Date: Sun, 22 Nov 92 11:29:24 EST
From: Jack.Decker@f8.n154.z1.fidonet.org (Jack Decker)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Is Caller-ID an Illegal Trap and Trace?
Organization: TELECOM Digest
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X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 870, Message 2 of 7

In message <telecom12.859.1@eecs.nwu.edu>, bharrell@garfield.catt.
ncsu.edu (Ben Harrell) wrote:

> Also, I would like for someone to explain to me the conceptual
> difference between someone calling me and someone knocking on my door.
> Unless I know who is on the other side of that door, I'm not likely to
> answer it, and if I do I'm going to be very careful about it.  In the
> entire history of telephony, I having had that capability.  But now
> with CLID, I do.  I understand that battered spouse shelters,
> undercover policemen, etc. need protection, but for the average person
> or business, why is CLID any different "personal privacy" wise to my
> going and knocking on my neighbors door.  Why would I expect him/her
> to answer that door, if he doesn't recognize me or my voice?

I think where your analogy falls flat is that Caller ID is delivered
to ALL users of that service when you call them, not just those you
want to have your number.  Let's think about your "person at the door"
analogy a bit more.  Consider the case of a stranger at the door: You
have the right to refuse to answer the door if you don't know the
person there, but you don't really know anything about him or her,
certainly not their address.  But let's suppose that the door in
question is not the front door to your home, but rather the front door
to a place of business.  Let's suppose, just to make things
interesting, that it's an insurance agency that sells auto, life, and
health and accident insurance.  Let's suppose that you walk by and see
a sign that says "Low rates on Auto Insurance - Inquire Inside" (the
equivalent of a yellow pages ad?) so you attempt to enter.  But, you
are met at the door by a greeter who says that you cannot enter,
cannot ask a question, or cannot talk to anyone there about anything
until you have provided your name and current address.

Now, I don't know about you, but at that point I'd probably start
thinking that once they have my name and address, they can come to my
door and harass me about my need for various types of insurance, and
if they can't give me a estimate on their "low auto insurance rate"
without giving me the third degree, I'll take my business elsewhere.
Or, alternately, I might consent to give the information, but at least
I've given it with my full knowledge and consent.

In the case of Caller ID, the information (my phone number) is just
taken from me and given to selected people that I call, but I have no
way of knowing who's getting my number, nor do I get a chance to
pre-approve the giving of that information (unless per-line blocking
is available, and I gather that's what you object to).  Generally, if
I call another residential customer, I don't really mind them knowing
that it's me calling (though there may occasionally be exceptions).
But what I REALLY object to is the giving of my number to businesses
that may capture it and then use it later on for unsolicited "cold"
sales calls.

Just as you don't normally identify yourself when you walk into most
places of business, I do not want my phone number automatically
provided to businesses that I call.  If they request my phone number,
I may well give it to them, but *I* want to make that decision.

By the way, some have asked how come folks don't object to ANI
information going out on 800 number calls.  I think it's partly
because folks don't realize it's happening, and partly because folks
who do realize it's happening also understand that when you are paying
for the calls, you need to know where the calls are coming from in
order to avoid fradulent billing.  But if I'm paying for the call, or
if it's a local call, that argument falls flat, because Caller ID data
is never used for billing verification.

> I know that I don't have to tell him/her were *I* live, but I just
> don't see the difference and don't understand what people get so upset
> about with CLID.  Maybe I'm just dense.

You're not dense, but you possibly haven't considered that Caller ID
data is delivered to both businesses and residences, and you don't
even know that it happens.  It's a different situation with the
stranger at your door ... if you choose to answer your door, you still
don't know their home address unless they tell you, and if you're a
business owner you probably aren't going to demand their home address
when they walk in your door!


Jack Decker, via the Great Lakes Internet <=> FidoNet Gateway
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