The Trust Fork...
Today was a good mail day. Got a refund from a company in which my family purchases a number of services. A good company, we like them, happy with their services. Yeah! So, as is typical, this refund was distrubuted in a check form. Turning over the check to endorse, I see the following:
"This Notice Only Applies to Vendors and Service Providers:
By endorsing this payment for your services, you agree not to
use or disclose any personal customer information received from
us unless necessary for the services we requested."
Well, isn't this interesting? Back to that entertaining consumer privacy issue. So, I am just your average consumer - who in today's world has to release certain information to this particular company to obtain services. I want the service, so I give the data, I know who the company is. So, as an average consumer participant, let me see if I can make sense of the above....
First, I am assuming technically as an individual consumer, in this context, I am not a Vendor or a Service Provider for this company. So, doesn't apply to me right? But, being a naturally curious person - I again throw caution to the wind and read on and draw the following points of interest:
-Even though I am informed that this notice apparently does not apply to me; they seem to potentially reference my "personal information"
-What if the Vendor decides that the personal customer information is worth more than the yet to be endorced payment received?
-What if I don't have the same level of trust in the Vendor trusted by my directly trusted service provider? {...and the woodchuck could chuck wood...}
-So the personal customer information received by the Vendor should not be disclosed unless it is necessary?
-Define necessary? {come on Clinton...}
-So this means that the Vendor can disclose personal information as long as my trusted service provider gets its service?
-As my personal information traverses this 'trust fork' process, disclosure enforcement rests on this?
See how much fun this is?
/jason
