Just tying this in since I sorta hijacked my own thread on email providers, lol. And also thinking that someone had recommended the book Daemon by Daniel Suarez and several of us have read it or are reading it right now.

So what do you all think of how it seems like big business is...well, getting up in our business online more and more? Facebook keeps changing security settings so you're forced to share more and more info with the whole world even if you lock your profile down to friends only. Google keeps buying more and more other social media companies and forcing you to link all of your accounts together (like my Youtube account is no more because as I said in the other thread, they now make you link it to a Google account, which will ask for your phone number to "verify" the account. Oh HELL no. I'm not getting spam shit on my phone or having my number sold to marketers, tyvm).

As I said in the other thread, I like to maintain my anonymity online. That means I'm not found by my employer, parents, or anyone else who may take exception in real life to stuff I say or do online (or, for that matter, someone I don't know IRL who may feel the need to look me up to bitch me out in public). I'm not a criminal, but I do like to keep parts of my life separate... for example, my mom also doesn't know I swear like a sailor or can tell dirty jokes with the best of them and I keep that to a separate compartment of my life too. Am I perfect at it? Nah. Who can be, these days? Anyone willing to do the work could figure out who I am, no doubt. But I don't put my real name or picture out there, nor my exact location, which thwarts most casual seekers who just want to google my name or might recognize me from a picture.

So it pisses me off when some social media wants to force my hand to be open to all askers. I don't want random people "finding" me on Facebook. If I haven't already found X and Y from high school myself, it's probably because I don't want to talk to them, so why on earth would I want them finding ME?

And I certainly don't want these companies having all my info either. As much as possible I just put gibberish into sites that ask for my email and such. Sorry, I know you like people to be accountable for what they post online, but as I said in the other thread, don't paint me as a troublemaker whose real identity you need to know until I prove I am one. (You know that whole Ben Franklin quote about giving up freedom for a little temporary security?) Don't get me wrong: I work for the government. I see a lot of subpoenas, and on rare occasions, a wiretap. However, that is precisely what we need for peoples' info: we need to go through the legal channels. It's not just there for the taking. And as with gun control, all these companies will accomplish by being hypervigilant about their users is to catch the innocent people; the criminals will still flaunt the rules. I don't want to get caught in the web set for someone else, do you?

Google's quickly going on my shitlist. Besides the Youtube thing, did you know they filter your search results based on your known browsing? It's bad enough that stores use your online activity to target sales (though i do sort of like more-relevant ads... except of course for Facebook, which apparently only sees "female in her 20s" on my profile and assumes I'm into marriage and babies and doing weird stuff like plastic surgery to look pretty, and inundates me accordingly). That means, say, you search the news. If you're known to frequent conservative sites, you'll be given conservative news sources. Etc.

This is from an outraged email I wrote my mom (it's important to know that I'm a journalism geek, so the filtering of information really pisses me off. I wrote a whole treatise on journalism, but it's only slightly related so I'll only post it if someone asks for it).

Read an report about protection of personal info online. Quote: “The U.S. Department of Commerce recently reiterated that the large-scale collection, analysis, and storage of personal information is central to the Internet economy; and that regulation of online personal information must not impede commerce.” WHAT? No, no, no. They have it backwards. Commerce must not impede my life and privacy. Some company’s right to make money is not greater than my right to not have a corporate Big Brother looking over my shoulder. They so much as track the websites you go to…check out some of the ads you see online lately. Example: I visit a website about Tron? Next thing I know the ads on every website I go to are for the soundtrack. True story. I got pretty tired of that one soundtrack ad.

That might be excusable (except for the tracking part)… at least it would mean I’m not constantly inundated by football and dating ads (except on Facebook. They must’ve looked at my age and sex and automatically thought, “Oh, she is interested in weddings and babies!!!”). You remember my thing I wrote about journalism a while back? That was spurred by a discussion on the radio of how not only are your ads tailored to you, but even your Google results. If you’re known to visit, say, conservative websites, then your results, like say you search for news, will be skewed to conservative news sites. Etc. And most people don’t even know this is happening. And that is what started me thinking about journalism. It is NOT biased. Or should not be. You do NOT feed people only the news you think THEY want to see based on their own narrow worldview. The whole point is that people are supposed to be challenged. Journalism puts people out of their comfort zone; the whole point is that you make them see stuff they don’t necessarily want to know about but should; you don’t fix it so that they can remain partial to what they already think. And likewise, Google should not be deciding what I see online. My life. MINE!!! Not to be decided by people who don’t even know me.

