Internet Explodes Over Origin's Invasion of Privacy

[tactica]

I know this may sound stupid but what are they going to do with my information?

Like... they'd have access to uni work I do, work documents, a few porn sites, torrents and my banking details.

I'd still assume my banking details are illegal to obtain and store, and the other stuff is pretty much useless to them. I also assume that whilst being able to access this information that any intellectual properties would still belong to me.

So... why would I care?

Because assumption is the mother of all fuckups.

Be sure that all that information is valuable to someone, starting by EA who can sell it for free from the moment you accept their ToS (at least in the US as far I can see). Not to mention they could simply get hacked, and they are quite likely to be hacked for this sooner or later.

Frankly, I'd be alright with cameras in my house too as long as they weren't broadcast in public. And if they were I think people would get bored pretty fast...

You may find living in Orwell's 1984 a pleasant experience but don't expect others -or at least, me- to agree.

 

[ReiverCorrupter]

snip for brevity

I think the main issue is whether we should be expected to read and agree to a 10-30 page legal document every time we want to buy a product or download a program.

I get that the majority of consumers just need to become more aware of what they're singing. But giving people large legal documents for items as common and meaningless as games is a little ridiculous. It's not like it's a car or a house.

I also still think that giving the company the ability to demand things such as the handing over of rights in a document such as this is underhanded. I'm still of the thought that a ToS should be just that. It should only pertain to the regulations demanded of item or service your singing it for. That shouldn't include the signing over of rights.

A legal document such as this for such frivolous products and services is silly. We're being bogged down with litigation that a lot of people won't understand.

But to be honest, I can't think of a viable alternative to a ToS. Because the company does need to keep rights for it's product/service. But the expectation that we should read large documents for such inconsequential paraphernalia is obscene. And frankly, most of what is in there doesn't apply to your average customer. It's to stop people from abusing the service. Most people won't.

So we've essentially been burdened with this because a few jackasses will find a way to abuse the things.

It just doesn't seem right to me.

Yeah, but if they didn't have them then they couldn't sue those jackasses. What they could do is just add another clause to the initial agreement so that by signing it you continue to agree to the terms every time there is a new update unless the terms have changed, and then you need only read and agree to the changed sections.

I think most companies do that, when the update something they prompt you to read the updated ToS.

It's a shame a few jackasses force this kind of behaviour, especially when it's so easily abused.

You know, I think I've come over to your way of thinking now. The best solution would simply be to pass a piece of legislation that made it so that data collection can't be a part of normal ToS agreements UNLESS IT IS DIRECTLY NECESSARY FOR THE SERVICE TO RUN any additional data collection should require its own special agreement, as should anything pertaining to sharing the data with third parties or associating it with your personal information. I'm not saying that companies shouldn't be able to require you to assent to both agreements before they give you the service, just that this way the objectionable shit would be impossible to miss and people would know what they're signing up for.

But just to reiterate, they should be able to require you to sign over your personal information in order to use the service it should just have to be in a separate legal document than the normal ToS.

 

[robinkom]

I smell an FBI/Homeland Security conspiracy... no, not really... OR DO I?!

I had to install Origin with the more recent updates for The Sims 3 and this is just complete bullshit. They know they have the vast majority of us by the balls because we're so placated with the absolute joy of our favorite games that they publish but we don't want to trade it away for an invasion of our privacy.

My only question is, does Origin do this while it's not running on your system? Does it do it silently in the background?

 

[Spectrre]

So I who have already downloaded Origin to play the alpha is pretty much fucked?

Ea has some pretty interesting business models. They make the PC version the best version by a long shot and then they do everything in their might to piss of the customers and destroy their new download service before it's even out of the betaphase.

Ah fuck it, I never thought I'd say this but I'm pre-ordering Modern Warfare 3 instead of Battlefield 3. Player run dedicated servers and steam is enough to make up for a shitty game, even if it's just to prove a point.

While I applaud your efforts to make a point and I understand why you'd want to I really don't see how this changes anything. Are you really willing to play a (probably) shittier game and deprive yourself of the good one to prove a point EA will never even notice? Do you think they will care that 1 or even a hundred people don't buy their game when hundreds of thousands do?

I suppose it could give you some piece of mind knowing you didn't support their bullshit but still..

 

[Xan Krieger]

Solution: Buy copy
Torrent it
That way it's not piracy and you can play the game with no spyware included.
Unless there's a way to install the game and remove all of origin's files like the virus it is.

 

[ReiverCorrupter]

snip for brevity

I think the main issue is whether we should be expected to read and agree to a 10-30 page legal document every time we want to buy a product or download a program.

I get that the majority of consumers just need to become more aware of what they're singing. But giving people large legal documents for items as common and meaningless as games is a little ridiculous. It's not like it's a car or a house.

I also still think that giving the company the ability to demand things such as the handing over of rights in a document such as this is underhanded. I'm still of the thought that a ToS should be just that. It should only pertain to the regulations demanded of item or service your singing it for. That shouldn't include the signing over of rights.

A legal document such as this for such frivolous products and services is silly. We're being bogged down with litigation that a lot of people won't understand.

But to be honest, I can't think of a viable alternative to a ToS. Because the company does need to keep rights for it's product/service. But the expectation that we should read large documents for such inconsequential paraphernalia is obscene. And frankly, most of what is in there doesn't apply to your average customer. It's to stop people from abusing the service. Most people won't.

