> I just don't believe it. I can't believe it. Well, I like having the option to say "no", even if most users don't know to do so. > For one thing, we know th

> I just don't believe it. I can't believe it. Well, I like having the option to say "no", even if most users don't know to do so. > For one thing, we know they're helping the government spy on people. The NSA used windows error reporting, which works by sending stack dumps to Microsoft. The use of Windows Error Reporting is opt-in. > ...the corporations should have to follow a TOS written by some consortium of smart tech-minded people and not bought and sold congressmen and lawyers ... We should have better privacy laws that treat personal information as a valuable user-owned commodity that can't be aggregated and sold; the dangers inherent in a self-sufficient private surveillance apparatus are just too staggering: - It is far too easily co-opted by the state, as evidenced by NSA revelations. - The power and information asymmetry between individuals and corporations can easily grow to the point where fair trade is simply not viable. A hypothetical: - Google knows the contents of your e-mails - Google has cookies in your browser - Google knows where you log in from - Google notices that you (or your business) is planning a trip. - Google sells this information to the airlines - The airlines adjust their rates based on the perceived likelihood of your paying the higher or lower rate, based on insider knowledge of your income and need. This is hardly science fiction in a world where Target knows its customers are pregnant before their immediate family does. Google (and others) are already tracking you around the web, reading your communications, hosting your corporate e-mail. Google Analytics is in everything. The end-game just doesn't seem ideal here.