If X and Y website want to put a cookie on my computer so that my preferences are remembered each time I go, that’s great. But third parties should NOT have access to this info. If the police wanted that sort of thing, they’d need a search warrant or a subpoena. If [my partner] went to an ISP and tried to get it, he’d be told he can’t have my private info and if he told people he snooped around to see what websites I was visiting, he’d get torn a new one for violating my privacy. So why is it okay for corporations???

Maybe I need to start putting in time on all sorts of eclectic websites. Football, new-age, conservative nutjob, little-kid sites, gaming. Just throw all of the trackers off royally. I wonder if I could somehow set up something on my computer to randomly visit a new website every ten minutes.
Okay, I've gone off on a long-winded soapbox rant. Discuss.

Oh, yes, email records and such require a subpoena.

Unless, apparently, you're Gmail or something...

Oh and as far as e mail..
for your personal use..
you should not use yahoo..
and gmial.. they will sell out your privacy.

Use a overseas or underground... e mail
and then run it through encryption..
you can also tell whoever you want to speak to privatley..
so use the same service with encryption...
and wallah!

But it's sad to have to go through ALL these measures
JUST to have a little privacy...

I mean we could make this a Free system again!
I mean we'd have programs lined up just to USE this place..

and NO MCP looking over your shoulder!

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MCPcomputer Wrote: They say they collect this info for marketing.. well if they want the info they can pay for it. End of Line

Good point!

FlynnOne Wrote:Kat, MCPcomputer,...great thread! And now you're speaking my language. Thing is, though,...anybody ever get the idea that the web wasn't ever supposed to be about 'privacy' or 'a free system' to begin with?... Then again, that's just me waxing a whole buncha' conspiracy-theory stuff again,...which, in most circles usually earns me the big "cuckoo's nest" stamp on my forehead right quick. Anyway,...carry on...

We like cuckoos' nests. I just flew over one the other day.

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RenegadeProgram Wrote: I'm not an internet criminal, but I also like some privacy.

HOO-AH!!! Dang straight!! Same here.

Given how ARPANet started out, I think that privacy was one of the LAST things that was considered, as least in a civilian sense. You may be on to something. The MCP is alive and well, LOL!!!!!!(Then again, it is).

...........YA THINK??? LOL!

Yeah, stumbled onto that same notion awhile back myself, too. I'd elaborate, but, naw, not gonna'. I don't look so good in a wireframe cuckoo's nest.

Quick! Let's jump in our lightcycles and race across the mesa!

Sounds like a plan, buddy!

Sounds like we need a certain "space cowboy" to forge us a GROUP 6 Access. That dang MCP is getting sneakier all the time. I'll jump in my car and drive off to FLYNN'S and then you get with Alan and Lora and we'll sneak Flynn in. Once he's here, I'll join Flynn in the laser bay, and we'll go inside and LAY THE SMACK DOWN on the MCP, LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!order abortion pill abortion pill buy online where to buy abortion pill

The greatest programmer Encom
ever saw and he winds up plaing
SPACE COWBOY in come back room!! LOL

Flynn will get in there and take out the MCP...

I for one used to favor the MCP..
until I realized what he represented in real life...
so now.. i just
would rather change my name to priority one ha ha!!

It looks like you are trying to hack an email provider. Do you need some help?

I agree Kat!
Also I rather talk on the phone or in person..
with people I know in real life.

Other than that, I don't feel social networks are that
social. I use them for marketing, and
to keep up with bands and movies I like.

But honestly I rather talk to and hang out in person..
with friends.. and drink REAL beer..
not virtual beer..But I could go for some
pure source right about now..

LOL yeah Flynn One.. I think I'll be Priority One now ha ha

Ha ha yeah I agree!
you go to any site.. they say.. LIKE THIS
sign in with Facebook!
Friend our company LIKe our company etc!

Yes it's getting out of hand!
The MCP has gone wild!

End of Line