So we've essentially been burdened with this because a few jackasses will find a way to abuse the things.

It just doesn't seem right to me.

Yeah, but if they didn't have them then they couldn't sue those jackasses. What they could do is just add another clause to the initial agreement so that by signing it you continue to agree to the terms every time there is a new update unless the terms have changed, and then you need only read and agree to the changed sections.

I think most companies do that, when the update something they prompt you to read the updated ToS.

It's a shame a few jackasses force this kind of behaviour, especially when it's so easily abused.

You know, I think I've come over to your way of thinking now. The best solution would simply be to pass a piece of legislation that made it so that data collection can't be a part of normal ToS agreements UNLESS IT IS DIRECTLY NECESSARY FOR THE SERVICE TO RUN any additional data collection should require its own special agreement, as should anything pertaining to sharing the data with third parties or associating it with your personal information. I'm not saying that companies shouldn't be able to require you to assent to both agreements before they give you the service, just that this way the objectionable shit would be impossible to miss and people would know what they're signing up for.

But just to reiterate, they should be able to require you to sign over your personal information in order to use the service it should just have to be in a separate legal document than the normal ToS.

I'd be totally fine with that.

It's not just hidden inside a ToS then. Yea, that could work. Sham it won't happen.

Actually this is the exact type of thing that could happen. It goes beyond video games to personal information in general. It's constantly in the news with iTunes and all sorts of other things. Honestly it would be an extremely popular piece of legislation with the public. (Even though the data collection is pretty much just statistics and has nothing to do with you as a person, there aren't any stalkers working for EA or Apple compiling a big folder on how much porn you watch.)

The only thing that would stop this is heavy corporate lobbying, which is usually enough. However, given the fact that congress has a terrible approval rating with the public right now, this could be just the kind of thing they would try to pass since it's culturally relevant and isn't really partisan. The republicans are obviously pro business, but they aren't going to take a stance against personal privacy. As long as it's just a legal reform about the classification of agreements and what can be included in their fine-print and not something that actually restricts companies from asking for your information it should be fine.

But then again, the republicans keep saying more and more insane things like how the tea partyers want to essentially abolish democracy in favor of unchecked capitalism, and how Rick Perry want's to make America a Christian republic, so who knows what they can get away with. Personally, I think we're only hearing the fanatics right now and they're pissing middle America off big time with the refusal to raise taxes, but who knows?

 

[neonsword13-ops]

Hehe, This is why I hate EA with a burning passion. Looks like their service is going to hell REAL fast. Why am I not surprised?

 

[No_Remainders]

Hard. Copies.

Are they not gonna do that thing where they tie it into Origin anyway and make you activate it there?

 

[Jaeger_CDN]

Hard. Copies.

Are they not gonna do that thing where they tie it into Origin anyway and make you activate it there?

and correct me if I'm wrong but hasn't Valve done something similar with their products as well. When I picked up orange box for the PC (and this is where I could be wrong since it was a long while back) it came with a CD and a code. The CD basically had the install for Steam and the rest was downloaded from their servers.

 

[Orcus The Ultimate]

We're being monitored !


Check this awesome example:

When using "X" company: "X" collects your location [...], also collect information about you [...], If you upload a photo or video [...], we will store that content [...], We may display posts to which you?ve attached your location to users who seek to view [...], We will record information about your [...] activity [...], We may share aggregate statistics about "X" activity with the public [...], The developer "X" may have access to your email address and to the content you have access to in.


try reading this with the Deus Ex Soundtrack and you can bet you won't read it the same way.

 

[aznriptide859]

With Portal 2 you had the option of downloading it or installing with the CD, provided you bought a hard copy. You still needed Steam to run the game though.

 

[qeinar]

thing is i am going to play bf3 no matter what, i however probably won't use origin for anything other than that.

 

[kebab4you]

Hard. Copies.

Games.Come.With.Origin.

 

[captaincabbage]

Well EA, you tried, can you just go back to Steam now?

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

If anyone has actually paid any attention the EULA has been updated so chill people.

The only reason they updated it was because they got caught with their fingers in the cookie jar. There are still clauses that allow them to 'update' the EULA as they see fit which may mean they'll try it again once the outrage has died down.

here's a link to their updated origin EULA pdf [http://eacom.s3.amazonaws.com/EULA_Origin_8.24.11.pdf]

Yadda yadda..oh..

D. Application Updates. You agree that the Application may automatically
download and install updates, upgrades and additional features that EA
deems reasonable, beneficial to you and/or reasonably necessary.

So they can put the snoop back in whenever they want. Nice try EA.

And you can't stop them. And they don't have to warn you.

THE ENTIRE RISK OF SATISFACTORY
QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE RESIDES WITH YOU.

 

[AGenericHero]

Well, I'm not installing origin or getting Battlefield 3.

You don't do this EA. I mean good god, it seems almost like spyware.

Looks like Battlefield 3 may bomb. Unless you put it on Steam, a good chunck of gamers wont buy your games anymore. You'll lose less profit.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

Does this mean that EA Games can find out all the kinky porn I'm into? If so then I'm seriously worried

CAN? yes. Will do? Do you trust them enough to ignore it?

Do you trust a company that has no idea who you are, where you are from, simply wants you to give them money and has no legal recompense from doing what they like with the details of your kinky porn collection?

That's the real call, isn't it?