Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!ns-mx!iowasp.physics.uiowa.edu!maverick.ksu.ksu.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!rpi!uupsi!sunic!nuug!ifi!hhe
From: hhe@ifi.uio.no (Hans Henrik Eriksen)
Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk
Subject: Re: Lotus Marketplace
Message-ID: <CMM.0.88.659017149.hhe@sentralen.ifi.uio.no>
Date: 19 Nov 90 12:19:09 GMT
References: <1990Nov16.205011.10348@uncecs.edu><1990Nov17.074534.8751@looking.on.ca> 
 <48514@cornell.UUCP><4960@rsiatl.UUCP> <1990Nov19.000849.23021@math.lsa.umich.edu><JMC.90Nov18190919@Gang-of-Four.stanford.edu>
Sender: Hans Henrik Eriksen <hhe@ifi.uio.no>
Reply-To: hhe@ifi.uio.no
Organization: University in Oslo, Department of Informatics
Lines: 38
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In-Reply-To: jmc@Gang-of-Four.stanford.edu (John McCarthy)'s message of 19Nov 90 03:09:19 GMT
Originator: hhe@sentralen.ifi.uio.no


In article <JMC.90Nov18190919@Gang-of-Four.stanford.edu>
jmc@Gang-of-Four.stanford.edu (John McCarthy) writes:
> I think it is a mistake to put any restriction on what information is
> kept in databases.  I think people have a right to know what
> information about them is kept in databases offered for sale, have a
> right to have references to rebuttals kept available to whoever uses
> the database.

You left out an important right here: the right NOT to be registered
in a database, or the right to control what information is kept there.
Should the company where you work be allowed to keep every piece of
information about you that they want to?  Even if you don't want some
particular item laying around?  After you have quit the job?
Who owns the information? It is not you who put it there.

I've mentioned Norwegian law on registers with personal information,
which is relatively strict. It focuses on PROTECTION of the individual,
not CONVENIENCE.  Items not directly relevant to your job (generally, items
not relevant) is forbidden in personal registers.  (sorry about always
referring to Norwegian law, but since we have a working law..)

The issue of public rebuttal databases rises a lot of questions.
The database is of limited use if one can't use (sigh) the information
in it. So one can suppose that some information is copied from the
database.  Life changes, and so does one's attitudes (let alone one's
attributes :-) towards keeping the information public.  Maybe there
has been a major change in the persons life, so that important attri-
butes are changed.  It is impossible to get all the copies floating
around the world updated or destroyed. Too bad for the person involved
if this is important, and some old information is used in disadvantage
to the person by somebody somewhere.

Note that even appearing in a "database", even if there is no information
there can be incriminating.  Subscribers to "Phrack" would probably agree
on this.
							Hans Henrik Eriksen
							hhe@ifi.uio.no