Re: Safeway + Your Privacy

[rarachel@prism.poly.edu (Arsen Ray Arachelian)]

As insidious as it seems, there are a couple of advantages to this
commercial invasion of privacy.  firstly it allows you to go through
the checkout counter a bit faster.  Secondly, it allows Safeway to
compile statistical information about what products you're interested
in, and can sell this information to advertisers, which would either
bombard you with junk mail, or unexpected/unwanted phonecalls, but
may also throw in some cupons to sweaten the deal.

(Of course the advantages are not quite all the shoppers...)  Now this
is fairly harmless, however, should something like DT2 require Safeway
to provide its database to the Feds, they will hold practically all
the information they could dream of having about an individual/family.

They can already get all the credit info, at the records of your bank
account, your credit card purchases, phone calls, food purchases, your
trash (sort of like dumpster diving, only more sinister), what more
could they possibly need to know you without your consent?

It really is time to get anon digital cash... :-I