migselv

nimbuschild said:

I don't understand why people are so biased about their personal data. All big tech companies collect data and share it with whoever they find necessary. It's not just about Android/Google but about everybody else, too. It would be weird if they didn't. 

A local broadcaster did an experiment, where they installed a game on the phone of a child in a school class. Nothing else, after two weeks the held a meeting with the class. The families where quite shocked when they were confronted with information on which families were divorced, which families that had been to the Doctor for birth control procedures, which families that had problems paying their debts, what sort of sports the whole family did etc.

Imagine the next time You went to Your local store and to get in You would have to hand over Your entire message history, location history, shopping history, credit line, personal photos, medical history, Your contacts.....just walking in. Then imagine that any manufacturer/marketer that You pass in the store follows Your each and every step for the next month.

All of us probably remember the story of a teenager that was called out in Target's marketing as being pregnant. Today this is a research area but based on big data (i.e. all the data You don't understand is a problem that is collected)

The same TV program as above also purchased/given as a sample data (assembled under the individuals Google number) of about 500,000 persons. By using the data they could easily find a specific person. They had access to loads of personal information, all from this "innocent" data collection. Imagine if they had access to data from different "vendors"

In the EU (where I live) it is prohibited to collect any data that combined with other collected data can make it possible to identify any specific person. For instance Appleinsider uses Google Analytics, Doubleclick and embeded Youtube Videos etc. They all collect information under a number and is always looking for patterns to which devices is used by the same persons or persons that have relationships (couples/family) and register this. Combine this with any user of Google Maps/Android phones and You have a very clear picture of who the person is how they can be influenced (purchasing and political) Then this becomes a dystopian view.