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by imiric 969 days ago
> Facebook or Google does not sell your data.

Really? And they keep shadow profiles out of the goodness of their hearts? That data can't be used for advertising directly, but it sure is lucrative to _somebody_.

> It's literally against their own interests

Their only interest is increasing profits, by any means necessary. Selling parts of the data they collect is not a one-time transaction, but a subscription. So it's not like they're giving away their secret sauce.

> There's FTC, and EU regulations that govern big tech...

Please, that's such a naive take. Governments have been far too slow and lenient to enact and enforce regulations, partly because they're in a symbiotic relationship with Big Tech.

Besides, the FTC regulates a minor aspect of what makes Big Tech harmful. EU leads the way in regulations, yet it's still far behind the schemes these companies pull.

> I'd except better from Hacker News Readers...

There's a downvote button you can express your dissatisfaction with. :)

1 comments

They keep shadow profiles so they can match you up with your friends when you do sign up
That's the official response, sure. How does it make business sense to store data about _all web users_ on the very small chance that a tiny percentage of them will sign up to FB and have a better UX? It doesn't, _unless_ they're profiting from that data in some way.