[Jayceef1]

Originally Posted by Barkotron

... and way, way over there in the distance is the point...

At every single transaction, Tesco have to ask me whether or not I wish to use a Clubcard (i.e. give them the ability to correlate what I am buying with my Clubcard account), and that's even if I choose to allow them to collate this data in the first place by carrying a Clubcard. Phorm get this information whether or not I wish them to.

Phorm say they "anonymise" email addresses and numbers longer than 3 digits long. My address is, say "94 Road Street, Townville, TV3 8BJ". How many email addresses and strings of digits are in that? How many emails to a web mail account from any web retailer e.g. confirming a delivery addresses will it take for Phorm to have access to this information? How many numeric digits long is your name?



There is no consent sought or given by Phorm, there is no _real_ opt-out, it _should_ be opt-in, they are run by people who I wouldn't trust with my full name, let alone my browsing data, they will be processing _and_ "anonymising" all of the data AFTER it arrives in China (where, incidentally, people care even less about all our Data Protection laws than formerly reputable companies like BT and VM here do), and we apparently have to trust these crooks?

Where exactly is the benefit to us here? What part of the above sounds like a good idea? Targeted adverts on the internet, where I already block all adverts I can and actively avoid giving money to those companies whose ads I can't block? "Phishing protection" which is given away free by reputable companies rather than apparently "reformed" purveyors of scumware?

Well, no. If Virgin continue with this, then I quit. You may be happy being treated like a hole used expressly for the purpose of vomiting money into VM shareholders' pockets, but 95% of people on this forum aren't. They can stuff their poxy ad revenue: the day they start running this scam is the day I cancel every one of their services.

Put your toys back in the pram. I never said I agreed with it. Just pointing out that there are many other things out there that are just as bad if not worse. Sky already sell data on and that does include e-mails & tel nos. Phorm say they do not get e-mails or addresses yet you say they do how do you know better? There has been one (probably premature) press release from Phorm and the world and his wife have set themselves up as experts on the subject spreading wild rumours about what it can or cannot do yet nothing is agreed as yet. Wait for more information and then see. It may be a problem or it may not depending on how it is done. What BT do may be different to what CPW or VM do. Until we know more it is pointless people getting worked up about it.