phorm/webwise

OldBear

OF1975 wrote: »

In addition to the thorny issue of informed consent re children there is also a wider issue. Libraries all around the country are used by thousands of people every day to access the internet. How on earth can Phorm/Webspies obtain informed consent from the likely 10+ users per computer per day in this situation. What about internet cafes?

Or schools?

DatabaseError

OF1975 wrote: »

In addition to the thorny issue of informed consent re children there is also a wider issue. Libraries all around the country are used by thousands of people every day to access the internet. How on earth can Phorm/Webspies obtain informed consent from the likely 10+ users per computer per day in this situation. What about internet cafes?

I would like to think that libraries, schools etc. would not have a domestic net connection, and I cannot imagine phorm being allowed anywhere near business/commercial connections

socnsum1

Would it not be likely Tony that most schools and libraries would use a provider that has a well known name in the world such as telecommunications such as BT? If this is the case, BT is one of the three main ISPs in the country that are in bed with the spyware company Phorm.

Given BT's illegal spying on customers in the past it doesn't fill me with much confidence that our children's online safety will be a concern for them.

DatabaseError

socnsum1 wrote: »

Would it not be likely Tony that most schools and libraries would use a provider that has a well known name in the world such as telecommunications such as BT?

Of course, and I may be wrong, until all details come out it's just conjecture, but I'm pretty sure only domestic subscribers will be profiled, they are the ones most likely to buy based on their ad viewing, and the least likely to sue if their data gets 'misplaced', whereas a company/corporation will send commercially sensitive data, so my guess is that business users will not be profiled, the risk of litigation to BT is too great

LardyCake

tonyhague wrote: »

Of course, and I may be wrong, until all details come out it's just conjecture, ...

Any idea of when that will be?

DatabaseError

...soon is all they seem to be saying, probably still tying to gauge new revenue vs customer losses, and the risk of legal action, again, all guesswork, but I think it will go ahead, because most people don't understand the issues, and more importantly, the potential future issues.
FWIW, we are not alone[/quote]

Dangle

tonyhague wrote: »

...soon is all they seem to be saying, probably still tying to gauge new revenue vs customer losses, and the risk of legal action, again, all guesswork, but I think it will go ahead, because most people don't understand the issues, and more importantly, the potential future issues.
FWIW, we are not alone

Nebuad looks even worse than Phorm, the article here makes interesting reading http://www.democraticmedia.org/jcblog/?p=586

“The kind of data we do aggregate includes Web search terms, page views, page and ad clicks, time spent on specific sites, zip code, browser info and connection speed…within this vast universe of information we create a map of interest categories, beginning with the widest definitions, auto, finance, education, what have you. But within those we can provide far greater granularity. So if you’re talking about auto, we can drill down into particular interest segments, say SUVs, luxury cars, minivans, and then even to particular brands or models. Within the interest category of travel, we can identify consumers interested in learning about Martinique, the south of France or Las Vegas.”…“ISPs have been a neglected aspect of online’s evolution over the past several years. But the fact is the depth of aggregated data they have to offer, anonymous data, is an untapped source of incredible power…

And in this one http://www.clickz.com/showPage.html?page=3628004 they talk about having multiple thousands of interest segments (categories).

It all sounds like they will be producing extremely detailed profiles of their ISP's users. Although to be honest I'd be amazed if Phorm doesn't plan to preduce equally detailed profiles once their system gains acceptance.

DatabaseError

Dangle wrote: »

... I'd be amazed if Phorm doesn't plan to preduce equally detailed profiles once their system gains acceptance.

Kind of the way I see it, Having out data stored/profiled/sold is nothing new, and the majority of users don't know its happening, but currently this is happening at the sites I chose to visit, and I can change my browsing methods (vpn, tor, not visit the sites, hosts file, cookie blockers etc) to circumnavigate this. Once the kit is in the exchanges, nothing I can do can keep my privacy, and I cannot see phorm being happy with their initial plans if theres a chance to get another few quid by just...., it's the small steps which erode our privacy and civil liberties, I would (possibly) have no problem with phorm if it were genuinely opt-in and honest about what it does, and the free alternatives and if it kept its servers out of the exchanges, but then nobody would sign up to it, as it is a technology which has nothing to offer the consumer, and the potential to allow big brother into every computer in the country.
Automatic numberplate recognition was not developed to catch speeding motorists on the M25, but that is now one of its (commercial?!) uses. phorm has the potential to strike fear into anybody who does anything a 'bit dodgy' on the net, from those downloading MP3 files, doing a bit of !!!!!! surfing while the wife is out, looking for a new job, looking for a surprise gift, posting anti-government comments on bbs etc.. There are plenty of users who've never done anything dodgy, but I'm not one of them. Once the technology is here, it will be be extended to 'catch terrorists' and it will be just as ineffective as the current methods, but with the added disadvantage of another erosion of privacy, I do not want to ive in a culture of fear, it is enough with cameras everywhere, I cannot go anywhere without being filmed yet I have done nothing wrong, and the cameras don't seem to stop much

JohnHorb

If anyone is interested, there is an anti-Phorm protest planned at the BT AGM. Digg it here

http://digg.com/tech_news/No_DPI_web_site_launches_with_Phorm_Protest_Event

Jocatz

JohnHorb wrote: »

If anyone is interested, there is an anti-Phorm protest planned at the BT AGM. Digg it here

http://digg.com/tech_news/No_DPI_web_site_launches_with_Phorm_Protest_Event

Thanks for giving me something that I can do to help stop this terrible threat to my privacy. I have been over to the digg site and joined up so that I could add another digg.