Comments on: Online private eyes draw privacy complaints

Numerous Web sites that promise to dredge up personal data are raising concerns about an upsurge in identity theft and fraud.

[trudancor]

The new Wild West

The internet today is pretty much like what the wild west was, that is, just about anything goes.
Only after severe consequencies will action be taken to put some rules around it. Unfortunately, by then the rules will be draconian.

A few months back a township resident applied for a permit to put on an addition to her home. One neighbor objected because the addition would block his view of stream. At the board meeting, the objecting neighbor presented all sort of disparaging information about the woman - from credit bureau report to child support and divorce information. All of this in the hope of proving that the she may be able to affort to start the work and not be able to finish it, thus the permit should not be granted.

Was this info always available, yes! But it was not $50 up front and a click of a mouse; you had to put some effort into it. I don't think the internet was intended to be a spy machine, yet here we are. And if we do nothing about it now, it will only get worse.

[Razzl]

Phone company has obligations to the customer

I'm shocked at this idea that third parties are getting access to phone bill information--the customers of the phone companies are the paying clients here, not these outsider--so the phone companies have an obligation to keep our call information private. It's time for phone companies to be put on notice that we won't stand for this abuse and want any of their employees who are providing data to third parties to be fired; and any phone companies that are providing such information as a matter of policy ought to be slammed by state regulators.

[trudancor]

Phone company has obligations to the customer

I am with you, the phone companies need to be held accountable. Many years back when I had worked for a telecom company, as an employee I could be fired for accessing a customer's bill without a valid reason. Yet it's being made available to just about anyone today?? What's next, will my medical record be available to everyone?