What is Amazon doing with your Data?

[Horn Under a Bad Sign 20,496]

It turns out even Amazon.com doesn't know what it's doing with your data or where it all is:

https://www.politico.eu/article/data-at-risk-amazon-security-threat/

I think that it's going to take politicians to address this, just as they have in Europe.

[immortal13 4,059]

The politicians will surely fix the problem

[TexArcher 38,075]

Hell, the politicians are buying the data.

[NeverMarryAStripper 21,928]

I just assumed the politicians worked for Amazon

[immortal13 4,059]

7 minutes ago, NeverMarryAStripper said:

I just assumed the politicians were owned by Amazon

 

[atomheartbevo 89,809]

3 hours ago, TexArcher said:

Hell, the politicians are buying the data.

This.  And they are owned by Amazon.

 

[Doc Holliday 199]

This is a distraction piece, yeah?

The idea that they don't know what they are doing with the data they collect when it is the key piece that enables their business systems and revenue streams, is quite foolish. 

I bet GDPR has created many expletives across amazon leadership.

[gyroprotagonist 2,595]

i was browsing books on how to cook brisket in the oven FOR A FRIEND!

[52-80 19,258]

probably selling it to pornhub

[El Diablo 4,232]

I didn't even know I had data. Feeling better about myself knowing now that I got something that has value to someone. 

[washparkhorn 9,939]

22 minutes ago, El Diablo said:

Feeling better about myself knowing now that I got something that has value to someone

Would you like to know more?

[washparkhorn 9,939]

Amazon is part of the Defense sector now. From MIT's Technology Review:

https://www.technologyreview.com/2019/10/08/75349/meet-americas-newest-military-giant-amazon/

(Public/Private Partnerships at the Pentagon) - 

it’s clear that the Pentagon’s dependence on Silicon Valley is growing.

One reason may have to do with the priorities of the Department of Defense itself. Once, it led the way in computer science—many of the technologies that made cloud computing possible, including the internet itself, originated from military--sponsored research. Today, however, the money big tech firms bring to information technology dwarfs what the Pentagon spends on computing research. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which funded the creation of the Arpanet (the precursor to the internet) starting in the 1960s, is still involved in computer science, but when it comes to cloud computing, it is not building its own version. 

Jonathan Smith, a DARPA program manager, says the agency’s cloud work today is focused on developing secure, open-source prototypes that could be adopted by anyone, whether in government, academia, or commercial companies, like Amazon.

“I mean, pragmatically, when you look at technology, I think in days gone by the DOD was like Godzilla,” he said. “But now we’re just a big mean machine.”

[MAUFRAIS 6,638]

1 hour ago, washparkhorn said:

Would you like to know more?

 

[NeverMarryAStripper 21,928]

1 hour ago, washparkhorn said:

Would you like to know more?

I might be in the market for a lung and I don't see that on the list

[Captainant 27,792]

IMO this isn't just an Amazon problem, you could sub in facebook or google or any large tech firm into that article and it would be the exact same. Any company on the internet is scraping, indexing, and running ML models against your data. Install a javascript blocker on your browser and be horrified by the number of tracking libraries it blocks on pageload.

The US needs a GDPR and we the people need more control of how our data is used and stored by 3rd parties, but last I heard any sort of regulation is socialism or obamacare for the internet, or something.

Edited March 1, 2021 by Captainant

[immamac 43,118]

I don't sell data to anyone. Your IP address and shit tied to that gets used for stuff, but no data ever leaves it's encrypted state unless it's on a page load on surly. 

[immortal13 4,059]

3 minutes ago, Captainant said:

IMO this isn't just an Amazon problem, you could sub in facebook or google or any large tech firm into that article and it would be the exact same. Any company on the internet is scraping, indexing, and running ML models against your data. Install a javascript blocker on your browser and be horrified by the number of tracking libraries it blocks on pageload.

The US needs a GDPR and we the people need more control of how our data is used and stored by 3rd parties, but last I heard any sort of regulation is socialism or obamacare for the internet, or something.

Exactly right. 

