Re: Wading through lame crap, plus on-topic privacy stuff

[dlv@bwalk.dm.com (Dr. Dimitri Vulis)]

Don <don@cs.byu.edu> writes:
> Now for the on-topic stuff. Looking through my mail yesterday, noticed a
> credit card application from BofA. Despite the fact that they didn't want
> to give me a card three years ago, they have offered a student card to me.
> I figured that it was a lucky guess, them knowing I'm a student again. Then
> I noticed they were kind enough to fill in my school ("Main Campus" too) into
> the appropriate blank. Now, that's either a really good guess, or else they'v
> been out looking me up. I'm currently writing a letter to BofA telling them
> they can kiss my rear if they're going to go around keeping tabs on me. They
> should at least be more careful about letting me on to them.

Most likely, BofA just obtained the mailing list of all students from your
school and mailed the same offer to all. If you read the fine print, you'll
probably find that your application is still subject to their credit approval.

> This got me interested in which companies keep track of what information. I'm
> now going to write to my other credit companies and ask something like:
...

If you haven't read the book _Privacy for Sale: How Computerization Has Made
Everyone's Private Life an Open Secret_ by Jeffrey Rothfeder
(ISBN 0-671-73492-x), I suggest you get hold of it. You'll be amazed. :-)

>    spending habits, ie, types of goods, dollar amounts and locations,
>      for any purpose

Most definitely! When you charge things to your credit cards, the types of
products and services you purchase, and the typical amounts you spend
all go into your consumer profile, available for the right price.

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<a href="mailto:dlv@bwalk.dm.com">Dr. Dimitri Vulis</a>
Brighton Beach Boardwalk BBS, Forest Hills, N.Y.: +1-718-261-2013, 14.4Kbps