1. Unfortunate or Necessary, I just think that the average person is suspect of everyone else's intentions, especially companies that collect information about people and even when they derive value from providing that data.

There are way worse companies than Plaxo and YASNS regarding privacy, that the average YASNS user isn't even aware of.

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Pete

2. ...because of the way some people use it. I participate with a mailing list and one user puts everyone in his Plaxo the moment one writes a message in that list. He has sent me four reminders to fill out my Plaxo details for him - yet he and I never even shared a single word with each other. He is just a reader of the mailing list...

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Hanno

3. I think all the paranoia around Plaxo's privacy and security has reached the level of conspiracy.

1. You give out much more intimate details about your life on sites like Friendster, Linked In, WellsFargo.

2. I couldn't imagine why a company like Plaxo, which relies on its user's trust would do something to jeopardize their reputation or their users' sense of trust. If Plaxo were EVER to really sell your address book, they could not survive. I just think people should wait to see what these guys do come up with instead of making ridiculous assumptions about their business model.

Could you imagine your bank selling your financial information? Oh wait. They already do (read Bank of America's privacy statement). Plaxo, on the other hand, does not share your information. They don't even have a checkbox for you to click "Do I want spam sent to me by other companies." Sites like Hotmail and Yahoo are notorious for this, but they don't get flamed like Plaxo.

I feel sorry for the PR guys at Plaxo. I think they made a few missteps about being vague about their business model early on and have gotten a lot of slack for it. It's getting old. I think that Plaxo really will come out with a business edition soon that will bring in revenue -- I think the guys are innovative (and want to make money themselves -- legitimately).

I'm also not surprised about why they were once vague about their own business model early on in the game -- have you seen how many copy cats they've had since they launched?

3. Have you checked out Spoke? They SAY that they do not process your information on their servers. But once a Spoke user moves beyond the InTouch software and starts using the Spoke Network, your information is NO LONGER private. In fact, your information is SEARCHABLE by people you don't even know. Is this a conspiracy. I could only wish. I found my own resume sitting there out on the Web because some Spoke venture capitalist had my resume information stored on the spoke network. I could not request that this person remove my resume.

IMO, this is MUCH MUCH worse than what Plaxo is doing -- Plaxo doesn't allow it's members to search other member's address books. Spoke, however, lets you know who is in who's address book and has much more private information (like my RESUME!)

The paranoia around Plaxo makes people much less vigilant about these other networks.

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Thomas

4. I'm always surprised when seemingly intelligent folks use the argument that since other services are equally questionable and possibly worse than Plaxo, that Plaxo isn't so bad. This is terrible logic. Think about it.

Imagine there were cars that exploded when they were hit, and cars that didn't. If I was in one of those exploding cars, I might write an article saying - "Brand X cars really suck." Now, is the statement, "Brand Y cars explode also," a counter argument? Does it imply I am unduly picking on Brand X? That Brand X exploding cars somehow do not suck? That I am a shill for Brand Y or overly paranoid about Brand X? Of course not. That is quite ridiculous. A much more logical conclusion would be that I hate ALL exploding cars, but have personal experience with brand x.

Now, in all fairness, Plaxo is not an exploding car. It is a legitimate service. But it is very clear how they could become an exploding car. A buyout or bankruptcy would jeopardize the privacy policy, no matter what the intent of the current owners. And all of us should have the right to remove ourselves from situations where they think that there is an inherent danger. Plaxo does not allow you to do this. The best you can do is beg your friends not to put you into their system. I am strapped into a car I believe is unsafe, but I can't get out.

What amazes me more than anything though is that my friend, who is driving, won't just stop the car. It's too convenient for them. Grr.

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Marlen

5. Everyone seems so satisfied that you can remove yourself from Plaxo's db.

But where I have a problem is when I'm done trying Plaxo, I can't remove all the poor souls I sent to their server. What does Plaxo care that I remove my email? They have 499 other perfectly good emails, cell phone numbers, and home addresses that they can mark as assets as part of a buyout.

Yes, as sucker is born every minute, and today, I've become one.

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by jake

6. Jake - When you remove your account, all information associated with the account is also removed from our servers. This includes the address book information you were using Plaxo to help manage (ie: your contact information for friends, associates, etc...). Members can remove their account at anytime by going to: https://www.plaxo.com/delete_account and following the simple instructions.

Also: under full disclosure, even after removal, your account information may be stored within a backup or log file as part of normal system maintenance and backup. We maintain log files for 30 days. But your information still falls under the provisions of the Privacy Policy in place at time of collection. As you may already be aware, our privacy principles are:

- Your Information is your own and you decide who will have access to it.
- You maintain ownership rights to Your Information, even if there is a business transition or policy change.
- You may add, delete, or modify Your Information at any time.
- Plaxo will not update or modify Your Information without your permission.
- Plaxo will not sell, exchange, or otherwise share Your Information with third parties, unless required by law or in accordance with your instructions.
- Plaxo does not send spam, maintain spam mailing lists, or support the activities of spammers.

