Privacy for Sale: How Computerization Has Made Everyone's Private Life an Open Secret

by Jeffrey Rothfeder

An examination of the world of information takes readers on a guided tour of the big three credit agencies, demonstrating why privacy laws are hopelessly outdated and what people can do to minimize their invasions of privacy. 35,000 first printing.

224 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1992

Reviews

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

A topic of constant interest to me. Rothfeder was a Business Week report who really broke the electronic information-selling story in the late ’80s/early ’90s by getting credit reports for Dan Rather and Dan Quayle and profiling the seedier aspects of the info business. The book dates from about that time, so it was interesting to see how his predictions panned out — a mixed bag, I think: Don’t know whether you’ve had this experience, but I’ve been getting privacy statements from every company I deal with, giving me the chance to “opt out” of their marketing schemes; I of course hop right to this, but if you look closely, the exceptions “the law” allows them are pretty wide. Still, for me, anything that slows the spread of my virtual self is worth a little effort on my part.