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Original poster

To view amazon in a totally different light - RE-Panarama

107 replies

contentedsoul · 18/02/2020 22:06

Saw the panorama program about amazon last night and its been on my mind all day.

I noted that the BBC News app on my phone also ran a story about this too - so been reading that in break times.

It actually sounds terrifying. As someone so eloquently put it
"Amazon is first and foremost a Data Mining company,,that also happens to sell items too !!

Some senior bigwig stated that ""we" that's us, fall into three areas Lazy, Greedy and Horny. It transpires we are not customers par se but more commodities to them.

I'm actually in two minds to remove the amazon app from my phone...I just don't trust it.

The BBC reporter asked for a record of his data and was told his computer wasn't sufficient enough to store it !!

I just never realised that amazon knew so much about us.

OP posts:
Leflic · 19/02/2020 00:09

Yeah well Amazon will know I’m broke and a lost cause then.

UYScuti · 19/02/2020 00:11

It's all a bit weird and stalkerish isn't it!

DarkDarkNight · 19/02/2020 00:11

Amazon and Jeff Bezos are troubling on every level.

Guardian

danadas · 19/02/2020 00:11

It really doesn't bother me, no doubt it should in some way but it just isn't something I give a second thought to.

I do everything online. It suits me and my lifestyle. I have Alexa dotted around the house. If anyone wants to listen, they can but they will be bored as fuck.

Legoandloldolls · 19/02/2020 00:12

Yes it's scary. IT big data is big money. Take IBM for example. They have moved from hardware > software > big data and cloud.

Just dont use only Google or Amazon and throw out some shit false data like searching for horse riding, surfing, mountain climbing and triplets. Then doing this every so often makes your data less accurate. My teen has the right idea, never uses his name online. I want to change my FB name but cant be arsed.

Off to Google some windsurfing stuff right now 😂.........

SammySmyth · 19/02/2020 00:13

^I do everything online. It suits me and my lifestyle. I have Alexa dotted around the house. If anyone wants to listen, they can but they will be bored as fuck*

I totally get that attitude but there will come a day when you say something in your house and the device will power up and say "please correct your thinking it is not approved. Drink Diet Coke

Legoandloldolls · 19/02/2020 00:15

I was more worried that have people locked into them. My sister has Alexia, ring doorbell, etc etc.

I have Google mini but only in the kitchen. Its locking your life into the Amazon platform that should be avoided. Mix it up.

Plus as someone from IT - humans are viewed as resources. That's just the culture in big IT companies ( it was in mine(

Defender90 · 19/02/2020 00:16

I'm Scottish, but do have a very customer service voice I can use when required. No devices understand me. Ever.

Franklydear · 19/02/2020 00:31

@pinnaple yes, we use each other devices, but I was getting the adds when he was abroad

Leflic · 19/02/2020 00:34

I totally get that attitude but there will come a day when you say something in your house and the device will power up and say "please correct your thinking it is not approved. Drink Diet Coke

But increasingly life is getting that way from just other people. There’s a right way and wrong way to do stuff and people throw words like vile and illegal round ,as if that was all that matters. People love being told what to do.

Aridane · 19/02/2020 00:36

You’ll need to go off the grid if you want to avoid data mining,

Oh, and by the way, > 50% of internet traffic is now bots, web scrapers, web crawlers etc

Amazon is but one of thousands / millions - but super turbo charged

SammySmyth · 19/02/2020 00:40

Leflic,

Couldn't agree with you more.

cdtaylornats · 19/02/2020 00:42

Amazon knows what you buy, Google knows everything else.

AutumnRose1 · 19/02/2020 00:43

“I have Google mini but only in the kitchen. Its locking your life into the Amazon platform that should be avoided. Mix it up.“

But all these companies will go through mergers, break ups, generally selling data to each other etc.

cdtaylornats · 19/02/2020 00:46

In the 1970s people said "shhh big brother is watching".

Now they say "Hey Big Brother show me a recipe for Chicken"

BiarritzCrackers · 19/02/2020 00:48

A bit off topic but Franklydear's situation reminded me - can anyone explain why it is that when exH comes over and gets his iPad out, he sometimes gets adverts for stuff I've been looking at on my MacBook (it especially happens when I look at Gap jeans!). I didn't know that could happen as neither of us are signed into anything on each other's devices. He is quite clued up on techy stuff, but doesn't know either.

user1473878824 · 19/02/2020 00:53

¯\(ツ)/¯

SammySmyth · 19/02/2020 00:54

It's quite obvious, your data is linked to his data.

That's how bad it is. The funny thing is, most of us don't give one single fuck!

DivinationDandy · 19/02/2020 00:58

Surely they also have a ‘(d) all of the above‘ category.

I can’t be the only one who’s lazy, greedy and horny.

TheGirlWithAPrince · 19/02/2020 01:08

i couldnt get worked up about it. everyone gets your data, the government, your phone company, your bill companys... everyone has your data
Smart tvs and devices can listen to conversations an save them.

At the end of the day its horrible but its life and it wont change im suprised the government hasnt made us install chips into our skin or some device that can track us and show our data anytime they want to see it etc

BiarritzCrackers · 19/02/2020 01:20

I don't understand how our data has linked! It was annoying for present shopping, as DS uses his dad's iPad, and I didn't want him to see targeted adverts which would suggest Father Christmas had been shopping online from our house.

But on the broader issue, it's difficult to talk about this stuff without sounding like a tin foil hat type, but it's all very creepy.

SammySmyth · 19/02/2020 01:22

Because they know you are partners.

it's difficult to talk about this stuff without sounding like a tin foil hat type

Which, I would suggest, is entirely their intention.

SimplySteveRedux · 19/02/2020 01:39

Just look at the visible data in a querystring, even when following a link from MN to an external site. Tracking data is worth billions.

cuparfull · 19/02/2020 01:59

Amazon are scarily powerful and pay companies to be embedded in their cookies consents. Rather than just click consent, check sometimes what you are signing up to and you will often find an Amazon tracker cookie in a completely unrelated website. They are data gathering on a massive scale on the pretext it's for our benefit. Rubbish it's income generation plain and simple.
Any fool who buys an Alexa should ask for a refund.
Given our data is so valuable to them, Amazon should be paying us and giving us Alexa for free.