timbop

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LOL, when did the government stop being big brother? The government can throw me in jail, Google can't. I prefer to stay distrustful of both.
10 years ago the gathering of metadata by NSA was a huge story that got a lot of attention. Google et al gather and track far more than that without a peep of concern
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I am completely uninterested in having anything Google or Amazon in my car and will make every effort to disable it.

I think if many people truly understood the amount of data that is collected, traded and sold about all of us, they would be outraged. There is plenty of information about it found with a quick search.

The familiar saying "If something is free, you are the product" is a little trite, but there's something to it. Google doesn't spend billions to just give software away - they are making money off of what they get when you use that free software.

It is a long slog, but progress is being made with new privacy laws. Unfortunately, the level of naïveté and disinterest exhibited by most people make it difficult to get traction.
 

BMT1071

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I am completely uninterested in having anything Google or Amazon in my car and will make every effort to disable it.

I think if many people truly understood the amount of data that is collected, traded and sold about all of us, they would be outraged. There is plenty of information about it found with a quick search.

The familiar saying "If something is free, you are the product" is a little trite, but there's something to it. Google doesn't spend billions to just give software away - they are making money off of what they get when you use that free software.

It is a long slog, but progress is being made with new privacy laws. Unfortunately, the level of naïveté and disinterest exhibited by most people make it difficult to get traction.
Google provides a lot of value to me and millions (billions?) of other users. I have yet to see the terrible harm that supposedly comes from the data they gather. Can you share how your life has been negatively impacted by it?
 

timbop

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Google provides a lot of value to me and millions (billions?) of other users. I have yet to see the terrible harm that supposedly comes from the data they gather. Can you share how your life has been negatively impacted by it?
It's not necessarily what HAS been done but what CAN be done. While probably benign today (other than monetizing all of the existing data in a monopolistic fashion), assuming that these companies will always be benign in the face of continued nonregulation is naive.
 

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It's not necessarily what HAS been done but what CAN be done. While probably benign today (other than monetizing all of the existing data in a monopolistic fashion), assuming that these companies will always be benign in the face of continued nonregulation is naive.
If they truly have this nefarious world domination agenda do you seriously think a few regulations are going to stop them?
 


timbop

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If they truly have this nefarious world domination agenda do you seriously think a few regulations are going to stop them?
I like the straw man. It will take much more than hollow regulations; it will take legitimate independent oversight. There's a reason for the phrase "absolute power corrupts absolutely". Are you aware of US history, specifically prior to Teddy Roosevelt's reigning in of the robber barons? Or how "company towns" essentially made their employees indentured servants? Have you not considered how easy extortion is on someone who's always monitored?

Information and access to that information will be the currency of the future. Who is to say how that will be abused or used against you?
 

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Google provides a lot of value to me and millions (billions?) of other users. I have yet to see the terrible harm that supposedly comes from the data they gather. Can you share how your life has been negatively impacted by it?
Yes, no question that Google's apps and services are very useful. I'll answer your question with another, which is not a perfect analogy, but I think illustrates the issue.

Let's say you live in a hilly neighborhood and there are houses behind yours, looking down on yours. (Not uncommon; I have been in this situation numerous times.)

Now let's say one of those neighbors goes out to the edge of his yard and every day and night takes to sitting in a chair looking down at your yard - and can see in some of your windows.

Further, he has a set of binoculars. He is constantly looking down at your yard, house - and you, if you happen to be visible.

He sees who comes to your house, when your lights go on and off (so he knows when you go to bed and get up), your habits and preferences, etc.

Could you quantify how that negatively impacts your life?
 

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I suggest watching the movie "Social Dilema" there are other such movies/podcasts etc. Don't think any of these services started out being nefarious per se, (except amazon) but now have influence on all kinds of social issues. Believe they are now trying to promote "altruistic" goals. The problem is it is their altruistic goals.
 

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Yes, no question that Google's apps and services are very useful. I'll answer your question with another, which is not a perfect analogy, but I think illustrates the issue.

Let's say you live in a hilly neighborhood and there are houses behind yours, looking down on yours. (Not uncommon; I have been in this situation numerous times.)

Now let's say one of those neighbors goes out to the edge of his yard and every day and night takes to sitting in a chair looking down at your yard - and can see in some of your windows.

Further, he has a set of binoculars. He is constantly looking down at your yard, house - and you, if you happen to be visible.

He sees who comes to your house, when your lights go on and off (so he knows when you go to bed and get up), your habits and preferences, etc.

Could you quantify how that negatively impacts your life?
We obviously see this much differently. Direct visual observation by an individual is much different than a software program storing data. I think most people would agree with that.
 

BMT1071

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I suggest watching the movie "Social Dilema" there are other such movies/podcasts etc. Don't think any of these services started out being nefarious per se, (except amazon) but now have influence on all kinds of social issues. Believe they are now trying to promote "altruistic" goals. The problem is it is their altruistic goals.
I have watched "Social Dilemma". It is a great case study of how some people can be manipulated by social media. Social media is a tool. You can use it, or you can let it use you.
 

lwilliams0514

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Sketch and games are interesting, but not sure I'd use them much. I will enjoy this:
  • Apple CarPlay compatibility enhancement to display turn-by-turn navigation in the vehicle’s instrument cluster6.
This I am here for!
 

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This I am here for!
Same lol. I want power consumption while driving though, kinda like an RPM gauge. I want that more than anything apple carplay, anything else no matter what.
 

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We obviously see this much differently. Direct visual observation by an individual is much different than a software program storing data. I think most people would agree with that.
I agree. The constant pervasive omnipresent creepy collection and STORAGE of information is likely worse. You can't build or install adequate privacy blocks like curtains, trees, privacy fences/shields, etc.... I'll take the nosey neighbor any day over Amazon/Alexa and the Google. We can control what the nosey neighbor sees but not what Big Data sees, hears, records, stores, shares, sells, and monetizes.

We might agree to disagree about privacy issues. Some aren't concerned with Big Data; some are concerned with Big Data.
 

Scarpia

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We obviously see this much differently. Direct visual observation by an individual is much different than a software program storing data. I think most people would agree with that.
Most people would agree, if that were an accurate comparison. I disagree with the simplistic characterization that it is "a software program storing data". The data isn't just being stored; it is being analyzed, used, and distributed, including being sold.

There are profiles of all us in countless databases. By analyzing the data they have collected, Amazon, Google, FaceBook, etc., have discerned things such as your income, age, gender, where you live and work, sexuality, religion, health (illnesses and medications), education, what you like to eat, political preferences, acquaintances and family members, etc., etc.

They profit by using that data, and can also create mischief. If you recall the Cambridge Analytica scandal, that data was used to target US voters with ads and bogus campaigns with the goal of affecting opinions and, ultimately, the election results.

We're straying off-topic so I think it's time to move on, but my point is that everyone may have different opinions about this stuff, but knowing and understanding what is actually being done results in informed choices.
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