http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/20/technology/microsoft-expands-gathering-and-use-of-data-from-web-products.html?ref=technology
On Friday, Microsoft expanded the parameters for liberties it could take with the personal information it gathers of users of its free products, like email, messaging, and search. The changes it instituted would be seen as transgressive by any privacy advocates, the above linked-to NYtimes article states, however, little was heard from privacy advocates. This came as a surprise because when Google enabled similar liberties earlier in the year, the move generated passionate criticism from many directions, including from Microsoft itself.
Is this a foot-in-mouth moment for Microsoft?
The article notes: "The difference in the two events illustrates the confusion surrounding
Internet consumer privacy. No single authority oversees the collection
of personal information from Web users by Internet companies. Though
most companies have written privacy policies, they are often stated in
such broad, ambiguous language that they seem to allow virtually any use
of customers’ personal information."
The changes Microsoft implemented entitle it to analyze any/all of the content it collects on specific users of the free services listed above. The article quotes John Simpson, who monitors privacy policy for a consumer watchdog non-profit describing the move made by Microsoft: "It allows the combination of data across services in ways a user
wouldn’t reasonably expect. Microsoft wants to be able to compile
massive digital dossiers about users of its services and monetize them.”
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