These provisions and more are covered in our Plaxo Privacy Policy found at: http://www.plaxo.com/privacy/policy . If you have any further questions, please let me know. Thanks.

Stacy Martin
Plaxo Privacy Officer
privacy @t plaxo.com

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Stacy Martin

7. Jake - When you remove your account, all information associated with the account is also removed from our servers. This includes the address book information you were using Plaxo to help manage (ie: your contact information for friends, associates, etc...). Members can remove their account at anytime by going to: https://www.plaxo.com/delete_account and following the simple instructions.

Also: under full disclosure, even after removal, your account information may be stored within a backup or log file as part of normal system maintenance and backup. We maintain log files for 30 days. But your information still falls under the provisions of the Privacy Policy in place at time of collection. As you may already be aware, our privacy principles are:

- Your Information is your own and you decide who will have access to it.
- You maintain ownership rights to Your Information, even if there is a business transition or policy change.
- You may add, delete, or modify Your Information at any time.
- Plaxo will not update or modify Your Information without your permission.
- Plaxo will not sell, exchange, or otherwise share Your Information with third parties, unless required by law or in accordance with your instructions.
- Plaxo does not send spam, maintain spam mailing lists, or support the activities of spammers.

These provisions and more are covered in our Plaxo Privacy Policy found at: http://www.plaxo.com/privacy/policy . If you have any further questions, please let me know. Thanks.

Stacy Martin
Plaxo Privacy Officer
privacy @t plaxo.com

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Stacy Martin

8. Wow… What a read, if any one is scared of spam messages they need to move to a real e-mail service. Spam filtering works and the laws are getting better. As for phone numbers can anyone say do not call list? I never signed up and I’m very happy. For you who did sign up how many calls did you get this past election? There are massively worse things going everyday that are so much worse then this. Don’t you know almost every purchased made with a credit card is sold with you name, addresses, and so much more personnel information above Plaxo. If you find total privacy your wish, unplug your power and sit in the dark.

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by OK2HACK

9. Unfortunate or Necessary, I just think that the average person is suspect of everyone else's intentions, especially companies that collect information about people and even when they derive value from providing that data.

There are way worse companies than Plaxo and YASNS regarding privacy, that the average YASNS user isn't even aware of.

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Pete

10. ...because of the way some people use it. I participate with a mailing list and one user puts everyone in his Plaxo the moment one writes a message in that list. He has sent me four reminders to fill out my Plaxo details for him - yet he and I never even shared a single word with each other. He is just a reader of the mailing list...

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Hanno

11. I think all the paranoia around Plaxo's privacy and security has reached the level of conspiracy.

1. You give out much more intimate details about your life on sites like Friendster, Linked In, WellsFargo.

2. I couldn't imagine why a company like Plaxo, which relies on its user's trust would do something to jeopardize their reputation or their users' sense of trust. If Plaxo were EVER to really sell your address book, they could not survive. I just think people should wait to see what these guys do come up with instead of making ridiculous assumptions about their business model.

Could you imagine your bank selling your financial information? Oh wait. They already do (read Bank of America's privacy statement). Plaxo, on the other hand, does not share your information. They don't even have a checkbox for you to click "Do I want spam sent to me by other companies." Sites like Hotmail and Yahoo are notorious for this, but they don't get flamed like Plaxo.

I feel sorry for the PR guys at Plaxo. I think they made a few missteps about being vague about their business model early on and have gotten a lot of slack for it. It's getting old. I think that Plaxo really will come out with a business edition soon that will bring in revenue -- I think the guys are innovative (and want to make money themselves -- legitimately).

I'm also not surprised about why they were once vague about their own business model early on in the game -- have you seen how many copy cats they've had since they launched?

3. Have you checked out Spoke? They SAY that they do not process your information on their servers. But once a Spoke user moves beyond the InTouch software and starts using the Spoke Network, your information is NO LONGER private. In fact, your information is SEARCHABLE by people you don't even know. Is this a conspiracy. I could only wish. I found my own resume sitting there out on the Web because some Spoke venture capitalist had my resume information stored on the spoke network. I could not request that this person remove my resume.

IMO, this is MUCH MUCH worse than what Plaxo is doing -- Plaxo doesn't allow it's members to search other member's address books. Spoke, however, lets you know who is in who's address book and has much more private information (like my RESUME!)

