If we focus on the real problem presented here (readability and awareness of stated intention, and possibly client-side enforcement - not compliance, that's a separate issue), the problem's really not that big to solve.
Some of the comments here point to some techniques and practices that could actually be cobbled together very cleanly.
We've got the Creative Commons generator for human-readable deeds, lawyer-spew, and machine-readable code. Not that hard to adapt a version with "We Don't Keep Your Credit Cards" or "All Your Identity Are Belong To Gator." More options, sure, but probably easy to extrapolate in a form.
Making it machine readable (or, hell, even Geek Code-formatted; SSL-128+, 419--, Spam^3) means you can extend P3P-savvy user agents to watch for the framing of the policy, alert you to behavior you're not comfortable with, and automatically flag you with a Firefox-style notification when it sees a diff.
Hell, even if we can't get that kind of progressive behavior from a vendor, there's other tools out there that can be adapted, right? I haven't tried AT&T's PrivacyBird yet (referenced in the P3P article on WikiPedia), but between that and other tools like EULAlyzer, how hard can it be to drop in a browser-level tool that either queries a third-party database for privacy analysis and warnings, or examines the policy directly and gives you some breakdown of potential bad behavior?
Let's go even further -- supposing your site's targeting North America and Western Europe, but either you, or the hosted content or partner links, are in nations with known, uh, *default privacy behavior* that overrides the vendor's. Why not have a "Holy Dammit You're Trying To Hit A Blog Site From China" or "AT Your World Delivered To The NSA" alert?
(Okay, maybe not an alert for that one, but at least a visual cue somewhere in the browser status bar. Maybe an All-Seeing Eye, or a Boot Stamping On The Face Of Humanity, Forever. Something unobtrustive like that.)
Look, honestly -- I don't see how a legally-mandated expression of a readable, understandable privacy policy should be any different from the Surgeon General's warning on a pack of smokes or the list of ingredients and nutritional value on the side of a cereal box. The goods or services you're looking to work with have an impact on YOU and you should have some way to find out about it, quickly.
Aw, c'mon. You all heard the MP3s from the folks who recorded their calls trying to get out from under AOL -- you knew they'd have to try and build a revenue stream from that.
...Delivered with the same kind of fervent, hysterical authority and gravitas depicted in "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas." See also:
KNOW YOUR DOPE FIEND. YOUR LIFE MAY DEPEND ON IT! You will not be able to see his eyes because of Tea-Shades, But his knuckles will be white from inner tension...
I call Shenanigans. Bet these don't show up in bash.org, either.
"...A formal investigation was announced today by Northshire Township Marshall Lunde following the alleged incidents at what is now being called 'Kobold-Ghraib.'"
"Demihuman Rights Commission workers denounced the actions of low-ranking Paladins who were wintessed assaulting non-combatant kobold workers, but were quick to blame a military and civilian command which they say creates an atmosphere of deniability."
"The word they used was 'exterminate,' reported one novice, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. 'They told us that the only way to advance was to walk into the mine, stomp on a bunch of civilians, and then bring back their candles. Besides, do you know what the resale value on a candle is?'"
"In light of these actions, animal-rights activists are also planning litigation against a dwarvish hunter's guild for what they describe as a 'wanton slaughter of a noble and endangered species of non-aggressive wolf,' resulting in the slaughter of dozens of the animals, who were then harvested for their ruined pelts, broken fangs and stringy wolf meat."
"Stormwind officials declined comment and could not be reached for an interview at the time of this story."
"Kobold delegates were quoted as saying, 'you no take candle.'"
Slashdot Mirror
I, too, can tell that this is shopped, because of the pixels and from having seen many shops in my time. There. Happy?
Apologies -- I had to read that twice in order to not read "confidence" as "confidence game."
...and then they knock her out and steal her kidney. The End.
If we focus on the real problem presented here (readability and awareness of stated intention, and possibly client-side enforcement - not compliance, that's a separate issue), the problem's really not that big to solve.
Some of the comments here point to some techniques and practices that could actually be cobbled together very cleanly.
We've got the Creative Commons generator for human-readable deeds, lawyer-spew, and machine-readable code. Not that hard to adapt a version with "We Don't Keep Your Credit Cards" or "All Your Identity Are Belong To Gator." More options, sure, but probably easy to extrapolate in a form.
Making it machine readable (or, hell, even Geek Code-formatted; SSL-128+, 419--, Spam^3) means you can extend P3P-savvy user agents to watch for the framing of the policy, alert you to behavior you're not comfortable with, and automatically flag you with a Firefox-style notification when it sees a diff.
Hell, even if we can't get that kind of progressive behavior from a vendor, there's other tools out there that can be adapted, right? I haven't tried AT&T's PrivacyBird yet (referenced in the P3P article on WikiPedia), but between that and other tools like EULAlyzer, how hard can it be to drop in a browser-level tool that either queries a third-party database for privacy analysis and warnings, or examines the policy directly and gives you some breakdown of potential bad behavior?
Let's go even further -- supposing your site's targeting North America and Western Europe, but either you, or the hosted content or partner links, are in nations with known, uh, *default privacy behavior* that overrides the vendor's. Why not have a "Holy Dammit You're Trying To Hit A Blog Site From China" or "AT Your World Delivered To The NSA" alert?
(Okay, maybe not an alert for that one, but at least a visual cue somewhere in the browser status bar. Maybe an All-Seeing Eye, or a Boot Stamping On The Face Of Humanity, Forever. Something unobtrustive like that.)
Look, honestly -- I don't see how a legally-mandated expression of a readable, understandable privacy policy should be any different from the Surgeon General's warning on a pack of smokes or the list of ingredients and nutritional value on the side of a cereal box. The goods or services you're looking to work with have an impact on YOU and you should have some way to find out about it, quickly.
"...conspicuously missing from the list are LOLCAT, T-O-GTFO, EFG, KTHXBYE, and UFIA. Your teen-aged child wants you to DIAF."
...Delivered with the same kind of fervent, hysterical authority and gravitas depicted in "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas." See also: KNOW YOUR DOPE FIEND. YOUR LIFE MAY DEPEND ON IT! You will not be able to see his eyes because of Tea-Shades, But his knuckles will be white from inner tension... I call Shenanigans. Bet these don't show up in bash.org, either.
No, no, no, I totally get what Zelnick's doing here.
BioShock 1: BioShock, you know, One.
BioShock 2: null
BioShock 3: Profit!
"...A formal investigation was announced today by Northshire Township Marshall Lunde following the alleged incidents at what is now being called 'Kobold-Ghraib.'"
"Demihuman Rights Commission workers denounced the actions of low-ranking Paladins who were wintessed assaulting non-combatant kobold workers, but were quick to blame a military and civilian command which they say creates an atmosphere of deniability."
"The word they used was 'exterminate,' reported one novice, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. 'They told us that the only way to advance was to walk into the mine, stomp on a bunch of civilians, and then bring back their candles. Besides, do you know what the resale value on a candle is?'"
"In light of these actions, animal-rights activists are also planning litigation against a dwarvish hunter's guild for what they describe as a 'wanton slaughter of a noble and endangered species of non-aggressive wolf,' resulting in the slaughter of dozens of the animals, who were then harvested for their ruined pelts, broken fangs and stringy wolf meat."
"Stormwind officials declined comment and could not be reached for an interview at the time of this story."
"Kobold delegates were quoted as saying, 'you no take candle.'"
...but not without precedent. (See also: Wil Wheaton And The Big Purple Beatdown.)