4 ms·

I think they understand it fine. As you say, the website is using Google's ad server. So it is sending detailed identifying info about each user to Google. Jus

by rtb 7y ago

I think they understand it fine. As you say, the website is using Google's ad server. So it is sending detailed identifying info about each user to Google. Just because that has become normal for "the online ad ecosystem" over the past few years doesn't mean that it should be acceptable or that we cannot try to stop it.

mpeg 7y ago
What is the alternative here? Should Enfield spend tax payer money creating an alternative tool to show banner ad cross-promotions and re-training their teams? Where do you stop? Is Google Analytics evil too? What about Twitter feeds?
- Hoasi 7y ago
  > Is Google Analytics evil too? What about Twitter feeds? Yes. Both bad.
- dboreham 7y ago
  Sounds like a great business opportunity especially if we can lobby politicians to require "surveillance-free" services be used.
- rtb 7y ago
  The alternative is to not show ads. Yes, Google Analytics has many of the same problems. The alternative to that is to analyze the server logs or to simply not track your users' behaviour in detail.
  - ddalex 7y ago
    > to simply not track your users' behaviour in detail that's unpossible
- chriswarbo 7y ago
  > Where do you stop? Is Google Analytics evil too? Absolutely. > What about Twitter feeds? In what context? Including/embedding Twitter cookies and/or Javascript in pages paid-for by citizens, which citizens are required to use to exercise their rights? Absolutely. As a non-exclusive outlet to disseminate information via an independent site (twitter.com), which anyone is free to avoid and ignore? That's fine.
  - mpeg 7y ago
    In reality, what happens is lots of council services (including police) use twitter as the main real-time source of information for citizens. Should they use an alternative platform? probably not, because twitter is the biggest and best known, so you could argue you can reach the most people with it.
    - JohnFen 7y ago
      > use twitter as the main real-time source of information for citizens. So they're excluding people who don't use twitter? Why can't their web pages be the main source of real-time information?

by rtb 7y ago

mpeg 7y ago

What is the alternative here? Should Enfield spend tax payer money creating an alternative tool to show banner ad cross-promotions and re-training their teams? Where do you stop? Is Google Analytics evil too? What about Twitter feeds?

Hoasi 7y ago
> Is Google Analytics evil too? What about Twitter feeds? Yes. Both bad.
dboreham 7y ago
Sounds like a great business opportunity especially if we can lobby politicians to require "surveillance-free" services be used.
rtb 7y ago
The alternative is to not show ads. Yes, Google Analytics has many of the same problems. The alternative to that is to analyze the server logs or to simply not track your users' behaviour in detail.
- ddalex 7y ago
  > to simply not track your users' behaviour in detail that's unpossible
chriswarbo 7y ago
> Where do you stop? Is Google Analytics evil too? Absolutely. > What about Twitter feeds? In what context? Including/embedding Twitter cookies and/or Javascript in pages paid-for by citizens, which citizens are required to use to exercise their rights? Absolutely. As a non-exclusive outlet to disseminate information via an independent site (twitter.com), which anyone is free to avoid and ignore? That's fine.
- mpeg 7y ago
  In reality, what happens is lots of council services (including police) use twitter as the main real-time source of information for citizens. Should they use an alternative platform? probably not, because twitter is the biggest and best known, so you could argue you can reach the most people with it.
  - JohnFen 7y ago
    > use twitter as the main real-time source of information for citizens. So they're excluding people who don't use twitter? Why can't their web pages be the main source of real-time information?