to place, and giving users the power to delete their data on demand, freely, easily and online, once and for all.
Let's be clear: you never signed up for that. We think every user should have the chance to say, "Wait a minute. That's my information that you're selling, and I didn't consent." Meaningful, comprehensive federal privacy legislation should not only aim to put consumers in control of their data, it should also shine a light on actors trafficking in your data behind the scenes. Some state laws are looking to accomplish just that, but right now there is no federal standard protecting Americans from these practices. That's why we believe the Federal Trade Commission should establish a data-broker clearinghouse, requiring all data brokers to register, enabling consumers to track the transactions that have bundled and sold their data from place to place, and giving users the power to delete their data on demand, freely, easily and online, once and for all.
Acxiom
They have for decades been gathering info on first the US and later the world. They get mailing lists from the US post office. They cut the binders off US phone books and scan them. They get all the info off those warranty cards you send in, and all sorts of creative sources of information on you.
Even the US used them after 9/11 to try to hunt down people.
Hell, even major credit card companies use them to clean their databases.
I think they even now maybe own one of the credit bureaus, like Trans Union. If not owning them they are very cozy in business or used to be.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
Buisness's have been selling our data way before downloadable apps became popular. key cards to save money at supermarkets. That buying information was always being sold. Credit Card spending habits, again. Always was being sold.
This practice of selling information on your buying/browsing habits has been going on forever. And nobody really talked about it before, so again. Nothing different.
With that said though, I would expect any regulation to encompass any area where your private data is being sold.
Anonymous comments are as pathetic as the anonymous "sources" that contaminate gutless journalism from the New York Time
You can already request everything Apple has about you, there isn't much in it. How often you've had a repair done, your login/logour of Apple services, what apps you've downloaded and when, etc.
https://www.businessinsider.co...
I hate fat people.
All big tech companies harvest data, but Apple relies on it far less than Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and Amazon.
They don't just rely on it less: they collect less, and they've done so all along.
Moreover, Apple could have walked down the same path that Google, Microsoft, and others have gone down by collecting and monetizing more data on their customers, but they voluntarily chose not to do so when presented with that opportunity. Instead, they chose to align their business interests with those of their customers. That decision cost them opportunities at the time and has been suggested to have set them back technologically when it comes to mapping, voice assistants, and other areas, but it's starting to pay off now that people are slowly waking up to just what it is that they've been giving away all along.
So, yes, it's self-serving of them to hammer their competitors on privacy, but they only have the ability to hammer their competitors on privacy because they chose to NOT follow their competitors down the path of literally selling out users. That decision was a forward-thinking one at the time, and it's coming back to pay dividends now.
If anything, Apple does far too little to reduce their tax bill. They should be zeroing it out the way that GE does.
Every dollar in government hands is dollar either wasted, or spent on causing bloody mayhem.
If you are not positing this from Somalia, then you are a hypocrite.
Are there any real, specific examples of Microsoft monitizing (selling) the data they collect off hosts
Microsoft owns Linkedin, which has the same business model as Facebook.
Although it happened before Microsoft acquired them, Linkedin has used some extremely slimy business practices. They would deceive people into disclosing passwords to their email accounts, and then send out massive spams to their contacts. When I created my Linkedin account, I though "WTF are they asking for that?", but my spouse fell for it, and they auto-logged into her Yahoo account and spammed over a thousand people on her behalf, without her permission, many only casual acquaintances that she hadn't heard from in years and barely knew.
I have trouble sorting out Tim Cook's privacy principals so frequently espoused in press releases, op-eds and quips to the press from Apple's business agenda oriented towards marketing their platform as "privacy friendly".
It'd go a long way towards taking Cook and Apple as sincere if Apple would, in great detail, share with us what data they collect on their users, how they use it, and what data they allow Apps to collect, and what if any strings they attach to that data (which I doubt they can enforce anyway).
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208501
Understand and control the personal information that you store with Apple
As part of our commitment to your privacy, we’re making it easier than ever for you to review and take control of the data that you store with Apple. Data and privacy tools
We’ve introduced new data and privacy tools on your Apple ID account page. Sign in to your Apple ID account page on a Mac, PC, iPhone, or iPad. Then scroll down to Data & Privacy and select "Manage your data."
The complete set of self-service data and privacy tools is available to customers in over 240 countries around the world:
Get a copy of the data that you store with Apple that's associated with your Apple ID. Deactivate your Apple ID temporarily. Delete your Apple ID—and the data associated with it—permanently. Request a correction to your personal data.
Additional privacy improvements
To ensure that we’re meeting our own high standards for protecting the data we store on your behalf, we’ve conducted a comprehensive review of the instances where we collect and hold your data. As a result, Apple products now include new and updated data and privacy statements that make it easier than ever to understand how Apple will use your personal information. We show you these statements before you sign in with your Apple ID or turn on any new features that use your data.
We’re proud of our commitment to privacy and will continue to apply our industry-leading, privacy-by-design standard to ensure that great experiences don’t come at the expense of your privacy and security. For more information, visit apple.com/privacy.
Of course news about a fake are Fake News.