Comments on: Why Choicepoint Resonates http://emergentchaos.com/archives/2005/03/why-choicepoint-resonates.html The Emergent Chaos Jazz Combo Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:20:40 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Thomas Keller http://emergentchaos.com/archives/2005/03/why-choicepoint-resonates.html/comment-page-1#comment-535 Thomas Keller Tue, 15 Mar 2005 13:35:06 +0000 http://emergentchaos.com/?p=549#comment-535 A solution? The SOLUTION is for companies to stop placing their profits above all other considerations. The SOLUTION is for "entrepreneurs" to cease assming that vecause a ting is POSSIBLE< it OUGHT to be done. The SOLUTION is for people to stop and THINK about the consequences of their actions BEFORE committing them to a business plan. Choicepoint is a "victim?" Of what? Of setting themselves up in such a way that the compromises were virtaully GUARANTEED to happen? Puh-leeze! Americans have this strange idea that "personal freedom" means that they are allowed to do ANYTHING they can think of that doesn't clearly violate any written laws (and sometimes that DOES so violate), in the pursuit of money. The almighty DOLLAR is the only consideration. People don't matter at all. I am not a supported of capital punishment, but if I were Derrick Smith would definitiely be sentenced to the death penalty. Why? NOT because he literally STOLE millionsof dollars from investors. NOT because he is a greedy, arrogant bastard. NO. Because he knowingly and willfully destroyed the lives of thousands (millions?) of innocent people, in order to make a profit. He just flat out DIDN'T GIVE A DAMN!!! A solution? The SOLUTION is for companies to stop placing their profits above all other considerations. The SOLUTION is for “entrepreneurs” to cease assming that vecause a ting is POSSIBLE< it OUGHT to be done. The SOLUTION is for people to stop and THINK about the consequences of their actions BEFORE committing them to a business plan.
Choicepoint is a “victim?” Of what? Of setting themselves up in such a way that the compromises were virtaully GUARANTEED to happen? Puh-leeze!
Americans have this strange idea that “personal freedom” means that they are allowed to do ANYTHING they can think of that doesn’t clearly violate any written laws (and sometimes that DOES so violate), in the pursuit of money. The almighty DOLLAR is the only consideration. People don’t matter at all.
I am not a supported of capital punishment, but if I were Derrick Smith would definitiely be sentenced to the death penalty. Why? NOT because he literally STOLE millionsof dollars from investors. NOT because he is a greedy, arrogant bastard. NO. Because he knowingly and willfully destroyed the lives of thousands (millions?) of innocent people, in order to make a profit. He just flat out DIDN’T GIVE A DAMN!!!

]]> By: The Open Society Paradox http://emergentchaos.com/archives/2005/03/why-choicepoint-resonates.html/comment-page-1#comment-536 The Open Society Paradox Sun, 13 Mar 2005 18:18:21 +0000 http://emergentchaos.com/?p=549#comment-536 <strong>Jumping on the ChoicePoint Bandwagon Is Easy...</strong> ...but driving it is hard. For everyone out there criticizing ChoicePoint and the other companies with recent data incidents, where are all the solutions? How about channeling some of that negative energy into some problem solving? For instance, take t... Jumping on the ChoicePoint Bandwagon Is Easy…

…but driving it is hard. For everyone out there criticizing ChoicePoint and the other companies with recent data incidents, where are all the solutions? How about channeling some of that negative energy into some problem solving? For instance, take t…

]]> By: Michael Miller http://emergentchaos.com/archives/2005/03/why-choicepoint-resonates.html/comment-page-1#comment-534 Michael Miller Sun, 13 Mar 2005 15:01:23 +0000 http://emergentchaos.com/?p=549#comment-534 <a href="http://www.publicdomainprogress.info/2005/02/choicepoint-real-problem-isnt-their.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.publicdomainprogress.info/2005/02/choicepoint-real-problem-isnt-their.html</a> ChoicePoint: The real problem isn't their security. The SPAM-filter refuses to allow me to list that link even in plain text (which has be extremely irritated) so I suppose you can -- if you choose -- go to my home page and search for the title listed. [Adam adds, I edited in the URL, and I hate the spam filters I have in place, too. They annoy me, require work from me, and annoy my readers when I love getting feedback and comments. Feh! Double feh. You can click on Mr. Miller's name, below, and be taken to the URL.] http://www.publicdomainprogress.info/2005/02/choicepoint-real-problem-isnt-their.html
ChoicePoint: The real problem isn’t their security.
The SPAM-filter refuses to allow me to list that link even in plain text (which has be extremely irritated) so I suppose you can — if you choose — go to my home page and search for the title listed.
[Adam adds, I edited in the URL, and I hate the spam filters I have in place, too. They annoy me, require work from me, and annoy my readers when I love getting feedback and comments. Feh! Double feh. You can click on Mr. Miller's name, below, and be taken to the URL.]

