Wednesday, August 16, 2006

EA's Privacy Policy: Where the Hell is Microsoft?

DQ reader Rhett brings up an excellent point:
What am I missing? Why haven't I heard anything about Microsoft sharing my credit card number with EA? I haven't given my credit card number to EA.

So the problem I see with all this is Microsoft. Where did I agree to let Microsoft provide my frickin' credit card info and other personal info to other companies/entities? I do not want MS to do that, EVER! Had I known that they would be doing this, I would cancel the credit card I have on file with Xbox Live and buy the 1 year subscription cards from retailers.

What am I missing here? I think something in the Microsoft privacy policy that allows them to share my credit card info should be required by law to have a specific opt in box, not be buried in the EULA.

So where is the outrage that Microsoft is sharing credit card info? They should be saying, "No way" to EA.


Well, I just read all of these:
Microsoft Online Privacy Statement
Microsoft Online Privacy Notice Highlights
Xbox Live Terms of Use and Privacy Statement

Nowhere in any of those documents does it mention transferring credit card information, as far as I can tell. The only mention is a section in the Online Privacy Statement where they talk about encrypting credit card information, but that appears to specifically be for online transactions with Microsoft.

So Microsoft is in violation of its own Privacy Policy if this transfer of credit card information is happening.

If this transfer is happening, it needs to stop immediately, and the number of credit card numbers harvested by EA in this manner needs to be disclosed (and that database deleted from EA's system). And if it's not happening, EA needs to amend their Privacy Policy to exclude this transfer as a possibility.

Send those e-mails. We can collectively force them to respond.

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