Malls track shoppers' cell phones on Black Friday

[GM]

Be nice and help the poor guys, do not forget to turn on your cell phone :

Malls track shoppers' cell phones on Black Friday - Nov. 22, 2011

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[archer51]

I don't have to worry about Short Pump Town Center tracking me. I refuse to go there. Not only are the stores over priced, the traffic in the area is horrendous and the layout of the mall sucks.

[tubadude]

I feel bad for anyone tracking me. They must be bored out of their mind.

[PB2]

I feel bad for anyone tracking me. They must be bored out of their mind.

That's what I always say to the paranoids who insist the government is watching/collecting data on all of us. Somewhere there is a gov't employee bored out of his scull and begging his supervisor to watch someone who actually gets off the couch once in a while.

[retsupt99]

The management company of both malls, Forest City Commercial Management, says personal data is not being tracked.

Yep, and the government is here to help you.

[babarock]

I'm surprised that this kind of tracking has not been done for years by multiple methods. If one could trust that no personally identifiable info was collected I'm not sure I care if they know everyone who visits Victoria's Secret also visits the food court. I go to the mall once or twice a year, don't like the crowds and can get most everything mail order. Wonder how many people in the mall see the sign, read the sign, understand the sign and turn their phone off?

"Still, the company is preemptively notifying customers by hanging small signs around the shopping centers. Consumers can opt out by turning off their phones." No I can opt out by taking my business elsewhere.

[sureshot1]

Their not tracking me, that I do know. WHY ?? Because my cell phone doesn't go anywhere with me !! I'm not that important that I have to have a phone with me at all times. I know there are a lot of people that are because I see them all the time. Their on the phone in their car, at the store, in the restaurant, in the hospital, and they are all saying CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW, loud enough so every one around them can hear them. Must be nice to be so empotant.

[SIGguy229]

Their not tracking me, that I do know. WHY ?? Because my cell phone doesn't go anywhere with me !! I'm not that important that I have to have a phone with me at all times. I know there are a lot of people that are because I see them all the time. Their on the phone in their car, at the store, in the restaurant, in the hospital, and they are all saying CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW, loud enough so every one around them can hear them. Must be nice to be so empotant.

So you carry a gun, but no phone?

How do you call 911 if you need help, say, after a defensive shooting? Or being a good witness if you see a crime being committed?

Carrying a phone is not a matter of importance, as much as it is preparedness.

[HKinNY]

I will give you one better, there are companies that I deal with that can pinpoint the cell phone location. Not just inthe mall Anywhere. If the phone has GPS with in 40 feet without GPS few hundred feet. Scary stuff. Will work with phone on or off.

[mcp1810]

I will give you one better, there are companies that I deal with that can pinpoint the cell phone location. Not just inthe mall Anywhere. If the phone has GPS with in 40 feet without GPS few hundred feet. Scary stuff. Will work with phone on or off.

Which is why if you want to go off the radar you need to remove the battery.
Back when I was working 9-1-1 I got to watch the progression from no clue where you were, to closest tower. Next generation was what sector from that tower. By the time I left (2006) the newer phones would give me within about fifty feet.

[mlr1m]

That's what I always say to the paranoids who insist the government is watching/collecting data on all of us. Somewhere there is a gov't employee bored out of his scull and begging his supervisor to watch someone who actually gets off the couch once in a while.

First off there is a huge difference between private citizens doing something and the Government doing it. When done by a shopping mall I can refuse to do business with them. When the Government does it its not so easy to refuse.
Secondly you presumption that if you are doing nothing wrong there is no need to be alarmed is one shared by many. After all, if you have nothing to hide do you really need to exercise your rights?

Michael

[Hopyard]

First off there is a huge difference between private citizens doing something and the Government doing it. When done by a shopping mall I can refuse to do business with them. When the Government does it its not so easy to refuse.
Secondly you presumption that if you are doing nothing wrong there is no need to be alarmed is one shared by many. After all, if you have nothing to hide do you really need to exercise your rights?

Michael

In many communities you have one mall or you drive 50-100 miles or more. If all the malls do it, you are out of luck. This, "its private so they can do what they want" mentality can be stopped only if folks complain and lawmakers make laws.

Frankly, I don't really much care if some mall techie follows me around the mall, but I don't believe they'll just get info that is detached from my identity. They'll get my contact list and sell it. They'll steal passwords and browser cache info; sooner rather than later.

And, I'm pretty sick of the sneaky cookies the advertisers stick on my computer that I can't even find and remove but know are there by the way the ads are served up.

Why is it that some folks [dang big companies] think they can literally come into my house and surreptitiously put stuff on my computer without permission; or that they can track my movements in the mall without my permission. Putting up a small sign isn't sufficient -- and in many other areas of life all sorts of "permission" "disclaimer" "denial of liability" don't really hold up, because wrong is still wrong.

I actually find it more annoying that the private sector does these things than if Uncle did them. At least when Uncle does it there are rules, regulations, controls, managers, oversight, authorizations. When private companies engage in this stuff its a free for all get away with whatever they can mentality.

But, what really frosts me is that my phone can be tracked even when it is turned off. That could be fixed with nothing more exotic than a microswitch. It isn't accident that phones are constructed to enable tracking as the default.

Who the heck got together in a big conference room and decided on that design? And why?
And how come competition in the free market place hasn't produced a phone lacking that characteristic--and no company has advertised such a cut off as a reason to buy their product?

If I cared, pulling the battery would be easy on one of my phones. But it would be an ordeal on my iPhone.

[ctr]

Maybe, maybe the marketeers are not tracking indivuals - yet. But given enough time and too little thought, and they will track individuals. Think about how much these greedy folks would like to hit your phone with customized adds while you are in the mall.

Just another example of technology outpacing privacy rights driven by people who fail to understand the very basic tenants of personal liberty and freedom.

[Hopyard]

Maybe, maybe the marketeers are not tracking indivuals - yet. But given enough time and too little thought, and they will track individuals. Think about how much these greedy folks would like to hit your phone with customized adds while you are in the mall.

Just another example of technology outpacing privacy rights driven by people who fail to understand the very basic tenants of personal liberty and freedom.

They'll not only send you the customized adds, you'll get stuck with the fee for the message received.

[mlr1m]

Hopyard:
While I agree with your sentiment in your reply to my last post That post was merely meant to point out the different rules that apply to Government and the private sector.

As far as the tracing cell phones goes. I remember when it was being discussed to implement this as a 'safety' feature for your protection. They even threw out the 'children' line to further entice people to accept it.

Michael