Is The Contact Info You Provide Someone Public Or Private Info?
from the interesting-legal-questions dept
I've complained in the past about the annoyance of Plaxo spam. Lately, the more I've been thinking about Plaxo, the more it annoys me. Though I've never had anything to do with the company, and have never responded to a single spam, they now have a database with my contact info that others gave it. Bambi Francisco over at CBS Marketwatch has noticed the same thing with Spoke Software, which she finds disconcerting. However, I'm wondering about the bigger legal issues: is the personal info you've given to individuals for business or personal reasons shareable? Some say that all Spoke is doing is collecting public information. However, if the info was given to an individual, is there a reasonable expectation that the information is not public at all, but for private use only? I'm not sure what the answer is, but I wonder how long until there's a lawsuit around this issue. Personally, like so many other things, I don't think it's something you can get "back in the box," but these systems do reveal to me who is freely giving away personal information about me, which could make me less willing to do business with them in the future.
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Greeting cards
Who hasn't received one of these cards? Can I sue my mother now for giving away my contanct information?
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Plaxo spam
So I posted another msg saying that if they'd be so kind as to e-mail me direct and introduce themselves, I'd be happy to give them my phone number and directions to my house. ;>)
Nobody responded!
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Re: Plaxo spam
The bottom line is that 99.99% of the time that someone has you in their Outlook Address Book, it's because you've met or interacted at some point in the past. Many of these may have been awhile ago and some may be minor meetings (e.g. you met at a conference).
But, the main point here is that these people are not evildoers trying to *steal your identity."
BTW: Plaxo is adding a feature (as we speak) to enable Recipients (i.e. you) to challenge the Sender (e.g. how do I know you?). We will use this to build a Plaxo user rating system and find out which users are abusing the service.
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Re: Plaxo spam
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Free Webmail
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Contact Info: Public or Private?
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Re: Contact Info: Public or Private?
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Hey Commenters! Why are you posting your names?
Awareness and personal responsibility should play a role here. More people should be doing more things anonymously if they want to exercise substantial "ownership" of their names and contact info. Social norms are definitely evolving here . . . .
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Re: Hey Commenters! Why are you posting your name
and thats in direct contradiction to Mikes " Anonymous Coward " when I fail to advertise my name & contact information ...
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Re: Hey Commenters! Why are you posting your name
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plaxo spam?
Not meaning to be picky, but while you may not like receiving Plaxo emails, they are not "spam." They are sent by real people that identify themselves, there is no marketing, and there is a one-click opt-out.
"... Lately, the more I've been thinking about Plaxo, the more it annoys me. Though I've never had anything to do with the company, and have never responded to a single spam, they now have a database with my contact info that others gave it."
Most of this info is already available via Google, AOL, Yahoo!, and many other information services. And, many of these services have no qualms about sharing it with others. Plaxo does not share this info, period.
The real difference is that Plaxo lets you know it. Regardless, Plaxo's privacy policy is very clear that this information will not be shared with anyone.
"... Bambi Francisco over at CBS Marketwatch has noticed the same thing with Spoke Software, which she finds disconcerting. However, I'm wondering about the bigger legal issues: is the personal info you've given to individuals for business or personal reasons shareable? Some say that all Spoke is doing is collecting public information. However, if the info was given to an individual, is there a reasonable expectation that the information is not public at all, but for private use only? I'm not sure what the answer is, but I wonder how long until there's a lawsuit around this issue. Personally, like so many other things, I don't think it's something you can get "back in the box," but these systems do reveal to me who is freely giving away personal information about me, which could make me less willing to do business with them in the future."
The answer is complex and differs from country to country. The USA takes a "data owner" approach -- the data owner (e.g. address book) owns the data. The spirit of European and Australian laws are more towards individual ownership, but are guided by many details and nuances. Plaxo does not violate these laws.
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Plaxo is bad
http://www.radicalapathy.com/mt/archives/journal/000129.html
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REPLY through THIS E-MAIL (desmondedward2007@gmail.com)
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