google scraping photos from your files.

[jamaeolus]

I had a disturbing e-mail from google photos. I had never even heard of google photos but I got an e-mail from them. Normally I would just delete the e-mail and carry on. But this one had a photo in it. An artistic shot of a frilly house plant that. It looked very familiar. So double checking I verified thatI had taken and desaturated the photo. I NEVER posted it anywhere on line. I find it VERY disturbing that google feels it is OK to scrape my files, steal my stuff then try sell it back to me. Anybody have advice on if I can try to take them to task for this bullshit? If so how?

[benadamx]

[visualopsins]

On android phone? Get backed up by service provider? Got Gmail? All Google.

Maybe try image search to locate it online.

[jamaeolus]

I am aware that google is EVERYWHERE. I guess I just didn't realize how evil they had become. I knew facebook was a cesspool of evilness. I never signed up for that shit but man o man. Apparently you need a fucking lawyer to read the EULA before downloading any app. Its getting harder and harder to function in the world without the tech giants controlling/stealing everything you own. I try very hard to be in charge of my info. Even here (on mfl) I only post a very small percentage of my stuff. No FLICKR, no facebook, no snapchat, no instagram, no hivemind or whatever. I did make the mistake of signing up with linkdin but quickly realized how evil they were when a friend (one of my few e-mail links) mentioned that he had gotten an e-mail that I recommended them. I hadn't, and I certainly had not given them permission to scrape my e-mail files. I deleted my account with them immediately but continued to get spam from them (like 4 or 5 e-mails A DAY!) until I went in and changed my file info to fake everything.

[Lloydy]

We've all got used to the way that after researching or buying something online, our facebook feed is then full of adverts for that item, I was pricing beds online a few weeks ago and my facebook is full of bed adverts, as it always is with the last thing I bought from Amazon. And this is now the accepted thing - but it is the result of the online searches and purchases we make.

The bigger worry is the insidious harvesting of 'information'. I read the other day about two women travelling in a car, one woman had her smart phone just placed on the center console. The woman commented to her friend that her bra was uncomfortable as the underwire had come adrift and was digging in, and they had a brief conversation about bra's. When they were having a coffee a short while later she checked her facebook page on her phone, and it was full of adverts for unwired bra's. That was without any internet search, was her phone 'listening' ? That is her suspicion.

The social media companies are obsessed with collecting data to target advertising, nothing surprises me anymore.

[yoyomaoz]

[visualopsins]

Try to buy it!

[Gerald]

[cooltouch]

I don't see how it is, where google attempts to market a photo back to the person who took it, thus the one who owns the copyright -- I don't see how this isn't a clear and simple case of copyright violation. I suspect the (US) courts would agree.

Whenever an app asks if it can have access to data on my phone, I always refuse. Always. None of their damn business.

[l9magen]

Actually I think if you read the Google ULA you will find that by "Accepting" their terms, you have handed over all copyright on anything you own or will own. It's pretty cast iron, so I doubt you'll find a lawyer prepared to fight your case.

So if you are libertarian, you'll hope the US Senate and EU do not seek to break up the stranglehold the FANGs have.

If you weren't already aware that you handed away your privacy when you opened a google account or used their apps, cloud storage or whatever, then maybe, perhaps, with some luck, they might be broken up by US lawmakers and the EU. But instead we'll face another 10-20 companies trying to harvest our "presence".

Either way, the cat is out of the bag, and there is no going back. All we can do is go offline as much as possible, and when forced online, do so through fake accounts and VPNs. I try these methods to kill all tracks, but they often don't work completely:
https://youradchoices.com

I have to admit tyhat i DO find it hilarious that, as mentioned here, the search for beds results in lots of adds for beds, or whatever, AFTER the item has been purchased. If that's AI, god help us - useless...

[D1N0]

Google needs a license to show you your images, they do not own copyright. Could we continue the Google is evil clap trap in another part of the forum?

[aidaho]

Yes, we are fast approaching total privacy depreciation.
It's not like you are not getting anything in return, quite often you do, but the price might not be comfortable for everyone.
The endgame in getting your data is taking absolute remote control of your electronic device from you.

If you own pretty much any modern smartphone, sadly you're not going to get a last word on what it can and cannot do with your data.
A lot of people find this statement too uncomfortable to accept and choose denial, though recently awareness started to spread.
Can you put a different operating system on your device? At least a different distribution, not associated with the original manufacturer(s)?
If you cannot, you are entirely at the mercy of corporations which manufactured it.

The same trend can be clearly seen with PCs starting with Windows 10.
I bet Microsoft couldn't believe their eyes looking at the state of things on mobile.

"We could do that, get away with it, and still getting paid by the consumer?! Amazing!" — every tech giant looking at his peers over there.


Again, you are benefitting from many of these privacy invasions too.
Traffic avoidance, relevant ads, fast location acquisition, online maps, free web search, mail and other essential services, and the list goes on.
While you often have no control how your data will be used, as long as you own your electronic device, you still have control whether to use individual services or not in exchange for your data.


So it's not the end of the world. Yet.
I think it's only a matter of time for governments to follow and demand both your data and full control over your electronic devices.

[Lightshow]

FB has time and time again done some shady shit with our data to make money, getting caught, promising to do better, and getting caught yet again, I'll never trust them again, period.
Google is marginally better, they seem open to reform and regulations, but in the end it's like all the others, it's a mindless corporate machine that has 1 motive, profit.
If the penalties for breaching our trust are less than the profit, they will continue to what they want.

The tech companies are going too far and there will be a day of reckoning in the US, something similar to the EU's privacy data law.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Data_Protection_Regulation

[visualopsins]

Chrome 'Has Become Surveillance Software. It's Time to Switch'

https://m.slashdot.org/story/357332

[marcusBMG]

I read Roger McNamee's book Zucked a couple of months ago. He lays out just how FB has come to own the "public square" and have an adverse influence on public opinion, elections, extremism, fake news..
Scary times.

[cooltouch]

I still prefer Firefox's predecessor, Seamonkey, which is the latest version of the old Netscape browser. Remember that one? It's still around, although you have to dig pretty deep at Mozilla's website to find a copy -- or updates. I've been using it and its various antecedents since 1994.

Maybe old school provides more privacy?

[Slalom]

Most of the none verbal stuff is due to Cookies. Particularly the tracking variety.