[mgraczyk]

So to me, that's the preview of an argument, but not a complete argument. What is the actual bad thing or bad state that will be caused by Google knowing this information about individuals, or in aggregate?

I think that when we weigh the harm against the good, we're likely to disagree about the balance. But I think I have more information about the good than people who have not worked at Google or Facebook, and I have just as much information about the potential and actual harm.

[nextaccountic]

Could you share the potential and actual harm?

[tomjen3]

For one thing, all Googles data is presumably stolen one way or another by the NSA, which use it for things like industrial espionage, supporting regimes like Saudi Arabia, probably a modern version of COINTELPRO and god knows what else.

[scrps]

I am not sure I'd subscribe to that theory. I am no friend to google but they have some very sharp people working in security to the extent I wouldn't be suprised if NSA tried to poach them.

NSA getting caught pwning google would be a snowden-esque nightmare for them. Now some backroom deal between NSA and google for SOME data would be more believable, it never hurts to align incentives and have a three letter agency owe you a favor when senator so-and-so starts banging the break up & regulate big tech drum.

[tomjen3]

I assume NSA delivered a NSL to them the day after Snowdon if not before. And they weren't hurt at all by the the leaks.