Do You Share Your Location?

[Jeff Campbell]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.businessinsider.com/most-users-dont-want-to-share-their-locatoin-2011-1' target='_blank'>http://www.businessinsider.com/most...locatoin-2011-1</a><br /><br /></div><p><em>"Location-based services are going to have a hard time overcoming privacy fears and proving their worth."</em></p><p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/at/auto/1296186168.usr105634.jpg" style="border: 1px solid #d2d2bb;" /></p><p>The <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/privacy/dpd/default.aspx" target="_blank">survey about privacy and sharing</a> with location-based services was done by Microsoft, and it does reveal some interesting tidbits. Over 80% of those polled have never used a location-based service to tell others where they are, or to find the location of their friends, family etc. And of the roughly 20% that had used it, the most popular service was Google Latitude or Places at 52%, followed close behind by Facebook Places at 50%. Foursquare was only used by 15% of those users in the United States, and less in the other countries polled (Japan, Canada, UK and Germany). I am not too surprised that the "have-used" crowd was smaller than the "have-not" used crowd, but I didn't think the disparity would be that large between them. And for those that use those services, I would have thought that Foursquare, for all it's hype, would have had a greater percentage of users. I wonder just how many that said they didn't actually did but didn't know it. I guess the bigger point they are trying to make here is that people are just not comfortable putting that information out there yet. Personally I don't have too big a problem using Facebook Places every now and then, since I've vetted those that are my friends there, but there aren't too many on a regular basis that I do use other than that. How about you, any qualms about using these services and letting the 'Net know where you are?</p>

[Fritzly]

No, I do not use those services. I do not need to know all the time where my friends are and If I needed to know where a specific person, on a specific day, at a specific time is..... I can call or send a SMS. My point is that there is no need for "monitoring H24 your friends.

Btw whenever I have to attend a confidential meeting or whatever involving privacy and confidentiality either I leave the phone in another room or pulll out the battery.

Any GSM device, even if switched off, acts as a passive microphone and allows to listen all the conversation; furthermore when the phone is on it is possible to localize and record your position and movements based on the cell your phone is using........ no need for location services. :-)

[TKETZ196]

I personally also do not use anything like Facebook places, Foursquare, or any other type of location services to let others know where I am. The only thing I find useful for that is if I was traveling. In that way, my family and friends can know I am alive and well, and also be able to digitally store my adventure.

I think it is rather annoying to see on facebook newsfeed that someone is at their house, or at a store. Do I really care if you are at American Eagle? Why must you check in there and have a facebook status message saying the same thing. I think these services have some value in it, as stated why above, but other than that I think it gives people reason to invade others' privacy.

[Sven Johannsen]

Heck no. Other than advertisers, who would really care where the heck I am that can't call and ask? Now, the ability to take my position, txt it, have the recipient map it and route to it, that's useful.

[Eriq Cook]

I use Foursquare strategically to share what I'm doing in the business community and also promote local businesses & events in the area mostly. But I don't check in everywhere and agree that it's annoying seeing many "check-in" posts for just about every stop someone is making. If you're going to do that share it with your Foursquare network but not Facebook/Twitter.

If I'm meeting with a customer about a website I might share it on Foursquare (using best judgment) that I'm "discussing social media strategies with @customer/business name". That also sometimes helps promote the person/business I mentioned in the check-in. But again I use my best judgment each time about how it may help or hinder either one of us. You can also delete your check-ins from each network should you change your mind later.
Using Foursquare has actually brought in new customers for me.


What blows me away is that some people (who must not know what the heck they're doing) will check in "at home" with their real home address listed. Or check-in at the "home gym" or "gas station". Way too much info and annoying indeed.

Bottom-line, try to be smart about it and use your best judgment. From a business standpoint it can be positive for you if you know what you're doing.

[virain]

Never, It's nobody's business, but mine, where am I and what I'm doing!

