Is it time for a DMCA for your personal information?

[Le Jacquelope]

Corporations like Choicepoint and Lexus-Nexis make money off of trading your personal information around, giving it to employers and even marketers whom you never agreed to do business with.

Is it not time to declare your private information - your SSN, name, address, phone #, credit records, etc. - to be your personal property?

This is, after all, a capitalist, ownership society. Right?

Every transaction involving your personal information - especially transactions involving businesses you never agreed to do business with - should result in a micropayment to you, and should only be allowed to happen if you permit it. Every. Single. Transaction. ESPECIALLY with companies you have never chosen to do business with.

Basically, royalties. A little cut off the top from the profits these corporations make in trafficking information about you.

You know, like what artists want for the use of their music.

This means that every junk mailer that sends you a credit card offer to your home address and to your name, should have gotten your written permission and paid you first. In fact, the company who GAVE them that information, should have gotten your written permission and paid you first.

Yup, it will slow things down. In fact, direct solicitors and marketers may even go out of business. But your personal information would be recognized as your property.

Isn't that what property rights and capitalism are all about?

 

[SweetPrettyAss]

Corporations like Choicepoint and Lexus-Nexis make money off of trading your personal information around, giving it to employers and even marketers whom you never agreed to do business with.

Is it not time to declare your private information - your SSN, name, address, phone #, credit records, etc. - to be your personal property?

This is, after all, a capitalist, ownership society. Right?

Every transaction involving your personal information - especially transactions involving businesses you never agreed to do business with - should result in a micropayment to you, and should only be allowed to happen if you permit it. Every. Single. Transaction. ESPECIALLY with companies you have never chosen to do business with.

Basically, royalties. A little cut off the top from the profits these corporations make in trafficking information about you.

You know, like what artists want for the use of their music.

This means that every junk mailer that sends you a credit card offer to your home address and to your name, should have gotten your written permission and paid you first. In fact, the company who GAVE them that information, should have gotten your written permission and paid you first.

Yup, it will slow things down. In fact, direct solicitors and marketers may even go out of business. But your personal information would be recognized as your property.

Isn't that what property rights and capitalism are all about?

When you apply for credit, you have to agree to allow the granter of that credit to provide the information to anybody with a legitamate need. This includes anybody who decides to offer you a credit card or sell you ocean front property in Idaho or a time share or anything else.

 

[Le Jacquelope]

When you apply for credit, you have to agree to allow the granter of that credit to provide the information to anybody with a legitamate need. This includes anybody who decides to offer you a credit card or sell you ocean front property in Idaho or a time share or anything else.

Contracts are not God, not even in the eyes of the law.

There is precedent for requiring the people you applied to for credit, to pay you to distribute information out to those who offer you a credit card, time share, etc.

Lots of these marketers don't even go to them for information.

The sticky point you might be looking for is A/B/C Contractors on, say, www.cslb.ca.gov who would LOVE to have that information locked down for pay. Now THAT would be a legal dustup if personal information becomes fully recognized as personal property; they'd lose their case but they would fight it valiantly.