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i'm surprised i haven't seen this topic anywhere here.
i don't understand how people can complain about privacy issues when they are using a free service. where does this false sense of entitlement come from?
this is absolutely nothing like big-brother. this is my assumption on how it would work--a computer program, probably alot like a spider, scans the incoming mail and pulls out a few keywords. these keywords are then used to pull up related ads that will appear inside the mail you receive.
if G was collecting information on the people that send mail to gmail subscribers, i wouldn't join gmail, i would block all incoming gmail, and i would never send mail to a gmail subscriber. but G is not doing this.
also, from what i understand, G will not be developing profiles on its' users for any other purpose than placing targeted ads.
it's amazing that this topic has received so much press and conversely how few people are up in arms about spyware. i can't prove those numbers, but people i talk with seem to have more of a reaction to gmail privacy issues than to spyware.(maybe they don't fully understand what spyware is)
maybe i'll check out some of those third-party interest groups that appear in most of the gmail articles--i wonder where they get their funding...
i don't mean to sound like a spokesperson for G, i'm certainly not, i just think it's interesting to see how people feel like they deserve something they are not entitled to. most of us here live in countries deeply rooted in capitalism, G is a business, if you don't like their services go somewhere else.
conclusion:
so what, big deal, it's free. if you want your information to be protected then don't sign up, pay for a service, or start your own.
long post--sorry!
i'm surprised i haven't seen this topic anywhere here.
where does this false sense of entitlement come from?