Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?
This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.
Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.
Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
Google shows you it's location tracking in Google maps timeline.
Apps that respond to voice commands Hey Alexa, OK Google etc. Must record all sounds to parse the command sound. That doesn't mean they archive it all but it's all getting recorded and processed. They certainly have all your phone call metadata (who you called and for how long). Your browser has site history which is generally sold widely.
I would operate under the expectation that all of those but phone transcripts to be available to anyone who wants to buy them.
How difficult would it be to set up a company that actually buys the data on either a major country, anonymized, or specific smaller groups or individuals, not anonymized? What are the rules for who they are allowed to sell to, and in what form?
If you’re in California or a small handful of other states there are a few rules but otherwise it’s the Wild West. GDPR is the only real game in town in the EU. Your biggest challenges are cost and access (getting someone to sell to you is harder than closing the sale). It also really depends on what you mean by major country.
If you mean like, could China buy data on Americans from sketchy brokers and assemble it themselves? Yes almost certainly and they probably have. There is essentially no mechanism preventing them from doing so either. However, as I noted in my comment above, real-time and granular data from the biggest primary players is usually kept strictly in-house. They are also almost certainly keeping their capabilities in their pocket in case of major conflict.
In fact the CFPB was thinking about putting in nominal sale restrictions (really basic stuff) but the Trump admin tanked those plans. It’s my understanding that there are a few Executive Orders that attempt to fill the gap (eg prevent sale to China or Iran or Russia etc) but it’s unknown how much tooth or enforcement consistency they have (my guess: very little)
I have no idea why I added the word "major" to country. I was just trying to ask about the differences between anonymized large data sets, and smaller but far more specific data sets.
I guess I'm trying to find out... how open to abuse is this system - is it simple for a somewhat resourced person or group to just set up a company and acquire sensitive data on business rivals or personal enemies or whatever else.
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link