Points For Google Wallet

[jebr]

I have zero transactions and don't plan to use the app. It was just an easy way to get 500 points. I really don't care if they can magically access AGR and see that I'm traveling to Dallas and Albuquerque during the next month. Any webcrawler can see the same thing.

Did you, or anyone, actually read the Google Wallet privacy Policy? Are you aware that, by downloading and installing Google Wallet, you are granting Google permission to pull your credit reports? That, unless you specifically opt out, you are also granting Google permission to provide the information in those reports to Google "affiliates?"

I am well aware that there are lots and lots of ways that personal information is mined about me without my permission. I just don't think that 500 AGR points (worth roughly $10) is enough to have me open up an information portal voluntarily without any particular need for the service provided by the app.

From the Google Wallet privacy policy:

Information obtained from third parties - We may obtain information about you from third party verification services, information arising from Google Wallet transactions at merchant locations, information regarding your use of payment methods issued by third parties that are linked to the Google Wallet service, information regarding access to balances held in your Google Wallet account, and information from a Carrier in connection with Carrier Billing.

Also, for sellers, we may obtain information about you and your business from a credit bureau or a business information service.

The key part for the credit bureau is for sellers. Sellers can use Google Wallet as a payment method, and if so, that part of the privacy policy is invoked. It's not invoked by simply adding your AGR account, nor is most of the provisions (only the third party verification services, including Amtrak, to verify your AGR account and the Carrier if you use Carrier Billing.)

Aside from that, though, it was pre-installed on my phone anyways, and Google already has access to most of that simply by the fact that I'm using non-AOSP Android and linking my Google account to my phone (they have my contacts, credentials for their accounts, etc.)

For a more humorous stance (about Google in general,) reference this comic.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Why am I suddenly reminded of the security company executive who bragged about releasing his SSN on television only to be surprised that he wasn't actually protected from fraud?

BTW, I'm now offering 500 monkey points to anyone who installs my new app.

It's called GimmeYaWallet and it's in the Google YouveBeenPlayed store.

It's totally safe and it only collects magical web crawler stuff, I promise.

There's also another new app on the way called CreditCrush.

It's a game that posts your credit report on your Facebook and for every fraudulent loan taken out in your name you get five more minutes of game time.

Enjoy!

 

[ALC Rail Writer]

As somebody who works with Linux and actively seeks ways to minimize my Internet footpath I must say I really don't give a damn on this one. There's a million-and-one data points I'm concerned about and quite honestly the credit report isn't one of them. Credit reports hardly matter anyway. If you're broke you don't need to have credit and if you're rich you shouldn't have credit because you have more than enough. I fall under the broke end of that spectrum.

Anybody who looks at a credit report and doesn't laugh at it's novelty, pretentiousness, and practical uselessness needs to read more about how credit reports work.

It's like playing with your favourite algebraic expression. Once you know all the terms it's really fun to put in your input and make the equation pump out whatever result you want.

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

El Paso City on the Rio Grande on this one for me too. If I need to access AGR I'll do so on my main computer. I don't fall for downloading any of these "apps" onto my phone.

 

[ALC Rail Writer]

The key part for the credit bureau is for sellers. Sellers can use Google Wallet as a payment method, and if so, that part of the privacy policy is invoked. It's not invoked by simply adding your AGR account, nor is most of the provisions (only the third party verification services, including Amtrak, to verify your AGR account and the Carrier if you use Carrier Billing.)

Good catch. That would be an important detail.

Though this whole conversation just shows the need to reform contract law in the modern age, as well as many other laws including the Telecommunications Act. Unfortunately we do not have the government that will do that and it has been set up so that it will be very difficult for the people to elect a government that will speak towards these issues.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

As somebody who works with Linux and actively seeks ways to minimize my Internet footpath I must say I really don't give a damn on this one.

Last I checked the most popular Linux desktop distro sends even your local file and document searches to Amazon and who knows where else.

I often wonder what possesses someone to come out and state with absolute conviction how indifferent they are about issue X.

If you really didn't "give a damn" you wouldn't have bothered posting your position in this thread.

There's a million-and-one data points I'm concerned about and quite honestly the credit report isn't one of them. Credit reports hardly matter anyway. If you're broke you don't need to have credit and if you're rich you shouldn't have credit because you have more than enough. I fall under the broke end of that spectrum. It's like playing with your favourite algebraic expression. Once you know all the terms it's really fun to put in your input and make the equation pump out whatever result you want.

