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Mint and a host of other financial dashboard products allow you to plug-in account credentials and see balances in one place.

mortenjorck 8y ago
Most of those services are probably using Plaid to connect to customers' online banking accounts, which is always done through an explicit, user-driven auth. In fact, it has to be done this way of necessity; Plaid has traditionally used scraping to get data. Facebook, however, is trying to go in through the backdoor. From the article: "It is unclear whether bank customers would need to opt-in to the proposed Facebook services or what other privacy protections might be offered."
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cityzen 8y ago
So are you saying that idiots will knowingly link their bank accounts to Facebook and star in their own Black Mirror episode? Sounds amazing.
- compiler-guy 8y ago
  "idiots" willingly and knowingly already do this with Mint. And Quicken; and other financial services sites. The only question is if Facebook develops a sufficiently compelling financial product for the mostly not concerned to share this data. You might not think it is a good idea. I don't think it is a good idea, but plenty of people will determine that the tradeoff is worth it.
  - Rjevski 8y ago
    Mint and Quicken have legitimate reasons to access your banking data though, and provide you value in exchange. I wonder what kind of value would Facebook provide you if you give them their financial data though.
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    - compiler-guy 8y ago
      I don't use facebook much, and what I do use is under a false name, not linked to anything real about me--I use it to access certain non-local groups). But the kind of thing they could provide would be just like any other financial service like Mint.
  - cityzen 8y ago
    Mint and Quicken are financial services so I can see how people would fall for that. You're assuming here that the "tradeoff" will be clearly presented, which we know it will not be. The "tradeoff" will only be realized when it is too late and the multi-national advertising corporation called Facebook, Incorporated is caught (again) mishandling user's data, except it will be financial. “There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again.” Idiots. no quotes.
  - jonahhorowitz 8y ago
    I use Mint. I willingly and will full consent give them my data so they can provide me with a service. I'm ~okay with them having and using the data to market to me because the service is valuable enough to me. I have no reason to give FB my data. I've never consented to give them the data. There is no product they could offer that would encourage me to give them more data. It's two entirely different things.
    - compiler-guy 8y ago
      They are trying to develop a product that competes with Mint. I get that you would never consent to sharing, even if they competed well with Mint. But their goal here is at complete odds with your comment, "It's two entirely different things." They are hoping it will be "two products similar enough to be considered competitors."
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mortenjorck 8y ago

Most of those services are probably using Plaid to connect to customers' online banking accounts, which is always done through an explicit, user-driven auth. In fact, it has to be done this way of necessity; Plaid has traditionally used scraping to get data. Facebook, however, is trying to go in through the backdoor. From the article: "It is unclear whether bank customers would need to opt-in to the proposed Facebook services or what other privacy protections might be offered."

deleted 8y ago
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cityzen 8y ago

So are you saying that idiots will knowingly link their bank accounts to Facebook and star in their own Black Mirror episode? Sounds amazing.

compiler-guy 8y ago
"idiots" willingly and knowingly already do this with Mint. And Quicken; and other financial services sites. The only question is if Facebook develops a sufficiently compelling financial product for the mostly not concerned to share this data. You might not think it is a good idea. I don't think it is a good idea, but plenty of people will determine that the tradeoff is worth it.
- Rjevski 8y ago
  Mint and Quicken have legitimate reasons to access your banking data though, and provide you value in exchange. I wonder what kind of value would Facebook provide you if you give them their financial data though.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
  - compiler-guy 8y ago
    I don't use facebook much, and what I do use is under a false name, not linked to anything real about me--I use it to access certain non-local groups). But the kind of thing they could provide would be just like any other financial service like Mint.
- cityzen 8y ago
  Mint and Quicken are financial services so I can see how people would fall for that. You're assuming here that the "tradeoff" will be clearly presented, which we know it will not be. The "tradeoff" will only be realized when it is too late and the multi-national advertising corporation called Facebook, Incorporated is caught (again) mishandling user's data, except it will be financial. “There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again.” Idiots. no quotes.
- jonahhorowitz 8y ago
  I use Mint. I willingly and will full consent give them my data so they can provide me with a service. I'm ~okay with them having and using the data to market to me because the service is valuable enough to me. I have no reason to give FB my data. I've never consented to give them the data. There is no product they could offer that would encourage me to give them more data. It's two entirely different things.
  - compiler-guy 8y ago
    They are trying to develop a product that competes with Mint. I get that you would never consent to sharing, even if they competed well with Mint. But their goal here is at complete odds with your comment, "It's two entirely different things." They are hoping it will be "two products similar enough to be considered competitors."
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