Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!usc!bbn.com!cosell
From: cosell@bbn.com (Bernie Cosell)
Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk
Subject: Re: *** Lotus Marketplace-style PRIVACY ALERT
Message-ID: <64456@bbn.BBN.COM>
Date: 1 Jun 91 18:54:26 GMT
References: <20164@rsiatl.Dixie.Com>
Sender: news@bbn.com
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Lines: 50

jgd@Dixie.Com (John G. DeArmond) writes:

}***** Privacy Alert *****

}A company calling itself variously "American Business Information" or
}"Online Information Network" was marketing some products at the recent
}Spring Comdex that should make all people concerned with personal privacy
}take note.

Actually, I think that these sorts of 'alerts' are just pissing into the wind,
because...

}The brochure brags that phone numbers are contained within better than
}85% of the records.  The business list contains the names of all
}officers of the business, a description of the business, the number
}of employees, the estimated annual income, the products made/sold and 
}through an optional extra-cost service, a profile of each company's 
}yellow page ad.  

...

}The second product is what they call "Lists on Disc".  This is a CD-ROM
}in the full spirit of Lotus Marketplace.  They advertise it as a "Complete
}desktop marketing system for your PC".  The brochure I could get my hands
}on (the booth was crowded) concerns the same database as made available 
}in the online service above.  I saw similiar brochures for consumer 
}databases.

... this stuff is all public information for the most part, the
compilation and marketing of it is perfectly legal, and since there is
a market for it [just as there is a thriving market for mailing lists
and such], barring some legal intervention there is just no way to stop
it.  It may offend us all to see this kind of stuff blatantly hawked,
but that's life in the marketplace.  The information is just sitting
there, out in the open, and I don't see these last-ditch attempts to
'guide' where that information can and cannot go as being particularly
effective.


}If you find this product disturbing or want to make sure you are not in
}any of the databases, the contact information is:

In what way could you 'make sure' you are out of their databases?  I
can see no reason why they should be obligated to remove anything from
their list simply because it bugs you to be there.  Unlike Lotus, where
they might CARE about consumer reaction [since they also market
consumer products], I see no problem with a "strictly wholesale"
operation not giving a sh*t if you're happy or not about it.

  /Bernie\