|
So I have an interesting discussion about Google Gmail and their APIs with Wes Aday in the Q&A[^] section and I'd like to share it with you guys.
The initial question was "Is there a possibility to get the users Gender, Phone number, personal address and other information throughout the GMail APIs[^]?"
IMO there is no problem when third-party software can have access to this information and store it to their database when the user has to grant the permission to Google that they are allowed to share the information with the third party software and the third party software is forced to use an encrypted and save connection.
As a second point: Why would a user share this sensitive kind of information with Google if he does not want to see it on another software he is using? I never have exposed my detailed personal address and cell phone number to Google because I see no need for them to know it.
As I think it is interesting how much information you can get through a Google API I will have a look into it and make a tech blog post or an article out of the information I'll gain.
Edit: too much information. Surrender.
cheers,
Marco Alessandro Bertschi
modified 14-Jan-13 8:04am.
|
|
|
|
|
The answer, of course, is that it is possible to get this information (and more) from a wide variety of such sites. My WP calendar is stuffed full of people's birthdays from Facebook. My address book was populated with a whole host of phone numbers that I had to go and delete because they were automatically imported from various sources for me.
I never share anything that I don't want seen. It's that simple.
|
|
|
|
|
Pete O'Hanlon wrote: I never share anything that I don't want seen
So you're happy we know of what happened with Sean?
Panic, Chaos, Destruction. My work here is done.
Drink. Get drunk. Fall over - P O'H
OK, I will win to day or my name isn't Ethel Crudacre! - DD Ethel Crudacre
I cannot live by bread alone. Bacon and ketchup are needed as well. - Trollslayer
Have a bit more patience with newbies. Of course some of them act dumb - they're often *students*, for heaven's sake - Terry Pratchett
|
|
|
|
|
The guys a tart. It's happened to more than just me.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Thanks, I'll have a closer look at it - Later this week.
|
|
|
|
|
It annoys me that software would COPY information into its OWN store. Really, address and contact info is dynamic, people move and change numbers all the time.
The API should be used on the fly to extract the information JIT.
|
|
|
|
|
Dominic Amann wrote: The API should be used on the fly to extract the information JIT.
It should. But as soon as you can extract the information you are able to store it. And some bad guys are using it.
But as I said: The best way to prevent missuse of your data is not publishing your data to any website you do not trust.
|
|
|
|
|
The "you do not trust" is undeterminable. To me, the rule is "do not publish any data to any website that you don't mind the world (including your empoyer and mother in law) reading.
That said, for data to be valuable across apps, copying the data into another long term store is just a case of wearing two watches.
|
|
|
|
General 
News 
Suggestion 
Question 
Bug 
Answer 
Joke 
Praise 
Rant 
Admin 
Submit an article or tip
