GDPR IS GOOD. Where next:—Does offshore digital marketing need more regulation?

[Ye Olde Powder Monkey]

[Author Opinion]

Platforms such as eBay, Paypal and others which I don't use have been playing 'free and loose' with the fact they are Digital Offshore Markets operating in the Virtual environment. Ebay for instance have been jumped on by the regulators before, for successfully getting away with re-writing our Sovereign after-sales agreement on NEW goods. In the UK, at the time, we had 5-yrs full-warranty on such items, on the high-street, that is within our borders, whereas of course eBay were offering only 30-days or less.
I've been told that our National terms, for the high-street, have since reduced to a more realistic, 3-yrs.

This was such a gross error on their part, that after I pointed this out to them in their 'Ebay Community' (a very tough forum), it was only a few short months before all eBay users were sent a new T's & C's email with (at the bottom) a new clause to the effect of 'After-sales agreements for goods bought on eBay may vary depending on existing National Laws'.



And what else are they up to? I have my gripes about having to provide a full copy of my Passport (incl photo) to Paypal to continue using 'Pay after Delivery'; which is certainly only security related but has taken them 9-yrs to get round to asking me for.

Most Paypal accounts are linked to the customers' bank-current or 'cheque' account, so verification of one's identity is really covered here already. Paypal are not a Government authority dealing with 'Freedom of Information' requests. WHY do they insist on A PASSPORT (copy of) from customers after a certain amount of money (~£3000 in my case) has been spent using their service, and in order to continue using that service?

The American 'customer assistant' told me: "It comes round to us all,  at some time, Sir". ~(Lots of 'siring' but not very assuring). I have so far not provided them with a copy of my passport  ....

... but what else are the DIGITAL OFFSHORE MarketPlace platforms up to that our Civil-Servants haven't had the time to notice; with no 'in-your-faeces' Zuckerborg grande-inquisition to focus the EU's collective mind on this? And are our British Civil-Servants too busy dealing with BreXiT and Climate-Change scares to notice any exigences?

[sign-out]
My message to the lawyers and powers that be, is; don't wake up to find your standards compromised by the 'unregulated offshore digitals' to such a degree that you alienate even the most law-abiding amongst us.



Last Edit by Humphrey

[EvadingGrid]

Hate to tell ya, but its only going to get worse.



Last Edit by Humphrey

[Ye Olde Powder Monkey]

Hate to tell ya, but its only going to get worse.



Last Edit by Palmerston

You are a pessimist and negative person, sir.
And perhaps a touch paranoid, like us all?



See if thou can'st get thee onto a high-street & treat thysen to some olde-time shopeing.



Last Edit by Humphrey

[EvadingGrid]

You are a pessimist and negative person, sir.
And perhaps a touch paranoid, like us all?



See if thou can'st get thee onto a high-street & treat thysen to some olde-time shopeing.



Last Edit by Palmerston

I should make use of the shops before Amazon closes the last shop.

I pre-fur to think of myself as a realist, not a pessimist.




Last Edit by Humphrey

[Ye Olde Powder Monkey]

I should make use of the shops before Amazon closes the last shop.

I pre-fur to think of myself as a realist, not a pessimist.




Last Edit by Palmerston

I have bad news for you ....
People who call themselves realists can be great-deceivers.
Speaking from experience, that is. The dividing line between 'caving in' & being a realist is however, an objectively drawn one. IMO



Last Edit by Humphrey

[Ye Olde Powder Monkey]

Since my first post on this, this morning, where I initiated the subject, eBay UK have now caught up with GDPR, here at least, for the 1st time; with a bespoke options page as we see on all other sites ...

I believe it's not been done Stateside any earlier, as I occasionally log-onto eBay.com, the US site.

"Your Privacy is Important to eBay ... " kind of deal.

The full-range of options for Google Advertising, metrics, 3rd-party forwarding of your Private info ...etc ... etc.

Actually, I think SOME eBay Website functions CAN be turned-off IN BULK though some Data-Collectors, Metrics-takers, whatnot, do persist and you to scroll down through the partners list and untick them.

And ...

VERY UNFORTUNATELY, it seems they are opting for the REALLY DIFFICULT SETTINGS: Vis-a-Viz: Some long lists of advertising "Partners" have to be opted out of INDIVIDUALLY, and cannot be BULK de-activated.
It just takes a little tweaking around.

( ... most web-site providers are using OPTED OUT as a DEFAULT, and the user has to opt-in, to get the 'service'.) Not with eBay!

Which I think is a cheat and cheap exploit of GDPR flexibility, where the DEFAULT-SETTINGS should probably, in most cases, as per the word of the GDPR regulations, be switched OFF by DEFAULT?

And about Bloody Time!

-------------------------

I never respond to advertising. It doesn't work on me, at all, never has.




Last Edit by Humphrey