Quote from: farbled on March 27, 2018, 20:32

I am busy writing fiction in my free time which involves a lot of online research into germ warfare, nukes, spying, terrorism, zombies, armies, assault, and a host of other things. I find the targeted ads that come up nowadays absolutely hilarious.

Guaranteed you'll be on a CIA/NSA/FBI watch list

I'm not involved in any of these things, but many years ago someone shared a story to a group I was in saying the CIA monitored everyone's emails. It might or might not have been true, but my first response was, "Whoever's reading mine will die of boredom, and it serves them right!" (Of course I know no-one would sitting there reading through word by word, before anyone points that out.)

Quote from: ShadySue on March 28, 2018, 05:55

Quote from: Sammy the Cat on March 28, 2018, 01:11

Quote from: farbled on March 27, 2018, 20:32

I am busy writing fiction in my free time which involves a lot of online research into germ warfare, nukes, spying, terrorism, zombies, armies, assault, and a host of other things. I find the targeted ads that come up nowadays absolutely hilarious.

Guaranteed you'll be on a CIA/NSA/FBI watch list

I'm not involved in any of these things, but many years ago someone shared a story to a group I was in saying the CIA monitored everyone's emails. It might or might not have been true, but my first response was, "Whoever's reading mine will die of boredom, and it serves them right!" (Of course I know no-one would sitting there reading through word by word, before anyone points that out.)

Take care, today their big experts, with the help of a very advanced technology, are able to find hidden conspiracy even in the more boring text

Shades of Marvin the Paranoid Android: "I've got a brain the size of a planet and you make me read HER emails" <switches himself off>.

On a more serious note, last year my then 88 yo mother was sent, via her bank, a tax form for the USA, with a rather nippy note telling her she had to fill it in by a certain date or action would be taken (she's below the UK tax threshold and has never had any direct dealings with the US).
I was pretty sure it was a scam and told her to bin it, but she got into an anxious state, so I went into my local branch to enquire. As they were checking it out, the teller told me in passing that the US Tax authorities have the right to look into anyone's bank account in the UK without much (as it were) 'let or hindrance'. Even though I'm not doing anything illegal, and have filled in the tax recriprocity form with iS/Getty, I was pretty horrified at that. IMO, they should have to have 'reasonable grounds' and be sanctioned by the police over here.
I don't know any more details, as by the time I'd picked my jaw off the floor after that bombshell, the check had completed (it turned out to have been a bank error at HQ), so my business was done and there was a queue, so I couldn't really enquire further.

As they were checking it out, the teller told me in passing that the US Tax authorities have the right to look into anyone's bank account in the UK without much (as it were) 'let or hindrance'.

The consequences of FATCA. I was told in one of my non-US banks in no uncertain terms that if I call them from a US-based phone number, that would be a ground for them to stop me from managing my retirement funds and report me to IRS (an agency of a foreign government). Say what you want about sovereignty. I travel a lot, and thankfully there is VPN.

Quote from: Dodie on March 27, 2018, 04:01

Then they were asking for a phone number. I gave them the wrong number, how could I remember which number I gave them many years ago.

How often do you change phone numbers?

Lets see, home number since 1972 and office number since before that. Doesn't mean I haven't had 6-10 other short term numbers for fax, modem line, Fidonet, or early cell phones. Just that my last two numbers, now ring on the same cell phone. Untied and I love it.

Many apps will ask if they are allowed to access your data, FB asks when you sign up the first time, if they can look at your contacts. This is not a secret, people clicked yes. (I did too) Now you go to some other app and it says can we use your FB account to login. ZING... all your FB data, at the least, contacts, location, personal data, is copied by them. It's a snowball.

I don't use FB much, don't care to have "friends" who send me political messages, or harp about their latest cause or complaint. Some days I might go look, delete all the game requests (no I don't want to play slots or give people boosts for Candy Crush) However I will post maybe once a month, something like "hey it was Bernie's Birthday" and a photo of the cake. Or maybe a bluured, crappy photo from an event or concert.

Now that someone mentioned special interest groups, maybe there is some actual use I'd be interested in. Other than that, no I don't tweet, don't facebook, don't myspace (remember them?) or pinterest. I have accounts that park my name, that's about the extent of that. If I have an account, it has a link to my home page. Oh yes I have a Youtube account, I'm equally as active, maybe post something  three or four times a year. 
 
Anyway, the reason FB has your data, for those concerned, is you gave them permission to have your data. They didn't sneak or steal it off your devise.  Although already mentioned, you can see what they have: https://www.facebook.com/help/405183566203254/

Hey remember that cool free app you downloaded that says "we need to access your data"? Well they are tracking you and anything they can mine off your phone.

If FB and the data scares you, don't click this link to an ABC news story, you might want to leave your cell phone and go back to wired. LOL  http://abcnews.go.com/US/apps-secretly-spy-cellphone/story?id=34950812

I just read an article about how to download all my Facebook data, and I thought this was creepy, from Facebook:

"Facial Recognition Data   A unique number based on a comparison of the photos you're tagged in. We use this data to help others tag you in photos."

Yes that is and many more ways we are tracked.

Quote from: ShadySue on March 28, 2018, 09:21

Hmmm, "The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which was passed as part of the HIRE Act, generally requires that foreign financial Institutions and certain other non-financial foreign entities report on the foreign assets held by their U.S. account holders or be subject to withholding on withholdable payments.  The HIRE Act also contained legislation requiring U.S. persons to report, depending on the value, their foreign financial accounts and foreign assets."
I was told the CIA could check on anyone's bank account, not just US subjects.

