eBay Accesses Biometric and Location Data of Sellers

by: Ina

(Wondering how many publications will pick this up and not credit EcommerceBytes)

by: lessthanthreerecords

Dear eBay,
Best of luck tracking me with photos from a Nikon Coolpix S2800.
lol

TikTok is grilled for surveillance, but as long as you're based in the U.S., surveil all you want, it seems!

by: Alfacar

It is vey concerning when you think of  (Steiners/Fidomasyer) harrassment. All those companies could find you anywhere if others gave them access to surveillance cameras (airport, markets etc) through facial recognition. Not to mention telling others to stop doing business with you for some made up reason you wouldn’t be aware of. Governemnet needs to take action and protect people.

by: Alfacar

Can such data collected by US companies be sold to CCP?

by: Fruitylovesyou

thats what they'll do. Grab your work and no kiss.
This is now becoming nothing but data farming. I think something has changed on the books thats got them thinking they got carte blanche to lay waste. Somethings under foot, they are increasing the amount of changes. Obvious.  

by: Rexford

"It is vey concerning when you think of  (Steiners/Fidomasyer) harrassment."

Great point.  My first question, is there a solution out there that will erase the data from our photos before we load them to SpyBay?

by: Rexford

It appears we do have some options, though I am unclear where the location data resides:  https://www.canto.com/blog/remove-metadata-from-photo/

by: Snapped

Facial recognition technology has been applied in varied applications (with questionable ‘success’) for very a decade.  Longer than the ‘state’ has collected most folk’s mugshots for their driver’s licenses.  That’s, um, protected, right?

Anyway, now you know why eBay was such a ‘resolution’ Nazi with their incessant re-requests for fax images of same from sellers.

Location, etc. data affixed to photos hasn’t been a secret either.  There are ways to set camera (ap) preferences to filter or block those.  Though if you’re concerned about eBay having your coordinates, you might look into ways to mask that ip address you’re using.  

Your digital footprint has long been fossilized, extracted and catalogued, to some degree or another.  Watch what you might step in.

by: The End

All this Biometrics is good for is HERDING people.
Eventually the Planners want all humans down below the Mason Dixon line.
So, UNLOAD all your gizmos so they can't find you.
ALSO: It's the Extraterrestrial Climate Agenda.
Pay Attention.

by: Alfacar

I am most concerned about live photo (dynamic selfie) and gov ID- which is essentially face ID. You can be discriminated in todays reality for it (for skin color, gender, age etc). You can be tracked down while shopping or vacationing and I know it is extreme but what about some hit jobs for soemthing company doesn’t like you have done i.e, placing complaints with government ( Steiners and Fidomaster legal case vs Ebay harrasment who even contracted some para militaries and had FBI and cops working for them). Can they just make you lose job?- companies (marketplaces) collect on your biometrics (face id, voice) and contact each other to see who you are (what others have on you). Can they say to one another you are crook or thief and you would have no clue and they would ban you collectively from buying/selling? Are they required by law to give you reason for ban ? Can they refuse doing business with you because they found out your religion is not what they like, or political belief is not what they support? By having your face id they basically can do what so far only government was doing. Having facial recognition they able to see where you go and shop real time and they able to see what body type /size you are.
Did you notice how new account holders are blocked from Ebay? They are not even given reason?  

by: shut1968

Transfer your photo's to computer, edit/crop/fix with photoshop or even paint, all the data changes.

by: Rexford

How did this topic turn from eBay accessing biometric data from photos to the government is the boogey man.  If anything it is the technology itself that is the boogey man.  

As far as tracking our every move it is only going to get worse.  As for the government, if the government can use biometrics to keep terrorists from flying planes into US skyscrapers I am good with that.  However, when an ecommerce company wants to know my location data and where I live, work and study that is an entirely another thing. And what you can count on with eBay is that if there is a way to harvest that data and sell it for a buck you know that they will.

by: Marie

You can turn OFF the geo data on your phone for your pics, or you should be able to.  

by: Marie

@shut1968

"Transfer your photo's to computer, edit/crop/fix with photoshop or even paint, all the data changes."

That is what I do too.

by: Fruitylovesyou

Wal-Mart's been collecting our biometrics for years all those faces Scans at checkout registers.  EBay disclosed they're going to do it, which I'm glad there was a disclosure.. There are many companies doing this and the big unknown and fear is what else will it by used for.  

by: toolguy

I use a Olympus D-460 a model that came out in 2000 for my eBay, the only info on the pictures is an incorrect date.

I try to avoid giving out data, I use as much cash as possible.

by: pace306

Its NOT about technology - its about (ONCE AGAIN), eBay collecting data it has no need or regard for.

1) eBay has demonstrated MANY times that they are a BAD steward of seller data

2) eBay doesnt need it - it WANTS it - so it can sell it to 3rd parties ($100 its in the TOS somewhere)

3) the "platform that only connects buyers and sellers" doesnt need ANY of this info.

more bad eBay policies.

by: Rexford

Pace summed it up perfectly, especially with the statement "eBay doesn't need it, eBay WANTS it".

Mark my word eBay sees this as a monetizing opportunity.  If politicians are going to worry about Tik Tok they should be watchful of what data eBay and other companies sell to the Chinese.  

Can you imagine if ancestry.com were bought by the Chinese?

by: toolguy

eBay wants this data for many reasons.

If you sell fake or stolen merchandise and it has a geotag they can give that info to law enforcement.

Geo tagging would also let eBay know where the migration of product is.

If I were eBay I would want as much info on my sellers and buyers I could get.

And like pace mentioned data is worth money. . .

by: Nonesuch

Pace nailed it.   All this data can be sold and eBay is desperate to monetize anything it can so that it can show Wall Street that eBay is still making money, in the absence of any revenue growth from increased sales from seller listings.