Do you have a facebook?

Sorry if this has been posted previously, I couldn't find it in the past couple of weeks' diaries.  

Does what happens in the Facebook stay in the Facebook?

Go watch that and come back and talk about it.

Basically this is a little clip which cuts to the heart of a) Facebook's terms of service, and what it really means to put your name out there, b) who set up Facebook (all sorts of In-Q-Tel people involved, for one thing) and c) what they might be doing with your data.

I know this is a bit of a scanty diary but the linked material is pretty interesting.

From the In-Q-Tel webpage:

When In-Q-Tel was created in 1999, the CIA determined that it needed a means to engage with young innovative companies that were building cutting edge commercial technologies.  In the post 9/11 world, where direct threats are real and lives are at risk, it is clear that we cannot afford to have less than the very best technologies to address the most urgent intelligence challenges.  The agility that enables In-Q-Tel to rapidly discover, develop and deploy new capabilities is more important than ever.  With its carefully structured mix of innovative and investment capital, In-Q-Tel's strategic focus enables it to take the calculated risks necessary to serve the United States' most vital national interest.

•  I am Fed Up

  Google (there have been numerous diary entries on the horrorific privacy violations of this company)
  Google toolbar (tracks all web history)
  Cell phone companies (comapnies/FBI have ability to listen on if they're turned off)
  GPS device companies (see above, if someone really wanted to track somebody... all cells have GPS that work even if turned off)
  Myspace, Murdoch (obvious)
  Facebook

  I am so fed up with this

  We don't need Hillary's Privacy Bill of Rights

  We need a Privacy Revolution

  by ipodvideo6 on Sun Jun 24, 2007 at 05:28:02 AM PDT

  •  I suspect that there is probably

    no way now to put this genie back in it's bottle.

    by Bouwerie Boy on Sun Jun 24, 2007 at 05:32:28 AM PDT

    •  Call Me a Reactionary

      These corporations and the NSA/FBI/DHS/etc. must and can be stopped

      whether by congressional bills, the courts, or executive order

      by ipodvideo6 on Sun Jun 24, 2007 at 05:37:19 AM PDT

•  On the one hand

  I'm sure this is all perfectly innocuous and that Facebook and In-Q-Tel have nothing but the good of the American people at heart.  And I'm sure that people here will say "grow up, deal with it, we live in a brave new world of networked information".

  But remember when the great romance of this country was that you COULD reinvent yourself if you needed to?  Remember when as long as you didn't commit a crime, you were anonymous?

  by kismet on Sun Jun 24, 2007 at 05:36:35 AM PDT

  •  I'm from the West

    And I'm pissed

    by ipodvideo6 on Sun Jun 24, 2007 at 05:39:34 AM PDT

•  yes, I saw it

  here
  and was thinking about writing a diary.  Glad you brought it up.

  After reading 1984 as a young pup, I thought that it would be mathematically impossible for the Gov to watch us all all of the time.

  Even with direct video spying into our homes pods, it would take 1/2 of the population to watch the other half.

  Not so if we spy on ourselves.  

  Hell, we even pay for it by purchasing these boxes on our desks. Plus we make it even easier for them as we have become addicted to broadband that we also pay through the nose for.

  by Zwoof on Sun Jun 24, 2007 at 05:39:24 AM PDT

•  Funny, I signed up recently

  but looked at it seriously for the first time last night because Jane Hamsher was encouraging it.  Maybe you should post this at FDL.

  Also, my friends who are involved in the Obama campaign think facebook is the greatest tool in politics.

  by Susan S on Sun Jun 24, 2007 at 07:15:35 AM PDT

  •  In some ways it is a great tool

    I love networking sites, have belonged to online forums since forever, currently have a profile on Tribe (the older, tattooed version of MySpace), etc.  But for some reason I found the tight links to the entrepreneurial arm of the CIA at Facebook just a little creepy.

    Of course, I'm sure they've got their fingers into any "young innovative company" larger than a single-owner blog or forum, and they already track my every move through my credit card and Harris Teeter Vic card, so maybe I should just relax and enjoy it.

    by kismet on Sun Jun 24, 2007 at 07:43:12 AM PDT

    •  I've assumed forever

      that someone is watching me, and as I told my husband a few minutes ago, I don't really give a f**k.  We can't turn back the clock on this kind of stuff.  The best thing we can do is spend our time electing representatives we can trust to put safeguards in place.

      by Susan S on Sun Jun 24, 2007 at 08:11:22 AM PDT

•  Crossing the border from Canada recently

  Via Amtrak, I learned that Immigration officers routinely run crossers on Google, in addition to checking the govt's own databases.

  "Quite an interesting history Mr. Masel. TODAY, we're not interested in the politics. However, we notice that you've been arrested for possession of marijuana 7 times..."

  "Eight, but none led to convictions. they were all deemed illegal serches."

  "Yes, we noticed that too. In any case, we'll be checking your bags. Please take them to the Cafe car. If there's nothing improper you'll be on your way.""

  by ben masel on Sun Jun 24, 2007 at 08:47:48 AM PDT