I don't know about CIA (which is very possible, but I can't comment), but they don't have to know that you are a US account holder, they just have to suspect that. By the way, a "US account holder" is anyone who lived in the US for 123 days each year in the last 3 years. Which pretty much applies to any Canadian "snowbird". Because that makes that person a US resident for tax purposes. So those aren't some sneaky US citizens, just anyone who stayed in the US a little too long to be considered a tourist.

Indeed!

It is ironic to see all this outrage for something all FB users have agreed with (more or less), when they decided to enjoy a free service offered by a private company, but there is no outrage when MOST governments are doing exactly that and much more (e.g. coercion and liberty deprivation) without any explicit consent or contract.

We are OK when the biggest monopoly in each country is abusing our privacy (even by using explicit threats), but we are "very outraged", when a private company is doing something similar at a much smaller scale and with something we had no problem sharing, to start with.

Quote from: farbled on March 27, 2018, 20:32

I am busy writing fiction in my free time which involves a lot of online research into germ warfare, nukes, spying, terrorism, zombies, armies, assault, and a host of other things. I find the targeted ads that come up nowadays absolutely hilarious.

Guaranteed you'll be on a CIA/NSA/FBI watch list

Well then I wont have to shell out as much for a home alarm system. As a Canadian, I would have to worry more about CSIS (our equivalent) who routinely come under fire for botching pretty much everything.

As a Canadian, I would have to worry more about CSIS (our equivalent)

Those could be very dangerous people. Particularly when cornered.

Indeed!

It is ironic to see all this outrage for something all FB users have agreed with (more or less), when they decided to enjoy a free service offered by a private company, but there is no outrage when MOST governments are doing exactly that and much more (e.g. coercion and liberty deprivation) without any explicit consent or contract.

We are OK when the biggest monopoly in each country is abusing our privacy (even by using explicit threats), but we are "very outraged", when a private company is doing something similar at a much smaller scale and with something we had no problem sharing, to start with.

This is how the brain evolved. An immediate danger (even if only perceived or very small objectively) seems more impactful than something that is continuous and becomes part of life.

Sure, new rules that will bite us in the ass because we didn't read the fine print.

�data protection officer.� Sure, the best thing in the world. They will look out for our interests, not the interests of people who hired them.

"Having computers make important life decisions, like whether you can get insurance or how quickly a doctor should treat your illness, is not always a good idea..." Definitely. Decisions made by hacks are so much better.

europe will have their house in order come may when their new privacy laws come into effect. europeans will have a lot more protection and they will have a say on what happens with their personal data. zuckerberg has already announced that they will move all non european users from the t&cs at their hq in ireland to their office in the us. and so does linkedin and other platforms. lol. such hypocrite zuckerberg,. heres a chance to redeem yourself for your cockup with cambridge analytics and then you actually do the oposite of what you promised at the Senate Judiciary and Commerce Committee hearing . he wont be sole boss for long. too much power, and now he crossed a line

Quote from: Uncle Pete on April 19, 2018, 14:00

Just got a new one from Yahoo and also Roku and it's been at least a week now and FB has not sent me "my history" as promised. They said I will get an email when it's ready.

Here's what came from Yahoo. Doesn't leave much room. I mean I can get email or drop my account that's from the 90s? I think we'll see more of this.


New Privacy and Terms

Yahoo is now part of Oath, the media and tech company behind today�s top news, sports and entertainment sites and apps.

By choosing �I accept� below, you agree to Oath�s new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Below is a summary of some of the key updates. To learn more about our approach to privacy, click here.
How we collect and use data.

    We�ve updated some of the ways we collect and analyze user data in order to deliver services, content, relevant advertising and abuse protection.
    This includes: analyzing content and information when you use our services (including emails, instant messages, posts, photos, attachments, and other communications), linking your activity on other sites and apps with information we have about you, and providing anonymized and/or aggregated reports to other parties regarding user trends.

Sharing Data with Verizon.

    Oath and its affiliates may share the information we receive with Verizon. Learn more about Verizon�s privacy practices.

I think that means they can read and monitor everything, use it for advertising and user trends.

Got a similar message from Strava announcing that:

We�ll soon be asking for your consent to collect and process certain data.

So it is up to all of us to decide if we still want free services from internet companies.

Exactly!

Anything "free" comes with some conditions. I especially liked the AT&T / Yahoo notice with basically tells us what they have been doing all this time. And if the message got lost, almost all free email from Internet providers, cable or local service is actually managed by Yahoo Mail. Gmail is not of course. I have my own hosting and they are independent but do I want to change to my website name and try to drag along the business email which is on Gmail or my various personal account that are on Prodigy, or just give in and say, fine, monitor and watch me?

The good is that people are now aware of how much we are being observed and documented for marketing and other uses.

I am not using any social network for about 2 years. Waste of time and energy.
Showing your pseudo ego to fake friends? Nah, i'll better study something.

I had a total of 12,012 "friends" 11,950 of them I never heard of, then they started to use My Page to sell there stuff. I said thats enough and shut it down.

It's pretty simple to just change the setting to "Disable posts by other people on the Page". They can still comment on your posts, but they can't create their own posts.

It solved the problem for me.