[Cialug] I Don't Hate Tikly--a Thoughtful Side-Topic Opinion

[jim kraai]

Who moved Dave's cheese?
On Nov 2, 2013 6:40 AM, "Dave Weis" <djweis at sjdjweis.com> wrote:

> So you're volunteering to tally all RSVP's?
>
> I think the last use of the service was to get a count of people so you
> could be provided free food and beverages at a meeting planned, hosted, and
> led by volunteers.
>
> I'll be sitting out of the crusade against services that make my and
> other's life easier without any risk beyond my email address and where I'll
> be Wednesday night.
>
>
>
> On Sat, Nov 2, 2013 at 2:34 AM, jim kraai <jimgkraai at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > ... but I do hate being forced to use third party services like it.
> >
> > This isn't directly Linux related, but it is related to a trend that all
> of
> > the local technical groups are going in where we're directed to third
> party
> > web sites to RSVP or schedule or whatever for events.
> >
> >
> > I recall that government agencies used to be legally obligated to adhere
> to
> > the following principle:  If data is not required by law to fulfill a
> > mandated requirement, then it is unlawful to collect it.  This was an
> > acknowledgement that data:
> > 1. was expensive to gather (this is no longer true)
> > 2. was expensive to curate (this is no longer true)
> > 3. would eventually be misused
> >
> > Which led me to ... let's call it Kraai's Maxim:  The reasons for which
> > data are collected today will not constrain the uses to which it will be
> > put tomorrow.
> >
> > Corollary 1:  Those collecting data today are not those who will be using
> > it tomorrow.
> >
> > Corollary 2:  It is impossible to anticipate today what uses data will be
> > put to tomorrow.
> >
> > Corollary 3:  It should be assumed that all data will eventually be
> > misinterpreted or misused in unpredictable and possibly in unscrupulous
> > ways.
> >
> > Weak Corollary to Corollary 3:  Data that isn't collected can't be
> > effectively misinterpreted or misused.
> >
> > - By effectively, I mean that it wouldn't stand up under rational
> scrutiny.
> >
> > - By weak, I mean that new data can be interpolated and/or extrapolated
> > from what data there is depending on the quality of the source data and
> > what other data sources are corellatable to the source data.
> >
> > So, applying the Maxim and Corollaries to tikly:
> >
> > (Note that tikly requires first/last name, email address, and a phone
> > number.)
> >
> > Over the years we've learned that eventually, tikly will have an
> accidental
> > data spill or exposure, get hacked, and/or sell out.  The only
> uncertainty
> > is when that will happen--not whether.  Keep in mind that they can't leak
> > or sell what they don't have.
> >
> > Note that if tikly goes under--and there's a 19/20 chance they
> will--their
> > most significant salable asset will be that data.  Recent precedent has
> > shown that prior promises and user agreements will be thrown out so the
> > investors can have their claims settled partially by the sale of that
> data
> > to the highest bidder.  Until something extraordinary happens in the
> > courts, there's nothing you can do about such a sale or the uses to which
> > that data is eventually put.
> >
> > It's a common practice to 'protect our privacy' by putting bogus data in
> > their registration forms.  We need to realize that it's ethically
> > problematic and potentially illegal to put bad data in a web site's
> > registration forms.  So that should not be an acceptable long-term
> practice
> > for a principled person.
> >
> > This is why I prefer to not use third party services that gather any kind
> > of data.
> >
> > --jim
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> >
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