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PRIVACYnotes Digest
Security Protecting Privacy is Good for Business
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Published by: Mike Banks Valentine website101
privacy@website101.com
www.website101.com
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June 27, 2002 Issue # 016
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.....IN THIS DIGEST.....
// -- MODERATOR COMMENT -- //
"All About Legal Spying"
// -- NEW DISCUSSION -- //
"Privacy Fee?" ~ Eric Schwartzman
"Privacy Policy Company?" ~ David Hauser
"Web Mail & Privacy" ~ Rob Frankel
// -- CONTINUING DISCUSSION -- //
"Privacy Advocacy" ~ Eric Norlin ~ moderator comment
// -- PRIVACY NEWS -- //
"The Latest in Privacy Issues"
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// -- MODERATOR COMMENT -- //
Stunning openness for spying minds? I ran across this link to
a British site that is designed for public and "Home Office" visitors
in the United Kingdom. They discuss (in very limited manner) spying,
surveillance and covert operations by English police, spy agencies
and other "legal surveillance" professionals with an eye toward
best practices! I guess it keeps the rules in view for the public
and presents the appearance of open and honest communication about
devious and underhanded techniques?
The following paragraph from the front page of "The Office of
Surveillance Commissioners" or "OSC" lays bare the skeletal support
of the rules from Big Brother in the land of Orwell.
"This website is primarily designed to be used by those who
authorise and conduct covert surveillance operations and covert
human intelligence sources (as informants and undercover officers
are now known). It shows you how to carry out these activities
in compliance with the powers granted by Parliament, and how the
OSC monitors the exercise of those powers. By way of practical
help we have identified some key points, some sources of advice,
and some examples of good and bad practice."
http://www.surveillancecommissioners.org/
What do you think of a public forum for secretive activity?
Should the US have an equivalent public site for oversight? Do
you think this helps or hampers the spies? To good or bad effect?
Very curious!
Mike Banks Valentine
// -- NEW DISCUSSION -- //
===> TOPIC: WEB MAIL & PRIVACY
From: Rob Frankel
I warn everyone that Hotmail, Yahoo and other web-mail accounts
do incredible damage to your brand credibility. We've already
seen how unethically Yahoo has behaved regarding your privacy
when it ambushed your preferences. Now Hotmail is doing the same,
which means more spam, less control of your e-mail:
Here's the latest:
About 2 months ago MSN added 2 little boxes in all the profiles.
These boxes if marked share your email with other users. One box,
if ticked, gives other people the right to see your information
including your address.
Now MSN has taken all the passports that were created before
they added this and marked YES SHARE MY INFORMATION and did not
tell anyone.
HOW to remove sharing of email:
Sign into your email account (for those with more then 1 you
have to do it for all of them),
1) click on OPTIONS 2) Click on PERSONAL PROFILE 3) Scroll to
the bottom ... 4) You will see the TWO added boxes - remove the
check marks and finish up.
One more reason NOT to use web mail.
Rob Frankel, "Yes, I really do turn users into evangelists for
your brand."
Big Time Branding (SM) http://www.RobFrankel.com
Revenue-generating Branded Community (TM): http://www.i-legions.com
New series of e-books: http://www.RobFrankel.com/store
===> TOPIC: PRIVACY FEE?
From: Anonymous
According to tech consultancy Forrester Research, which published
a report this week about online privacy, consumers would be willing
to sacrifice their privacy for a fee. In a survey sampling 6,000
consumers, 36 percent of women said they would allow their web
browsing to be tracked for a $5 a month discount from their Internet
service provider. 33 Percent of men said they would also be willing
to be tracked for a fee. Forrester said women are more likely
to allow themselves to be tracked than men, since men are more
likely to frequent porn sites.
New York Times reporter Bob Tedeschi wrote a technology brief
about it in today's (May 14) business section (Page C4).
===> TOPIC: PRIVACY POLICY COMPANY?
From: Anonymous
Hello,
I was wondering if you or someone on the list had a suggestions
for a person or company to help write a privacy policy for me?
// -- CONTINUING DISCUSSION -- //
===> TOPIC: Privacy Advocacy
From: Eric Norlin
Mike-
Having been involved in "privacy" from several angles (both
in certain government agencies and as an editor at a personalization
publication), I've been watching your list with great interest.
Today's issue leaves me a bit troubled (and perhaps I'm just
nit-picking) -- if only because the definition of "privacy advocate"
that you imply by your comments seems a bit limited.
The "privacy advocacy" that you seem to be implying (please
correct me if I'm wrong) falls very much in the us vs. them (individual
vs. the corp/gov) camp --- a position which i think, in the long
run, doesn't truly serve anybody.
I'd much rather see the list talk about the ways in which business
and government can work cooperatively with advocates to form initiatives,
technologies and policies that are at once beneficial to biz/gov
and respectful of the individual.
