semi-public data?? (Re: phone lookups)

[Adam Back]

On Tue, Jun 25, 2002 at 11:49:07PM +0100, John R T Brazier wrote:
> Adam replied:
> >I think a more pertinent question is:
> 
> >- is the information public or not?
> 
> >if it's public it's public -- no semi-public, or public but only to
> >people who pay 200 pounds, or public to people who show up at an
> >office.
> 
> >The reason is if one were to say that it's semi-public (public but
> >somehow restricted), then some one can simply place the CD contents
> >online in another jurisdiction and there won't be anything that can be
> >done about it.
> 
> >Now if you care about privacy, complain about the collection, or
> >public release of this information.  For example make being in the
> >public sub-set opt-in instead of opt-out.
> 
> But even if we regarded this (despicable) disk as a reality,
> are you really saying that every misuse of it is ok, just because
> it exists? 

I'm saying the evil lies in the compilation and first release.

If you're already at the point that some collection of information
_has_ been publicly released (which is where we are) then attempts to
subsequently control the information -- make it semi-public -- lead to
much worse erosion of rights -- that starts to get governments and
laws involved in any number of aspects of computer systems, what you
can do with them.  And another bad aspect is that any such laws are
clearly utterly uneforceable, which is a bad position for a law to be
in because it makes the law a laughing stock.  That strangely doesn't
seem to upset lawyers or legislators, because it's a full employment
act for them to argue the selectively enforced cases where the
unenforceable law is used on some poor sucker, but unenforceable laws
are an abomination if you ask me.

> Even if you could access it for free?  Surely it doesn't matter how
> public it is: I still don't have to invade other's privacy just
> because I can? If nothing else, it's called 'good manners' not to do
> it.

Well, personally I would follow ethical use just because I'd like
other people to do the same; but I don't want to see unenforceable
laws allowing governments to demand the retraction, limits to use and
censorship of public information use.

Laws which could do some good, would be to repeal the laws which
enforce the collection of such information, and subsequently allow the
first sale.  Collection by private companies is subject to private
contract and NDA agreements between the individual and the company and
subject to industry practice etc.

Adam