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Sleezy company policies & tactics
Sep. 2nd, 2007 09:27 pmThe following is buried in the End-user License Agreement on "Documents To Go" included with my new Palm Treo 680 (emphasis mine):
This software includes technology that periodically, if an internet connection is available, contacts DataViz servers with information regarding your installed copy of Documents to Go and your Palm OS device. Data collected includes information regarding Documents To Go product specifications, registrations status, type and model of Palm device, desktop operating system, and product usage patterns, including how often this software is used. [...] DataViz may also match your registration and/or product information to personally identifiable information in order to present you with product notifications, offers and invitations [...] tailored to you. Any other use of information is governed and limited by DataViz's privacy policy ...
OK, so they assume that most people won't read the EULA, and won't see that this product is capturing & sending to the company information that the company really has no right to see. The whole bit about "their privacy policy" is a complete red herring, since they can change their policy at any time -- especially if the company gets bought -- and suddenly your "privacy" isn't protected at all. Besides, maybe their definition of "product usage patterns" includes knowing what documents you are reading when; they could easily be reporting the title of documents under the guise of "product usage" since they want to know whether you keep opening the same document or open different documents.
Oh, and since I don't have a cell phone plan that includes unlimited internet usage, I'm supposed to pay the charges for their product to send info to me back to their servers?
This software includes technology that periodically, if an internet connection is available, contacts DataViz servers with information regarding your installed copy of Documents to Go and your Palm OS device. Data collected includes information regarding Documents To Go product specifications, registrations status, type and model of Palm device, desktop operating system, and product usage patterns, including how often this software is used. [...] DataViz may also match your registration and/or product information to personally identifiable information in order to present you with product notifications, offers and invitations [...] tailored to you. Any other use of information is governed and limited by DataViz's privacy policy ...
OK, so they assume that most people won't read the EULA, and won't see that this product is capturing & sending to the company information that the company really has no right to see. The whole bit about "their privacy policy" is a complete red herring, since they can change their policy at any time -- especially if the company gets bought -- and suddenly your "privacy" isn't protected at all. Besides, maybe their definition of "product usage patterns" includes knowing what documents you are reading when; they could easily be reporting the title of documents under the guise of "product usage" since they want to know whether you keep opening the same document or open different documents.
Oh, and since I don't have a cell phone plan that includes unlimited internet usage, I'm supposed to pay the charges for their product to send info to me back to their servers?