Furthermore, i think such a discussion would be advanced through
much more precise language about privacy itself. To that end,
I'd raise the specific topic of anonymity.....I've tried to write
somewhat coherently about it here:
<http://www.digitalidworld.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=56>
I, for one, find privacy to become terribly boring terribly
quickly when it is simply the Zoroastrian tale of standing up
to the corp/gov. And studies show that, while most Americans will
say they're deeply concerned, they will never actually *do* anything
about it. Bottom line: privacy is an issue that advocacy groups
and lists must work with the corp/gov on - and hardline stances
probably just won't get anything done.
just my 2 cents....
Eric Norlin Senior Editor, Digital ID World www.digitalidworld.com
[ Moderator Comment: ]
You say:
"hardline stances probably just won't get anything done."
to which I must reply:
Blind trust leads to tripping over details in the dark.
Digital Identities and real world identities combine, inevitably,
when that is possible. It is becoming more and more possible -
and likely - daily.
Permit me a story.
Let's say I happen to know as your physician that your medical
history points to a 7 in 10 chance that you will die before 50
of heart failure. At 49 you decide to run for President of the
United States. Your health information is available digitally
since HIPAA mandates that information be maintained digitally.
Do I banish that portion of your medical digital identity if I
support your election? What if I oppose your election and have
that same information? Maybe public officials should be exempt
from digital identity? Maybe this information should be entirely
open and available to the public? Can John Q. Public become John
Q. Private if he so chooses? Who decides that little detail?
Who has access and who controls and/or maintains that information?
I propose, at a minimum, that if digital identity is inevitable,
that those health, financial and legal databases remain separated
and protected from both public and private view - hence - privacy
advocacy. Maybe here is where we can use competing systems to
advantage, eh? Maybe Oracle for medical digital ID, IBM DB2 for
financial digital ID and legal Digital ID to a Siebel product.
Just so they can't talk with each other. ;-) Do you think all
of this belongs in one central database? That is where we are
headed.
Homeland Security may have access to your legal ID, Health and
Human Services your medical ID and maybe Commerce your shopping
ID. If the IRS maintains your Tax ID, would they then be able
to communicate and share information with HHS when you don't pay
your hospital bills? Are you then refused future healthcare, and,
is your shopping ID then shared with your TAX ID?
Homeland Security is working now to combine disparate databases
- BEFORE we discuss any of this. Isn't that a problem? You are
correct that the purpose of the list is to discuss privacy. I
thank you for bringing digital ID into the discussion.
Mike Banks Valentine
// -- PRIVACY NEWS -- //
Moderator note: There are two ways to access previously listed
privacy news stories. One is to visit PRIVACYnotes archives,
the other (simpler) way is to visit
http://privacynotes.com/privacy_news.html
where I also keep a privacy news archive.
The buzz around appending as an email marketing optimization
tool has increased since E-mail Address Appending Best Practices
for Marketers was released last month by the Association for Interactive
Marketing's Council for Responsible E-mail (whew, that's a mouthful!).
In fact, more than one vendor approached me at the ClickZ email
conference last month, to ask me to recommend their appending
services to my consulting clients. Here's the rub: I'm not a fan
of appending.
http://www.clickz.com/em_mkt/opt/article.php/1367711
What You Need to Know About HIPAA Compliance! HIPAA - the Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act - is a federal law
developed, in part, to define and regulate the use of healthcare
information in the United States. Entities that provide, pay for
or supply health services, medications or equipment, as well as
their business partners and vendors, are affected by this new
set of regulations. This article summarizes the work that needs
to be done to meet requirements necessary to become HIPAA compliant.
http://website101.com/Privacy/HIPAA_compliance_privacy.html
In a move aimed at ensuring mobile marketers have their say
in the discussion about wireless privacy best practices, the Mobile
Marketing Association (MMA) has joined non-profit seal organization
TRUSTe in its efforts to establish guidelines for the new medium.
The privacy organization, which gives its "seal of approval" to
companies that abide by its guidelines, has been working on developing
standards for the wireless world since February, when it signed
on AT&T Wireless as its initial partner in the effort. The
agreement with the MMA calls for the industry organization to
get a seat on the TRUSTe Wireless Privacy Committee, and for TRUSTe
to work with MMA member companies and include them in privacy
initiatives.
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/perl/story/18337.html
Amid uncertainty about whether surveillance cameras should be
used to control crowds, detect terrorists or scare off drug dealers,
the authorities in the nation's capital are debating rules intended
to keep them from becoming a tool of Big Brother spying on citizens.
The Metropolitan Police Department has only 14 cameras in use,
at places like the Old Post Office Building on Pennsylvania Avenue
and the neighborhood of DuPont Circle, and officials insist they
have no current plans to install more. But other institutions,
like the school system and the metro, use cameras.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/06/19/national/19PRIV.html
Mike Banks Valentine is a champion of the true small online business.
He advocates a do-it-yourself approach to e-commerce through online
learning for the small office, home office (SOHO) or emerging entrepreneur
who lacks major venture capital funding or corporate marketing budgets.