3 ms·

I hear what you are saying and agree in the sense that a lot of this is being misused by people who want to take advantage of what they know about you/us in wha

I hear what you are saying and agree in the sense that a lot of this is being misused by people who want to take advantage of what they know about you/us in whatever shape or form they can get the data to get away with. Chinas use of data is definitely not the way to go. However, I would also caution against the push for almost complete privacy as that IMO leaves out a number of potential advantages from systems having enormous amounts of data about us. The primary advantage of technology is that it is able to automate and remove a number of things we would otherwise have to do manually, semi-manually etc. To the extent that we do more and more in the digital space, our digital identity becomes much more important and that creates a new problem that can't be solved through privacy IMO but have to be solved by allowing digital identities to learn how to trust each other (which means exchange data/information). I don't think there are many ways around that unless you want to get off the grid completely (which is certainly one way to do things). This is where I think the decentralized part becomes really valuable. How can we own our own data but exchange it with others and build trust over time just like we would in the real world. Cause in order to take advantage of the technology you will need to feed it with the primary thing that keeps it alive, data.

stephenr 8y ago
Name an advantage to google knowing what colour underwear you bought last Thursday at 3pm from an eBay seller called “thrusty jack”? Siri/iOS/macOS/etc are proof that “smart” services can be done on-device and/or without identifying information and still be useful. Google does it all server side because it’s the cash cow their entire business is built on, not because it’s the only way to do it.
- ThomPete 8y ago
  Hmm that wasn't actually what I said. So not sure how to respond to that.
  - stephenr 8y ago
    You literally said: > I would also caution against the push for almost complete privacy as that IMO leaves out a number of potential advantages from systems having enormous amounts of data about us. So I created an example. Forget my example if you wish, I still have the same question. What benefit is there specifically, from companies "having enormous amounts of data about us"?
    - ThomPete 8y ago
      But I also said: "This is where I think the decentralized part becomes really valuable. How can we own our own data but exchange it with others and build trust over time just like we would in the real world." So not sure why you are asking about about something that is only part of what I wrote when I elaborate further down.
      - stephenr 8y ago
        > How can we own our own data but exchange it with others and build trust over time just like we would in the real world. Well that's pretty simple. Don't use services that are paid for with your privacy. > So not sure why you are asking about about something that is only part of what I wrote when I elaborate further down. You claimed it's beneficial, I'm asking how.
        ThomPete 8y ago
        And I am telling you I wrote some more so you have to read it in it's whole not just that part.
- aembleton 8y ago
  If they are getting the data from Gmail, then it is useful for the heuristics in understanding what is and what is not spam. AFAIK, ebay don't use GA although most of the web do. GA is I'm sure largely to help with their advertising business. That is useful because it gives website owners (who choose to use it) analytics.
  - stephenr 8y ago
    > If they are getting the data from Gmail, then it is useful for the heuristics in understanding what is and what is not spam. Do you have evidence that they use their trove of personal data about you to improve spam filtering? No other email provider on the planet has the same amount of data, and they manage to filter out spam. > AFAIK, ebay don't use GA although most of the web do. eBay was an example, but my point was more about, if you used Google Pay on a shopping site. > That is useful because it gives website owners (who choose to use it) analytics. That isn't beneficial to the person whose data they hold, it's detrimental, and fucking creepy.

stephenr 8y ago

Name an advantage to google knowing what colour underwear you bought last Thursday at 3pm from an eBay seller called “thrusty jack”? Siri/iOS/macOS/etc are proof that “smart” services can be done on-device and/or without identifying information and still be useful. Google does it all server side because it’s the cash cow their entire business is built on, not because it’s the only way to do it.

ThomPete 8y ago
Hmm that wasn't actually what I said. So not sure how to respond to that.
- stephenr 8y ago
  You literally said: > I would also caution against the push for almost complete privacy as that IMO leaves out a number of potential advantages from systems having enormous amounts of data about us. So I created an example. Forget my example if you wish, I still have the same question. What benefit is there specifically, from companies "having enormous amounts of data about us"?
  - ThomPete 8y ago
    But I also said: "This is where I think the decentralized part becomes really valuable. How can we own our own data but exchange it with others and build trust over time just like we would in the real world." So not sure why you are asking about about something that is only part of what I wrote when I elaborate further down.
    - stephenr 8y ago
      > How can we own our own data but exchange it with others and build trust over time just like we would in the real world. Well that's pretty simple. Don't use services that are paid for with your privacy. > So not sure why you are asking about about something that is only part of what I wrote when I elaborate further down. You claimed it's beneficial, I'm asking how.
      - ThomPete 8y ago
        And I am telling you I wrote some more so you have to read it in it's whole not just that part.
aembleton 8y ago
If they are getting the data from Gmail, then it is useful for the heuristics in understanding what is and what is not spam. AFAIK, ebay don't use GA although most of the web do. GA is I'm sure largely to help with their advertising business. That is useful because it gives website owners (who choose to use it) analytics.
- stephenr 8y ago
  > If they are getting the data from Gmail, then it is useful for the heuristics in understanding what is and what is not spam. Do you have evidence that they use their trove of personal data about you to improve spam filtering? No other email provider on the planet has the same amount of data, and they manage to filter out spam. > AFAIK, ebay don't use GA although most of the web do. eBay was an example, but my point was more about, if you used Google Pay on a shopping site. > That is useful because it gives website owners (who choose to use it) analytics. That isn't beneficial to the person whose data they hold, it's detrimental, and fucking creepy.