The Facebook Conundrum
Even though I deleted my Facebook account a good long while ago, I’m thinking of re-registering. While I was getting a perverse kick out of being on the fringes of what my close network of friends were doing, it’s turned to something of an inconvenience. I miss out on old friends coming back to town, […]
Beacon illegal?
Turns out some aspects of Beacon were/are probably illegal. Check out this analysis. Another member of a professorial mailing list I’m on asked whether Facebook may have violated the Video Privacy Protection Act of 1988. Nicknamed the “Bork Bill” (a newspaper published his video rental records during his confirmation hearings), the VPPA protects your privacy […]
A nation of SINners
This article got me thinking about what Social Insurance Numbers in Canada are used for. The Privacy Commissioner of Canada has a good little fact sheet on SIN use, and who can ask you for it. Your SIN is a confidential number that is restricted to income reporting purposes. There are a select and limited […]
One less Facebook user
After giving it considerable thought over the last few weeks, and with the advent and somewhat-demise of Beacon, I’ve decided that I’m going to go through the pain-in-the-ass process of deleting my Facebook account tonight. Some of the reasons include what Amy Tiemann said in this CNET piece: You remember the old story about the […]
Zuckerberg's ego
There’s been a huge buzz lately about Facebook’s attempt to roll out Beacon, an application that would effectively track anything you purchase online, and then post the purchase to your Facebook newsfeed. What I find most astonishing is that Facebook’s creator, Mark Zuckerberg, seems surprised at the backlash against Beacon. First Coca-Cola jumped ship (though […]