3 ms·

I’m glad someone is asking about the collection of non-user data and data collection outside Facebook sites, but I can’t help wanting someone qualified to speak

I’m glad someone is asking about the collection of non-user data and data collection outside Facebook sites, but I can’t help wanting someone qualified to speak on such technical subjects that would be able to effectively question without a prepared list.

bcheung 9y ago
It's an important concern but anyone who has Google Analytics, or any other analytics tool, installed on their website is collecting non-user data. This happens pretty much across the board. There's also the concern about derived data, like some kind of user embedding vector from clustering, that provides a lot of information about the user that is not available in the raw source data.
- confounded 9y ago
  I think this is a bad analogy. If site-usage data is being collected via use of your site, then by definition it’s on users. That’s not the same thing as buying files on individuals who don’t use your site from data brokers.
- bhhaskin 9y ago
  That is why GA doesn't allow PII (personally identifiable information). They can't track a GA session back to a real person.
- alphabettsy 9y ago
  That really isn’t the same thing at all. Facebook collects data from people who never visit their site and offer no way to prevent this data collection. One of my biggest annoyances is so many companies and groups posting things only on Facebook, especially Facebook events.
rhizome 9y ago
Newt Gingrich killed the Office of Technology Assessment in 1995, which used to provide this knowledge to Congresspeople. https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/10/the-much-needed-and-sane-congressional-office-that-gingrich-killed-off-and-we-need-back/264160/ https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/10/the-m...