A Proposed Massachusetts Law Would Ban the Sale of Cell Phone Location Data

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A Proposed Massachusetts Law Would Ban the Sale of Cell Phone Location Data
gizmodo.com
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Americans: we will cry foul online until we get an adequate transportation system.

Also Americans: we will cry foul online if you try to collect the data that you need to plan a transportation system.

Just one example of how phone data is useful.

Why in the world would you need phone data for that???

Nearly all existing public transportation was designed before cell phones. And there's so many better ways to get that data... In fact, I'm not sure anyone uses individually identifiable tracking to plan public transportation... It's neither necessary or even convenient for that

Except we don't have an adequate transportation system despite all the data they keep collecting.

I can't comment on that! Just that phone data is very valuable for transportation modelling!

Sure. My point is that it's irrelevant. You're acting like there's a trade off between privacy and the public good, but because the goal is profitability we get neither privacy nor public good.

Oh I agree. My original comment was adding to the one preceeding mine, not a direct response to the article. Yes, the US needs GDPR, despite it making aspects of my job annoying I am glad it exists.