USA: Big Brother or Big Corporations are watching you.

[Jomtienbob]

Well, at least your cellphone usage.
http://www.truth-out.org/carriers-admit ... 1323187523

[Gaybutton]

If the article is true and it is also true that the carriers say they don't do anything with the information, then why did they install the software in the first place? What gave them the right to do that without letting people know it or give people a means of opting out of it if they so choose?

I don't even see how, if they are actually using the information for something, what would they be using it for? How could knowing what numbers I dial or what web sites I visit be of any use to them? How does knowing I called a friend, made a restaurant reservation, ordered a pizza, looked at a porn site, or called my other phone because I forgot where I put it help them in any way? How does knowing that I went online to look at my Email or find a boy I like on Gay Romeo benefit them?

If they're saying they don't use the information for anything, my response to that is bullshit! If they don't use the information, then why bother gathering it? My question is very simple: What use is gathering that kind of information?

[Jomtienbob]

My personal belief is that they did do it, and that they did it (input the tracking device) because they could. They are not alone in doing it. Did you ever notice that when you Google a website (say Gaybutton), and on your screen you see pop ups for say button companies? Or if you are using email and reading about fishing, you will see banner ads for fishing boats or supplies? This does not happen by accident nor coincidence.

I hope that the reason for it is innocuous, but I highly doubt that. Corporations love to get as much information on users as possible. It helps them to cross-sell. And for police powers, these tracking devices can be invaluable in monitoring suspects. Are they looking at plans to make bombs, connected to terrorist or political organizations, who do they communicate with and how often, and why.

[bao-bao]

Hardly anything anyone puts out into cyberspace is private. To believe so is to live in a fool's paradise. Cell phones are no different; I don't know anyone who read the fine print before signing a cell phone agreement... do you?

If you haven't tacitly agreed to it in an initial agreement when signing up or elsewhere in the fine print regarding usage of a site or service there are always underhanded business practices on a variety of levels, and let's not forget those that are able to hack into anything from your facebook page to your personal medical information to the most sensitive of governmental secrets. It's in the news often enough, and we don't hear about most of it, I'd guess.

Bring it down to a personal level here for a moment - and I am not speaking of Gaybutton or anyone in particular: say, for example, I consider participating in an online community forum such as Gay Asia Traveler (save yourself the time - I just made that up) and after agreeing to their terms I join - perhaps with my real name or other identifying information - and begin posting pictures and sharing info about my travels. Now suppose someone else assumes ownership of that forum, you don't think that person then has any information I assumed was safe to disclose in registering or posting at their disposal? They do.

Plus, that information can be sold to any interested party or business for a profit. If a person wanted to there's undoubtedly a way they could also read Private Messages and see who your "friends" were. With Google emails we expect to see an ad somehow related to the body of the email, and that means it's being seen - and perhaps stored. You just have to accept it if you want to use the service.

So again I say: there is NO true privacy in cyberspace. We're all just flying on trust, even with the "https" connections some sites use.

[tdperhs]

So again I say: there is NO true privacy in cyberspace. We're all just flying on trust, even with the "https" connections some sites use.

Actually, you have more privacy in cyber space than just about anywhere.
1. While the source of a phone signal can be narrowed down to a general location, it is very difficult to track a specific location unless you never go anywhere. (A good phone technician or engineer can make that impossible.)
2. Without a monthly service, nobody can put a name to your sim card unless you give them a name. I have two sim cards. One with a monthly service so I can get a server. But the other card is not connected with my name anywhere.
3. There are computers available everywhere that your name is not connected to, especially if you are a farang in a big city.

USSC Associate Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that there is no Constitutional guarantee of privacy. The same pretty much applies to the U.K., which does not act so much on written constitutional law but mostly on Acts of Parliament. "... there is no independent tort law doctrine which recognises a right to privacy. This has been confirmed on a number of occasions."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privacy_law#United_Kingdom

On the other hand, some states, like Alaska, do have a privacy law. It is the First Amendment to the state's constitution. It was the basis of the successful argument to decriminalize marijuana in the state during the 1980s. However, Federal law still takes precedence so, while state law enforcement could not enter a private dwelling to enforce federal Marijuana laws, G-men could.

[ozboy11]

Well I don't know about other countries but in Australia you
Now require photo id and proof of address before you can purchase a sim card even for prepaid.

[lvdkeyes]

Not so in Thailand.