[LINK] google services

Roger Clarke Roger.Clarke at xamax.com.au
Fri Feb 16 14:37:24 AEDT 2007


The postings in this thread seem to be working on the assumption that 
Google is somehow renting out space for people to use as email 
archives.

Wrong.

Google is asking people to donate all of the email traffic sent from 
that account, plus all of the email traffic sent to that 
gmail-address by others.

And people are doing it in droves.

And they're very silly to do so:
http://www.anu.edu.au/people/Roger.Clarke/II/Gurgle0604.html#Gmail
"The doctrine of privity of contract and the manifold weaknesses and 
patchiness of privacy laws together suggest that people who send 
messages to Gmail addresses simply have no rights at all in relation 
to the content of those emails. Consequently, some people decline to 
send to Gmail addresses. Many more would be likely to do so if they 
fully appreciated the risks that they face".

One of my standard signature blocks reads:

** I don't reply to gmail addresses because Google traps the email forever.
** Please advise some other email-address that I can reply to.

No repeat of content, no Subject, no Ccs:, no other signature-stub.

And even then I'm donating far more info to Google's vacuum-cleaner 
than I want in there.

-- 
Roger Clarke                  http://www.anu.edu.au/people/Roger.Clarke/
			            
Xamax Consultancy Pty Ltd      78 Sidaway St, Chapman ACT 2611 AUSTRALIA
                    Tel: +61 2 6288 1472, and 6288 6916
mailto:Roger.Clarke at xamax.com.au                http://www.xamax.com.au/

Visiting Professor in Info Science & Eng  Australian National University
Visiting Professor in the eCommerce Program      University of Hong Kong
Visiting Professor in the Cyberspace Law & Policy Centre      Uni of NSW



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