

Australia: Coming soon, Travel Card That Tracks Your Moves - d0ne
http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/coming-soon-travel-card-that-tracks-moves-20110716-1hiyd.html

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TimJRobinson
They already have this in QLD and I don't really see what the problem is with
it. Police still need a warrant to access the data and tracking analytics
could be very useful to Translink to see where bottlenecks are occurring and
plan future upgrades better.

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d0ne
If the data didn't exist to begin with there wouldn't be a need for a warrant.
As the data will now exist, they will be able to justify the need to access it
on demand.[1]

What's the difference between this program or one that pushes "Everyone is now
required to keep a device on them that records everything they say. The
purpose of this device is to improve the quality of X, Y and Z services based
on real-world conversational feedback."

The data was then also accessible to the Government, with a warrant, when
needed.

I don't believe you can justify uninvited invasion of privacy to improve a
service when the data collected can also be used against you.

[1] <http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10451518-38.html>

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SoftwareMaven
I think your example is a bit of a straw man. Yes, they should limit the data
they need to keep, but if you are really concerned about your privacy (and I
wish more people were!), you can choose not to use the card. Pay for your
privacy with a bit of inconvenience.

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mpclark
Well, that's an interesting comment because last time I was in London I
noticed they've really jacked up the cash price of single tickets on the tube,
to the point where you'd be an idiot not to get an Oyster card because using
one makes multiple trips much cheaper. Differential pricing like this could be
used to effectively buy people's location information.

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sanxiyn
Isn't this optional? If it is optional, what is the problem? Lots of people
voluntarily disclose their location on, oh, Twitter...

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SoftwareMaven
I completely agree with you. There are benefits to me as a user to having
access to the information (how much is my travel costing me, when did I go
visit that shop out in the suburbs, etc), so you can't blankly say there is no
reason to store the data.

However, I agree the data should be kept private. Unfortunately, in the US,
you know it wouldn't be; I can't imagine Australia will be, either.

If you do want the privacy, anonymity and cash are still your friends.

