The 411 on directory assistance

Calling 411 from a cell phone can be maddeningly expensive, but increasingly, customers have access to free alternatives.
The New York Times

The story "The 411 on directory assistance" published March 12, 2006 at 6:00 AM is no longer available on CNET News.

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[toadallyfried]

Be Weary of "Free" Offers

A common practice of businesses that make their money on
consumer data sources used for marketing/solicitation in
addition to credit data (Experian, Trans Union, Equifax), these
companies thrive on list sources from "partners" including
member data they readily share with other so-called "partners".

While many of us have taken measures to add our telephone and
cell phone numbers to the DO NOT CALL list, any business that
counts you as a member is authorized to solicit to you unless
you "opt out" and they can also reach you through these joint
partnerships, as well.

By law, financial institutions aren't allowed to see your credit
data, so they use a third-party data aggregator (e.g. Acxiom,
ChoicePoint, etc.) that takes data from the three credit bureaus
(FICO scores among other credit data "attributes") and multiple
list sources (NCOA, DMV, phone records, real estate valuation
data, and a wealth of partner data from all of their vast partner
aflliations, banks, airlines,magazines, USPS, etc.) and they build
very elaborate databases for their customers (the people trying
to solicit you) and they would absolutely would love to have
"meaningful" and up-to-date ways to reach you, know more
about you and what you like/dislike, where you go, etc., and any
possible way to reach you (mail, e-mail, phone, and now cell
phone). Understand that they make LOTS of $$$ building these
lists and selling access to the data they compile.

One can argue the goodness or badness depending on your
point of view but beware of any method to secure your personal
data including cell phone informaiton. I, for one, will continue
to pay for my 411 calls for that reason.

I suspect some of these "free" 411-like services may be taking
your caller id info (along with monthly trending data that shows
who you were reaching out to) and parlaying that into a revenue
stream for advertisers and list brokers.

Having been involved involved in the "Consumer Information"
industry, there is good reason to be guarded about who and
what information you share directly or indirectly.

Cell phones are the last bastion of privacy and with recent
changes that will be next to impossible to prevent unauthorized
use by these ruthless solicitors and more costly to you and I.

[toadallyfried]

The Not-so-free Directory Assistance

Note this article which while dated 1999, still holds true today;
further evidence why you need to be careful with toll free or so-
called "free" directory assistance:

<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://emoglen.law.columbia.edu/CPC/archive/privacy-data-" target="_newWindow">http://emoglen.law.columbia.edu/CPC/archive/privacy-data-</a>
mining/A7707-1999Dec17.html

[mortis9]

You'd be mad to pay $2 for 411

what kind of nut job conspiracy theorist can justify spending $2 a call (I have cingular and that's what they charge) on 411? If you have a free option, you do what normal people do and take it. Perhaps you like getting ripped off by the phone conglomerates, but I don't (this is directed at the two posters before me).

[mortis9]

You'd be mad to pay $2 for 411

what kind of nut job conspiracy theorist can justify spending $2 a call (I have cingular and that's what they charge) on 411? If you have a free option, you do what normal people do and take it. Perhaps you like getting ripped off by the phone conglomerates, but I don't (this is directed at the two posters before me).

[toadallyfried]

Conspiracy?

Have you read the terms of the so-called "free" directory
assistance and how they treat your phone contact information?
Doubt it. How many e-mail messages do you get from
"unsolicited" spammers, even with anti-spam s/w? Lot's
probably. How much does it cost you for each unsolilcited
phone call on your cell plan? How would you feel if you had
several calls per day (only multiplies the more your cell phone
number gets in the hands of so-called member affiliates that
would now count you as their member. Oh, you don't think this
happens. Think again. You haven't seen it yet with cell phones
because cell phone records were just recently made available for
solicitation access.

Look, I don't think every directory assistance is evil, some will
use it for what it was intended and paid for by businesses like in
the Ma Bell days. The reality is, every time you click on a page
and now, every time you ask for directory assitance, you build
trending information which is also known as click-stream data
(web); lifestyle data that tells us a lot about what you like or
dislike, places you frequent, etc. Companies pay good money
for that information so they can better target you with their
promotions. You don't even realize that much of the
information you receive both on and off the web is selectively
tailored to where you click. Same is true with what you get in
the mail. The more you make, the more you get solicited by an
entirely different set of solicitors and yes, the more you get from
peripheral businesses that count you in as part of their members
through associative data partner relationships. The same will be
true for your cell phone and yes, the ads on your cell phone web
page.

[streamline12]

This Is The Best 411 For Mobile

Hi,

Give this a try...I think its the best for mobile phone users.
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://upsnap.com/411.htm" target="_newWindow">http://upsnap.com/411.htm</a>
Dan