Let Google know...

[stockhausen]

Data harvesting and sharing by free Android "apps" is out of control, Oxford University researchers have warned. User's data including age, gender, location and habits is shared with Google parent company Alphabet.

Campaigner Frederike Kaltheuner from Privacy International said that it has become "impossible" for the average user to understand how their data is being used, and to opt out. "Companies track people... and they use this data to profile and then target people in ways that most of us would find intrusive and very surprising. This is no longer about the need to collect data to show 'relevant ads' - this is about profit maximisation at the expense of people's fundamental rights she said. (LINK)

This uncontrolled and unregulated practice of profiling people by accessing data on their smartphones and their smartphone usage is rapidly becoming the norm.

 

[Slam62]

This is really bad, I'm going to burn my phone

 

[Efour]

So I should sell my alphabet shares?

 

[stockhausen]

So I should sell my alphabet shares?

Only after you can recite them backwards.

 

[dcsarge]

So I should sell my alphabet shares?

Put them into tinned spaghetti.

 

[No1newts]

It is the norm now, they are all at it so no matter the company it will happen to us. Unless we all give up phones (and probably going on the net full stop) this will continue to happen.

It is something that needs to be dealt with by governmental organisations (like the EU are trying to do but whoops, we're leaving them) people like us can't do **** unless we cut ourselves off which, whilst an option, is unrealistic.

 

[Puzzled]

Governments just don't seem to understand it though, things like GDPR may have actually made things worse for the user as rather than it being a legal grey area now people actively consent to being profiled.

Don't see a way out of it though as we the consumer have become used to "free" services like maps / social media / news that need to be profitable in some way.

 

[StriderX]

Governments just don't seem to understand it though, things like GDPR may have actually made things worse for the user as rather than it being a legal grey area now people actively consent to being profiled.

Don't see a way out of it though as we the consumer have become used to "free" services like maps / social media / news that need to be profitable in some way.

Yo, if you can't be ass'd reading, you deserve to be a product.

 

[No1newts]

Yo, if you can't be ass'd reading, you deserve to be a product.

And if you don't consent then what? It's beyond individuals "making a stand" unless you actively want to make life harder for yourself.

 

[stockhausen]

Yo, if you can't be ass'd reading, you deserve to be a product.

Even Babelfish fails translating that

 

[StriderX]

Even Babelfish fails translating that

Just accept Google as your rightful master, along with the future leaders of the world Amazon, Apple and Microsoft.

Nationalism is dead m8.

 

[Dis86]

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[stockhausen]

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Did you spend long crafting that thoughtful response?

 

[SPG]

Their is an alternative.....

A Tech company with some European values. Any left for this sort of thing ?

 

[b0rn2sk8]

Opt out of logging into Google and use Apple phones.

Easiest way to avoid as much of the profiling as possible if you actually care, most don’t. Most say they don’t know and are outraged by this shocking news but the reality is most never stopped to even think about it or read the T&Cs so you can firmly put them in the ‘didn’t really care’ bracket.

 

[SixTwoSix]

“In the heyday of European imperialism, conquistadors and merchants bought entire islands and countries in exchange for coloured beads. In the twenty-first century our personal data is probably the most valuable resource most humans still have to offer, and we are giving it to the tech giants in exchange for email services and funny cat videos.”

- Yuval Noah Harari, Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow

Just wanted an excuse to recommend this excellent book

 

[jpaul]

Opt out of logging into Google and use Apple phones.
Easiest way to avoid as much of the profiling as possible if you actually care, most don’t

reduced profiling, as you say, but the apple phone can be fingerprinted, allowing standard social media apps to impact google adds and those on other sites, on that device.
[I liked the one where soemone posted a baby scan on their instagram, and inevitably lots of baby product adds]

 

[adolf hamster]

at the minute the only security we have is a lack of cohesion amongst the industry, there's too much data to be reviewed properly and the automated systems are comparitively primitive.

it's going to really become an issue once we start having profiling done by intellegent systems that can really track properly.

the issue i have with it is that we've become so reliant on this business model (and i'm as guilty of this as all of us) that it's nigh on impossible to go through without some sort of profile, hell i'm dreading the day checking for social media presence becomes normal and i'll have to explain why there's just a ghost account on fb and nothing else.

 

[No1newts]

There a few companies trying to bring out browsers/mail services/social media that do not hsrvest data but they are few and far between. Add to that they are a lot less intuitive (because they aren't using what they harvested on you in the background) so it is understandable people stay away.

I don't particularly care if someone attempts to use my data to target advertise me as I dont really use social media, ignore spam email and I'm not gullible and don't see an advert and think "ooooh must buy now plz" The concern is when the almost inevitable next step comes and they use your information to influence "real" life which I would guess is probably happening in some instances.

 

[SPG]

I do not use any social media, however trying to de-google is proving extremely difficult. Just moving email over to Proton-mail is a major exercise in procrastination.