The paranoia around Plaxo makes people much less vigilant about these other networks.

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Thomas

12. I'm always surprised when seemingly intelligent folks use the argument that since other services are equally questionable and possibly worse than Plaxo, that Plaxo isn't so bad. This is terrible logic. Think about it.

Imagine there were cars that exploded when they were hit, and cars that didn't. If I was in one of those exploding cars, I might write an article saying - "Brand X cars really suck." Now, is the statement, "Brand Y cars explode also," a counter argument? Does it imply I am unduly picking on Brand X? That Brand X exploding cars somehow do not suck? That I am a shill for Brand Y or overly paranoid about Brand X? Of course not. That is quite ridiculous. A much more logical conclusion would be that I hate ALL exploding cars, but have personal experience with brand x.

Now, in all fairness, Plaxo is not an exploding car. It is a legitimate service. But it is very clear how they could become an exploding car. A buyout or bankruptcy would jeopardize the privacy policy, no matter what the intent of the current owners. And all of us should have the right to remove ourselves from situations where they think that there is an inherent danger. Plaxo does not allow you to do this. The best you can do is beg your friends not to put you into their system. I am strapped into a car I believe is unsafe, but I can't get out.

What amazes me more than anything though is that my friend, who is driving, won't just stop the car. It's too convenient for them. Grr.

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Marlen

13. Everyone seems so satisfied that you can remove yourself from Plaxo's db.

But where I have a problem is when I'm done trying Plaxo, I can't remove all the poor souls I sent to their server. What does Plaxo care that I remove my email? They have 499 other perfectly good emails, cell phone numbers, and home addresses that they can mark as assets as part of a buyout.

Yes, as sucker is born every minute, and today, I've become one.

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by jake

14. Jake - When you remove your account, all information associated with the account is also removed from our servers. This includes the address book information you were using Plaxo to help manage (ie: your contact information for friends, associates, etc...). Members can remove their account at anytime by going to: https://www.plaxo.com/delete_account and following the simple instructions.

Also: under full disclosure, even after removal, your account information may be stored within a backup or log file as part of normal system maintenance and backup. We maintain log files for 30 days. But your information still falls under the provisions of the Privacy Policy in place at time of collection. As you may already be aware, our privacy principles are:

- Your Information is your own and you decide who will have access to it.
- You maintain ownership rights to Your Information, even if there is a business transition or policy change.
- You may add, delete, or modify Your Information at any time.
- Plaxo will not update or modify Your Information without your permission.
- Plaxo will not sell, exchange, or otherwise share Your Information with third parties, unless required by law or in accordance with your instructions.
- Plaxo does not send spam, maintain spam mailing lists, or support the activities of spammers.

These provisions and more are covered in our Plaxo Privacy Policy found at: http://www.plaxo.com/privacy/policy . If you have any further questions, please let me know. Thanks.

Stacy Martin
Plaxo Privacy Officer
privacy @t plaxo.com

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Stacy Martin

15. Jake - When you remove your account, all information associated with the account is also removed from our servers. This includes the address book information you were using Plaxo to help manage (ie: your contact information for friends, associates, etc...). Members can remove their account at anytime by going to: https://www.plaxo.com/delete_account and following the simple instructions.

Also: under full disclosure, even after removal, your account information may be stored within a backup or log file as part of normal system maintenance and backup. We maintain log files for 30 days. But your information still falls under the provisions of the Privacy Policy in place at time of collection. As you may already be aware, our privacy principles are:

- Your Information is your own and you decide who will have access to it.
- You maintain ownership rights to Your Information, even if there is a business transition or policy change.
- You may add, delete, or modify Your Information at any time.
- Plaxo will not update or modify Your Information without your permission.
- Plaxo will not sell, exchange, or otherwise share Your Information with third parties, unless required by law or in accordance with your instructions.
- Plaxo does not send spam, maintain spam mailing lists, or support the activities of spammers.

These provisions and more are covered in our Plaxo Privacy Policy found at: http://www.plaxo.com/privacy/policy . If you have any further questions, please let me know. Thanks.

Stacy Martin
Plaxo Privacy Officer
privacy @t plaxo.com

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Stacy Martin

16. Wow… What a read, if any one is scared of spam messages they need to move to a real e-mail service. Spam filtering works and the laws are getting better. As for phone numbers can anyone say do not call list? I never signed up and I’m very happy. For you who did sign up how many calls did you get this past election? There are massively worse things going everyday that are so much worse then this. Don’t you know almost every purchased made with a credit card is sold with you name, addresses, and so much more personnel information above Plaxo. If you find total privacy your wish, unplug your power and sit in the dark.

Posted at 4:50AM on Dec 19th 2005 by OK2HACK