I’ve always smiled when there is an issue raised about user consent for anything that private, or even public, services want to do. You see I think that in practical terms we like to give the impression that we have a choice but in reality we don’t really. This example, BT wants to roll out Phorm but the EC objects. It’s a joke. BT will just roll it out. It will modify the T&Cs for it’s broadband service to include Phorm and if you don’t want to sign then you will need to find another provider and go through the hassle of getting your MAC code waiting while another useless support department waits ten days to connect you and that is if you can find one that doesn’t use Phorm. Signing up doesn’t seem so bad now.
Just look at what BT does with your phone service now. You don’t even want a BT phone but you need one to get a broadband connection with any ISP so you pay BT £11+ a month even if you don’t need, want or use the phone. OFCOM should fix this but is clearly toothless. It’s effectively a cash cow for BT and an additional cost for subscribers that looks very much like a license fee on broadband. BT marketing did well here. What consent is required for this? If you want broadband by anyone other than Virgin then you need to pay it and sign up to their user agreement. No options.
So look at your kids privacy in school. The schools want to fingerprint them, check their lunch boxes, as them questions about you and subject them to lessons on gay history. You don’t consent? OK, find another school then as they are excluded or you are prosecuted for keeping them from school.
Nobody reads they license agreement on software either. They are so long even a lawyer would fall asleep and ordinary people have little chance of realising that the sentence stuck in the middle means you have just given your first born to Microsoft. Don’t consent? Well tough you can’t get your money back because the wrapper is opened.
Don’t want to consent to show the contents of your pockets in a random stop. Get arrested for terrorism offences and get your house, pockets and bottom searched as well as your prints and DNA taken while you wait 6 hours at plods pleasure.
I can go on forever regarding the abuse of power that takes place under the farce of user consent.
It neeeds to be sorted out and strengthened up so that when consent is not given it cannot be forced and in the case of legislated monopolies that they are forced to cater for all sorts and not just what they want. Civil servants put back in their place as servants and not bullies supported by the power of the gun.
Of course it won’t be easy. Lawyers spend a lot of time finding tricky ways to say things so we don’t know what is going on and service providers, be it schools, plod or companies, want everyone to have exactly the same to save them hassle. It will need tough legislation which is enforced which kind of puts it out of the realms of possibility with this government.
p.s. Phorm if you wait a bit our useless goverment will probably sell you the data you want from this super new database they are building with the data collected from all the ISPs. Should get a good deal as they already need the money. Good luck with Amazon though.
The legality and joke that is user consent
I’ve always smiled when there is an issue raised about user consent for anything that private, or even public, services want to do. You see I think that in practical terms we like to give the impression that we have a choice but in reality we don’t really. This example, BT wants to roll out Phorm but the EC objects. It’s a joke. BT will just roll it out. It will modify the T&Cs for it’s broadband service to include Phorm and if you don’t want to sign then you will need to find another provider and go through the hassle of getting your MAC code waiting while another useless support department waits ten days to connect you and that is if you can find one that doesn’t use Phorm. Signing up doesn’t seem so bad now.
Just look at what BT does with your phone service now. You don’t even want a BT phone but you need one to get a broadband connection with any ISP so you pay BT £11+ a month even if you don’t need, want or use the phone. OFCOM should fix this but is clearly toothless. It’s effectively a cash cow for BT and an additional cost for subscribers that looks very much like a license fee on broadband. BT marketing did well here. What consent is required for this? If you want broadband by anyone other than Virgin then you need to pay it and sign up to their user agreement. No options.
So look at your kids privacy in school. The schools want to fingerprint them, check their lunch boxes, as them questions about you and subject them to lessons on gay history. You don’t consent? OK, find another school then as they are excluded or you are prosecuted for keeping them from school.
Nobody reads they license agreement on software either. They are so long even a lawyer would fall asleep and ordinary people have little chance of realising that the sentence stuck in the middle means you have just given your first born to Microsoft. Don’t consent? Well tough you can’t get your money back because the wrapper is opened.
Don’t want to consent to show the contents of your pockets in a random stop. Get arrested for terrorism offences and get your house, pockets and bottom searched as well as your prints and DNA taken while you wait 6 hours at plods pleasure.
I can go on forever regarding the abuse of power that takes place under the farce of user consent.
It neeeds to be sorted out and strengthened up so that when consent is not given it cannot be forced and in the case of legislated monopolies that they are forced to cater for all sorts and not just what they want. Civil servants put back in their place as servants and not bullies supported by the power of the gun.
Of course it won’t be easy. Lawyers spend a lot of time finding tricky ways to say things so we don’t know what is going on and service providers, be it schools, plod or companies, want everyone to have exactly the same to save them hassle. It will need tough legislation which is enforced which kind of puts it out of the realms of possibility with this government.
p.s. Phorm if you wait a bit our useless goverment will probably sell you the data you want from this super new database they are building with the data collected from all the ISPs. Should get a good deal as they already need the money. Good luck with Amazon though.