[Captainant 27,792]

11 minutes ago, immamac said:

I don't sell data to anyone. Your IP address and shit tied to that gets used for stuff, but no data ever leaves it's encrypted state unless it's on a page load on surly. 

The worst thing is that it's more insideous than just that and even good operators like yourself don't make a huge dent on privacy. Unless you're using encrypted DNS, your ISP tracks your browsing by DNS requests and sell that user-attributed information as an additional revenue stream. Even if you're going to a safe haven, the roads have cameras so to speak

Edited March 1, 2021 by Captainant

[immamac 43,118]

the ads/tracker don't even load for registered users, I wrote a switcher in the software to only have those js libs not even load for registered logged in members.

I also changed all ads to be direct buy (no cookie sniffing) so only pre-purchased blocks are shown. I don't have programmatic ads on surly anymore because it's a crazy violation of privacy. 

It's part of the reason it's so hard to get ads going for registered users in Cloak Room. 

[BabaYaga 15,322]

6 minutes ago, immamac said:

the ads/tracker don't even load for registered users

Then how come I keep getting peen enlargement pill ads, huh!

What the fuck, man!

[Serak The Preparer 3,432]

17 minutes ago, immamac said:

the ads/tracker don't even load for registered users, I wrote a switcher in the software to only have those js libs not even load for registered logged in members.

...

It's part of the reason it's so hard to get ads going for registered users in Cloak Room. 

Que? Not sure if I am missing something or you had a typo but if you don't load ads for registered users, what is the impact of registered users in cloak room?

[atomheartbevo 89,809]

[immamac 43,118]

3 hours ago, Serak The Preparer said:

Que? Not sure if I am missing something or you had a typo but if you don't load ads for registered users, what is the impact of registered users in cloak room?

I want to run ads for cloak room users (everyone but treefiddy), but can't because I don't have the js available to build another if/then based on the forum. 

Cloak Room should be 100% monetized traffic. The rest of the board is free (I will likely ad a very light advertisement experience for people with less than 100 posts or 100 rep, but it will be static not programmatic) 

Eventually we will have sponsored threads and/or boards (hoping to get a sponsor for the football board this season) and those will be global for all including treefiddy folks, because it's a real sponsor for the actual board - they will likely also be giving us free shit for tailgates etc. 

 

Bottom line is AMZN sucks and Surly is awesome. 

[Captainant 27,792]

25 minutes ago, immamac said:

because I don't have the js available to build another if/then based on the forum. 

Is the board software closed source or can you make changes? That's a pretty easy thing to switch on considering a usercontext would already be loaded which (I'm assuming) already contains the treefiddy flag

[Serak The Preparer 3,432]

Thanks - didn't realize you were monetizing the CR separately.

[immamac 43,118]

9 minutes ago, Captainant said:

Is the board software closed source or can you make changes? That's a pretty easy thing to switch on considering a usercontext would already be loaded which (I'm assuming) already contains the treefiddy flag

It's closed source, you can modify some stuff via plugins or addons, by the time the addon reads the user state the page is already loaded, then you would need to load the JS after the fact which usually pre-loads in the <head> it's a real annoying thing that I need someone who knows the software's API better to help with. Showing global ads to a group is ez though, just not a specific board. 

[Captainant 27,792]

13 minutes ago, immamac said:

It's closed source, you can modify some stuff via plugins or addons, by the time the addon reads the user state the page is already loaded, then you would need to load the JS after the fact which usually pre-loads in the <head> it's a real annoying thing that I need someone who knows the software's API better to help with. Showing global ads to a group is ez though, just not a specific board. 

Tbh, as long as the ads aren't intrusive or predatory I don't think the CR degenerates would mind seeing ads, treefiddy or not. If it helps keep the site ticking it's an ok compromise. And I won't feel bad about using an adblocker anyways lol

[Slacks 6,862]

I don't sell data to anyone. Your IP address and shit tied to that gets used for stuff, but no data ever leaves it's encrypted state unless it's on a page load on surly. 

What stuff?

[Brothahorn 10,087]

7 hours ago, immamac said:

I don't sell data to anyone. Your IP address and shit tied to that gets used for stuff, but no data ever leaves it's encrypted state unless it's on a page load on surly. 

Ok, Jeff.