]]> By: Axinar http://emergentchaos.com/archives/2005/03/why-choicepoint-resonates.html/comment-page-1#comment-533 Axinar Sun, 13 Mar 2005 14:38:05 +0000 http://emergentchaos.com/?p=549#comment-533 Actually the whole sordid situation is a little complicated. First ... is it reasonable for an employer to know whether or not a potential employee has a history of violence or theft? Well, probably. And with our liability situation the way it is, generally any company with deep pockets is virtually REQUIRED to run background checks because if an employee "goes postal" and discovery reveals that person has a previous background of violence that the company could have found out but didn't, that company can be sued out of existence. So the situation developed that instead of spending hundreds and hundreds of dollars to search thousands of county courthouses, companies emerged to attempt to compile all this information in one place. Unfortunately, in a debt-based economy, identifying information is more valuable than gold, and putting all that information in one place without Fort Knox-style security is just begging for that information to be compromised. The only difference is -- if someone knocked over Ft. Knox of course the gold, even the stolen gold, would still have value. You steal enough identifying information and that information becomes utterly worthless. If your economy is, in fact, based upon that information, your economy collapses. Actually the whole sordid situation is a little complicated.
First … is it reasonable for an employer to know whether or not a potential employee has a history of violence or theft? Well, probably. And with our liability situation the way it is, generally any company with deep pockets is virtually REQUIRED to run background checks because if an employee “goes postal” and discovery reveals that person has a previous background of violence that the company could have found out but didn’t, that company can be sued out of existence.
So the situation developed that instead of spending hundreds and hundreds of dollars to search thousands of county courthouses, companies emerged to attempt to compile all this information in one place.
Unfortunately, in a debt-based economy, identifying information is more valuable than gold, and putting all that information in one place without Fort Knox-style security is just begging for that information to be compromised.
The only difference is — if someone knocked over Ft. Knox of course the gold, even the stolen gold, would still have value. You steal enough identifying information and that information becomes utterly worthless. If your economy is, in fact, based upon that information, your economy collapses.

]]> By: Michael Miller http://emergentchaos.com/archives/2005/03/why-choicepoint-resonates.html/comment-page-1#comment-532 Michael Miller Sun, 13 Mar 2005 14:12:40 +0000 http://emergentchaos.com/?p=549#comment-532 It resonates with me because my own South Carolina state government sold the bastards my drivers license information, including the crappy photo. <a href="http://www.publicdomainprogress.info/2005/02/choicepoint-real-problem-isnt-their.html" rel="nofollow">ChoicePoint: The real problem isn't their security.</a> Besides, I hate all entities that make it their business to gather personal information on me. Why me, anyways? I'm just a boring citizen. Grrr... It resonates with me because my own South Carolina state government sold the bastards my drivers license information, including the crappy photo.
ChoicePoint: The real problem isn’t their security.
Besides, I hate all entities that make it their business to gather personal information on me. Why me, anyways? I’m just a boring citizen. Grrr…

]]> By: Axinar http://emergentchaos.com/archives/2005/03/why-choicepoint-resonates.html/comment-page-1#comment-531 Axinar Sun, 13 Mar 2005 13:50:00 +0000 http://emergentchaos.com/?p=549#comment-531 Oh ... and check this out ... Some companies will refuse to consider you for a job if you refuse to submit to a credit check AT SOME UNKNOWN POINT IN THE FUTURE. Actually I'm almost glad all these central databases are getting compromised. Maybe people will have to start TALKING to people again IN PERSON instead of thinking they can predict what people are going to do to the last minute by computer algorithms. Oh … and check this out …
Some companies will refuse to consider you for a job if you refuse to submit to a credit check AT SOME UNKNOWN POINT IN THE FUTURE.
Actually I’m almost glad all these central databases are getting compromised. Maybe people will have to start TALKING to people again IN PERSON instead of thinking they can predict what people are going to do to the last minute by computer algorithms.

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