Currently the main issue with credit reports is identity theft, not your credit score. Every additional database that has been given your personal data becomes yet another vector for future fraud. If you don't think you know anybody affected by identity theft you might want to ask around. It's a big issue and it's probably going to get a lot worse before it gets any better. Another potential issue involves the lack of protections from indirect penalties. Say you buy more liquor than an insurance algorithm thinks you should. Maybe you get hit with a higher rate on your next bill. Maybe you're eventually dropped altogether. What rule or law is going to protect you from that?

 

[jebr]

Why am I suddenly reminded of the security company executive who bragged about releasing his SSN on television only to be surprised that he wasn't actually protected from fraud?

Because giving an AGR number to Google, a very large corporation, via a promo that AGR is officially endorsing reminds you of a person giving out their social security number to the entire world without any regard to who hears it?

I don't see the comparison being terribly relevant.

 

[ALC Rail Writer]

Since you know nothing about me you'll just have to take my word that the information contained in the credit report is as I say it is, worthless. My identity has yet to be stolen, mostly because I exercise common sense.

And the only damn I actually give relates to how much I actually agree with you on this issue. If you'd take the time to get to know me I'd think you'd be presently surprised on how much we agree when it comes to issues of online privacy, government and private meddling in data, the dangers of big data, protection, cybersecurity myths and truths therein... etc. My only "damn" is that your posts are so caustic, so off-putting, that you never bother to try and find commonality or agreement. You push away people who would like to have intelligent, mutually-beneficial discussions for the sake of being your namesake.

Incidentally my servers use a custom Linux build.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Why am I suddenly reminded of the security company executive who bragged about releasing his SSN on television only to be surprised that he wasn't actually protected from fraud?

Because giving an AGR number to Google, a very large corporation, via a promo that AGR is officially endorsing reminds you of a person giving out their social security number to the entire world without any regard to who hears it? I don't see the comparison being terribly relevant.

We've already established that Google Wallet is probably getting a lot more than your AGR number out of the agreement. By Google's own admission their Wallet app is able to read virtually anything of importance on your phone, at least when it comes to Android phones. I'm not as familiar with current iPhones but based on what I've read I wouldn't assume they're much better in the privacy department. Even if Google could access the fingerprint reader it probably wouldn't worry the Twitbook crowd. If you're convinced that your AGR number is all you're giving up there's not much else I can say besides enjoy the points.

 

[jebr]

Why am I suddenly reminded of the security company executive who bragged about releasing his SSN on television only to be surprised that he wasn't actually protected from fraud?

Because giving an AGR number to Google, a very large corporation, via a promo that AGR is officially endorsing reminds you of a person giving out their social security number to the entire world without any regard to who hears it? I don't see the comparison being terribly relevant.

We've already established that Google Wallet is probably getting a lot more than your AGR number out of the agreement. By Google's own admission their Wallet app is able to read virtually anything of importance on your phone, at least when it comes to Android phones. I'm not as familiar with current iPhones but based on what I've read I wouldn't assume they're much better in the privacy department. Even if Google could access the fingerprint reader it probably wouldn't worry the Twitbook crowd. If you're convinced that your AGR number is all you're giving up there's not much else I can say besides enjoy the points.

If you have no other Google services on your Android phones, yes. But unless you're actively trying to not use Google services and have uninstalled every service provided by Google (including the Google Play Services that a lot of other apps use,) they're not gaining any permissions (from a spot check) than other Google apps on Android already have access too.

From a Wallet perspective, a Wallet account is, at least as far as I can tell, required to buy an app from the Play Store. There's third party app stores, but they're much less used than Google Play is.

I also don't know how iPhone works, but from an Android perspective, this change only seems to be giving Google Wallet the "official" link to my AGR account. If someone hasn't purchased an app from Google Play yet, Google may be getting more out of the deal, but the only thing they're getting is extra information that you're actively providing to Wallet, not the "additional permissions" from Google Wallet's app (unless you have actively made sure Google's apps, services, etc. are completely wiped from your Android phone.)

For me personally, I already had Wallet installed for the NFC payment features. I am convinced that I gave nothing more to Google than my AGR number to Google when I linked my AGR account with Wallet, because Google already had those permissions before I linked AGR to Wallet.

Plus, what does AGR have to gain by promoting an app that would have major privacy violations?

 

[jerichowhiskey]

Here is a simple solution, uninstall the app after you get the points. Then it will not run on your device to take further information or take photos and what not.