I wonder, is there a list, possibly broken down by segment, that shows the relatively privacy friendly companies in that segment? Personally I would also like to see a check or not in a few categories for each for things like "Public statements supporting privacy", "Software/service features support privacy", "Business model supports/supported by privacy" and "has resisted/advocated against privacy encroaching laws or overly broad legal orders".
That's a tall order, but it seems like the thing that could be mostly crowd-sourced to good effect (with a few moderators to ensure accuracy).
Not sure I’d trust this list. All my email addresses submitted to Adobe and previously Macromedia have come back with scammy spam of epic proportions compared to any other company I’ve submitted emails to. This list has them at 5 stars. Could be they sold or they got hacked, and maybe it no longer happens, but even new emails as of 2 years ago suffered the same fate over time.
Not that I can vouch for the list, but it's not if Adobe got hacked, they are well known for being victims of some very large hack(s?).[1]
Other than that, I hope you're not using cracked versions of any Adobe software or commercial filters, or key generators for either on systems that have any personal information...
Although it does seem a little odd that Youtube has full marks when there's quite a lot of info about their broken take down system and appeals process...
> that shows the relatively privacy friendly companies in that segment
Most companies seem to violate their own privacy policies, and it's impossible for us to know that they're doing it without either whistleblowers or regulators.
The policy is the simplest and lightest level of assurance I was expecting. It's basically PR. I'm more interested in cases where they've been tested put their money where their mouth is, or even if they are willing to note that they get legal requests, what is generally requested, how they comply, etc.
Most of these companies aren't ever "tested". It's pure luck that we ever find out they're violating our privacy. There's no transparency in a cloud app.
I don't mean tested as in some organization tests them, I mean is there information showing or alluding to a company fighting back for their users (or business model) against government overreach? If there is, that's useful information. It doesn't mean a company that hasn't been in that situation wouldn't act the same, but we can't assert much about that with any level of confidence.
It's not like any of these indicators can be taken entirely on face value anyway, since their all indicators of past performance and a change in policy at a company could happen any time. Something is better than nothing though.
That's a tall order, but it seems like the thing that could be mostly crowd-sourced to good effect (with a few moderators to ensure accuracy).