Ubuntu has discovered privacy - Unity improved

[viking60]

Ubuntu has this search function that sends your data to Amazone and presents Amazone products in the search.

This was a default in Unity, and could be opted out of, if you could stand on your head and crap in a 90 degree angel while singing opera (something complicated anyway).

The Ubuntu Linux Unity desktop will no longer display Amazon product suggestions by default in search results.

We have criticized this before:
viewtopic.php?f=14&t=2329
And only because of this; Ubuntu has seen the light :

Amazon receives and reacts to search terms with only users' implied consent, not explicit consent.

Right! And that is not a good way of treating people - it is more like tricking them into things. Ubuntu has realized that.

In the era of NSA surveillance, Canonical has been forced to address such privacy concerns. Ubuntu will make an addition to Scope, which is what it calls the selection of search resources, to enable users to opt-in to the search providers they want to use.

Opting in is good. Having to opt out is bad. Good show Ubuntu Making an error is fine if you can learn from it. And the Ubuntu guys have done just that.
This will restore a lot of goodwill.

More here

[Snorkasaurus]

I am so sick and tired of douchebag companies assuming that their ability to harvest even the smallest amount of information about people automatically gives them the right to market at you like they just bought new fishnet stockings... and just as tired of a digital culture of individuals who just don't care. Organizations that maintain a default opted out policy are leading by example... take note corporate tramps, this is how people should be treated.


S.