WhoOwnsTheData
February 2009 - I realized my utilities and banking companies and eBay are generating email traffic, but instead of sending it to me for real, they are stashing it on their own servers and sending me a notification that the message has posted.
I have two thoughts about this practice:
- On the upside, I imagine they do this because it's more secure. In other words, the actual message content only transfers across the internet as part of a secure (https) web page. This is the PR message you'll hear from the company if you ask about the policy.
- By not sending me a copy of the message, they have retained ownership and control of all the messages. In case of bankruptcy (think of your Savings and Loan in these economic times), or technical problems, you do not have a copy of email. If you ever have a disagreement that becomes a legal problem, they have copies of everything, and you have copies of nothing! If you ask about the policy, this is not the explanation you will receive because the real justification is buried 2 or 3 layers deep into the company, away from the customer service person you would talk to.
Remember that blog you've invested hours in? Where is the data? It's over on their servers. Have you given reproduction rights and data ownership to the blog host company?
Suggestion: either operate the blog on your own personal or company servers, or at least on your own private registered domain.
Created by brian. Last Modification: Monday 23 of February, 2009 08:11:03 CST by brian.