[Jason Dunn]

I don't use any location-based service, and I find it massively irritating when people in my data stream do - I filter it out whenever possible. I don't know why ANYONE would think that everyone connected to them would want to know that they went for dinner at XYZ, got a cup of coffee at ABC, etc. Social media is narcissistic enough, but location-based services that cast a wide net - as in, broadcasting to everyone in your stream - are downright irritating. I've un-followed people that use services like that if I can't filter their posts out on an application basis. I think FourSquare is a pox upon the Internet! :mad:

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Got a friend who loves Foursquare. Says it helps him meet other friends who are in his area and spot his location updates.

Me, I block it. Man the feeds are so spammy. -.-

[Brad Adrian]

Social media is narcissistic enough...
LOL!
My thought exactly! Guess you weren't lined up to see that silly "Facebook Movie," were you?

[frankenbike]

Another member of the "will never use" such location services. I don't want to meet up with my friends everywhere I go, and I find their use of foursquare and other services annoying, as it clutters up my FB newsfeed. A simple one line post when you want to meet up with friends will accomplish the same thing, and is more targeted to your social group anyway without all the "Blah Blah is at Starbucks" posts.

Also, I believe that absolutely nothing is private on the Internet except for secure sites, and don't like the idea that my movements can be tracked without me knowing it by using such services.

[Jason Dunn]

Got a friend who loves Foursquare. Says it helps him meet other friends who are in his area and spot his location updates.

I just can't wrap my brain about the demographic of people who are going from place to place and people are connecting with them at those places. Maybe if I was a club-hopping 22 year old FourSquare would make some sense to me? :confused:

[Jason Dunn]

LOL!
My thought exactly! Guess you weren't lined up to see that silly "Facebook Movie," were you?

No, though I do want to see it - there's never been anything quite like Facebook in the history of the Internet before, so how/why it was created is worthy of study. :)

[Eriq Cook]

...and don't like the idea that my movements can be tracked without me knowing it by using such services.

Unless you're of the conspiracy type, these services don't automatically "know" where you are and check you in without you knowing. You must manually perform an action to check in at any location.

With that said, I do believe that governments CAN track anyone at will connected to the Internet, but with the 307,006,550 people in the U.S. alone (according to the current census) you would really need to attract special attention to yourself somehow for the government to care where you're checking in each time :eek:

[Fritzly]

Unless you're of the conspiracy type, these services don't automatically "know" where you are and check you in without you knowing. You must manually perform an action to check in at any location.

With that said, I do believe that governments CAN track anyone at will connected to the Internet, but with the 307,006,550 people in the U.S. alone (according to the current census) you would really need to attract special attention to yourself somehow for the government to care where you're checking in each time :eek:

As I said your carrier always know where you are: the trace is generated by the cells your phone uses to be connected. Once the data is there it is just a matter of looking for it, no need to initiate anything special just to track your movements, it is just a search though existing data.

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

I just can't wrap my brain about the demographic of people who are going from place to place and people are connecting with them at those places. Maybe if I was a club-hopping 22 year old FourSquare would make some sense to me? :confused:

My friend doesn't club hop. I guess he likes those spontaneous meetups...

[Jason Dunn]

As I said your carrier always know where you are: the trace is generated by the cells your phone uses to be connected.

Then the only option is to not carry a cell phone. Are you going to do that?

[Fritzly]

Then the only option is to not carry a cell phone. Are you going to do that?

Usually no I do not; as I said if I get in confidential meetings or conversations phones are left out of the room because even if switched off a GSM device is a passive microphone.
What is disturbing is the unchecked and unregulated access that too many entities have here in the US to all kind of data. Btw when I say data I am not referring only to phone carriers but, for example, Doctors and clinics selling your information to insurance companies etc. Once we applied for a business license for a new company: for one week we were bombarded by callers offering everything from business cards, to phone services, credit card terminals etc. etc.
Where all these entities got our phone number? A phone # that had been activated two weeks before BTW..........

[Craig Horlacher]

I never have but I'm considering starting to.