Across America, DMVs make millions selling your license data to private eyes -- and randos

[doctorow]

Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/11/26/pennies-per-record.html

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[davide405]

Un-allocated funding, yay

/s

[Franko]

i keep telling y’all, privacy has been dead for years now – we just need to realize it.

[Slant]

@Franko

we just need to realize it.

What then?

[mocon]

And if your DMV uses an automated system where you check in and “wait in line” with your phone, all your info is linked to your cell number.

[Franko]

then we won’t be wasting all this time being surprised about this sort of thing.

[Slant]

**

**We reserve the sole and exclusive right to retain and sell infinite numbers of copies of your license data at our sole discretion. Yay for computers!

[Slant]

Oh, I see. I thought you had some sort of clever plan in mind.

[RandomDude]

If only it were possible to opt out of other people’s stupidity.

[Slant]

BTW, do you have an explanation for how privacy is still perfectly alive and well for the rich and powerful?

[Franko]

is it? even zuckerberg has had his data stolen.

[Lexicat]

I am not sure I disagree with this: public licenses are public information, yes?

[paxsimius]

All the info on my Texas driver’s license is public info. Seems to me other states figured out a pretty good scam.

[anon55609254]

Gee, I wonder if there were some way to get money from citizens in general to pay for public services like DMVs, instead of making them scrounge for resources.

[gracchus]

@Franko

i keep telling y’all, privacy has been dead for years now – we just need to realize it.

I’d like to see all kinds of legislative and technological solutions to curb these kinds of abuses, but there’s already a lot of personal data already out there on lots of unsecured databases, so we’re better off moving on to a harm reduction approach.

@Franko

is it? even zuckerberg has had his data stolen.

Correct. Wealth and tech skills only offer limited immunity from invasions of privacy. There are plenty of holes in these systems – some purpose-designed like this DMV racket – that even the most privileged and careful person can’t avoid.

[Pensketch]

@gracchus

… so we’re better off moving on to a harm reduction approach.

True. Even if we were able to curb it now, the only way you could distance yourself from the data already available is a complete change of identity, and who has time and money for that?