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Facebook Says It Needs to Collect All Your Data to Protect Against Terrorism and Child Abuse
[...] From Facebook's statement this morning (emphasis ours):
Facebook has always been about connecting you with people and information you're interested in. We tailor each person's Facebook experience so it's unique to you, and we use a variety of information to do this – including the information you include on your profile, news stories you like or share and what other services share with us about your use of their websites and apps. Using information across our services also helps us protect people's safety and security, including, for example, identifying abusive behavior and disabling accounts tied to terrorism, child exploitation and election interference across both Facebook and Instagram.
By the end of Facebook's statement the company leans heavily into the claim that everybody else is doing it, so why can't they—which may be the most terrifying point.
"Every day, people interact with companies that connect and use data in similar ways. And all of this should be–and is–a legitimate area of focus for regulators and policymakers around the world. Yet the Bundeskartellamt is trying to implement an unconventional standard for a single company," Facebook said.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Friday February 08 2019, @05:38PM (15 children)
A lot of people really don't care that there are a hundred different companies scrutinizing their every word, and action. They just do_not_care. I suspect such people might be people who have never done anything, so they feel important with all that surveillance. Strange.
But, said surveillance should be opt-in. If Facebook and/or all those other surveillance platforms were open, and honest, explaining that they are exploiting you for profit, then you elect to opt-in, so be it.
But, there are a helluva lot of people who have zero understanding about the surveillance.
Congress needs to hold Zuckerberg's feet to the fire, first. Then, they need to go after all those other platforms doing the same things.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 08 2019, @05:49PM
till they feel it firsthand
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 08 2019, @06:07PM (3 children)
It is better to explain to peopel they are being scammed. How are these companies making billions of dollars year based on their info? If everyone demanded to be paid for it instead of these middle men companies they could get like $1-10k per year just for letting people track them.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Friday February 08 2019, @06:21PM (2 children)
In that respect, gasoline companies and grocery stores are the most "honest" of the trackers. You apply for their card, which will track you and your purchases, and you get x cents off every gallon of gas you purchase. Grocers offer you discounts when you use their cards. The feed store I use most often gives me some money back. Auto parts stores, likewise. They are paying me (actually, my family members, I don't have a single account in my name) some percentage of the profits they make on our data.
Note that none of this pleases me, but I find that kind of deal far less dis-pleasing than online trackers and advertisers.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 08 2019, @06:27PM (1 child)
I always just assumed the "discount" price was the actual price and they artificially raised the nominal price to give a fake discount.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Friday February 08 2019, @06:41PM
True. But, there are some things to keep in mind. The retailer can't be caught selling the same items to different customers for different prices, without a justification. That is, you pull up to a gas pump, the price is clearly marked, 2.07 per gallon. That 2.07 is the mark up price that you mention. If you have the card, you will get your gas at the pre-markup price. Because I don't carry a gas company card, I don't get my gas at the pre-markup price - instead, I'm paying for your refund/rebate/discount. In effect, I'm being punished for not allowing the gas company to track me.
Obviously, they are still making a profit by selling gas to you, even after the discount. (Of course, any accountant would be up in arms over my use of "markup" here. That term is properly used to define the difference between wholesale and retail, or the vendors gross profit on an item.)
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Friday February 08 2019, @06:08PM
Imagine in the same breath someone saying . . .
"I hate how much google knows about me . . . um . . . hey google, can you recommend a movie I might like?"
What doesn't kill me makes me weaker for next time.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 08 2019, @06:14PM
I like to believe that people don't care because they don't see it. The data gathering and analysis is invisible to people in their day to day lives. None of that interferes with buying something, posting messages on [insert app/website here], reading websites/articles, traveling around with our phones on, etc. It's all done behind the scenes in ways that are completely invisible to the public.
I also like to believe that people WOULD care if it was NOT invisible and they saw what was happening as they did stuff. It's easy to brush off a "theory" that all this is happening. It's much harder to ignore it when it is visible and in your face all the time. And this is why it is invisible and the companies involved work so hard to keep it that way.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 08 2019, @07:15PM (1 child)
My "reasonable response", appended to /etc/hosts:
# Block Facebook IPv4
127.0.0.1 www.facebook.com
127.0.0.1 facebook.com
127.0.0.1 login.facebook.com
127.0.0.1 www.login.facebook.com
127.0.0.1 fbcdn.net
127.0.0.1 www.fbcdn.net
127.0.0.1 fbcdn.com
127.0.0.1 www.fbcdn.com
127.0.0.1 static.ak.fbcdn.net
127.0.0.1 static.ak.connect.facebook.com
127.0.0.1 connect.facebook.net
127.0.0.1 www.connect.facebook.net
127.0.0.1 apps.facebook.com
# Facebook IPv6
::1 www.facebook.com
::1 facebook.com
::1 login.facebook.com
::1 www.login.facebook.com
::1 fbcdn.net
::1 www.fbcdn.net
::1 fbcdn.com
::1 www.fbcdn.com
::1 static.ak.fbcdn.net
::1 static.ak.connect.facebook.com
::1 connect.facebook.net
::1 www.connect.facebook.net
::1 apps.facebook.com
via: https://coderwall.com/p/be52-a/ipv6-in-etc-hosts [coderwall.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 09 2019, @06:54AM
Why not just go the whole hog and disable ipv6?
(Score: 2) by Joe Desertrat on Saturday February 09 2019, @01:45AM
Oh, every one is always outraged when they hear about their privacy being violated by such and such. Their next step is to ask Alexa to recommend a place to go to dinner...
(Score: 3, Insightful) by legont on Saturday February 09 2019, @05:11AM (3 children)
I believe that we are at the point where being under the radar is actually more dangerous. I am sure software matches the list of people against collected data and if it finds somebody without much surveillance info, that body goes directly into the most dangerous candidate database. That's why I have and keep minimal activity on social media. I want to blend as much as possible for as long as possible.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 09 2019, @09:43AM
Why? Do you have something planned?
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Saturday February 09 2019, @03:53PM (1 child)
Cool. Let's give a thought or two to that much-maligned right to bear arms. It was the INTENT to make the populace dangerous, and to keep them dangerous. Despite all the group-think propaganda against weapons, the amendment had absolutely nothing to do with hunting, sporting, or whatever. It was all about making politicians vulnerable to the wrath of the citizens.
Let the politicos, the police, and the intelligence community believe that we are all dangerous. Let them fear us. That is the best state possible for government.
(Score: 2) by legont on Saturday February 09 2019, @04:28PM
Yes, second that! I have to rethink my strategy.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 3, Touché) by fido_dogstoyevsky on Saturday February 09 2019, @10:12PM
And after that they might think about removing Zuckerberg's feet from the fire. Maybe.
It's NOT a conspiracy... it's a plot.