CDR: Re: ZKS -- the path to world domination

[Adam Back]

Greg wrote earlier about ZKS' Managed Privacy services:

> what I wonder about with this is where ZKS' loyalties will appear to
> be. Consumers probably want to see their privacy software vendor as
> "on their side"; but commercial interests working on data collection
> are probably going to want to work with people who will help them
> advance their own goals, sometimes at the price of others'
> privacy. 

Well ZKS should have an interest maintaining a good reputation for
acting in the interests of users privacy.  Companies who use such
services should also have an interest in using services of companies
with good privacy reputations -- as this would tend to give better
consumer confidence in the resulting systems.

> The closest parallel I can see is to environmental groups, who have
> in some cases endorsed certain corporations or certain practices as
> "green" or "environmentally friendly", and who have subsequently
> lost stature among some of their members and peers as having "sold
> out". I don't know if it will work well to be perceived as serving
> two masters - even if the corporate interests pay lip service to
> "protecting our customers' privacy".

I guess the only answers are maintaining professionalism, and
integrity and to maintain a strong stance on users privacy, with clear
long term objectives (avoiding short-sighted small incremental
improvements which may stay for a long time just because of the fact
that built working systems don't get replaced as long as they continue
to function).  Openness would be a guiding principle too I would think
-- so that users and technology critics can analyse and criticize the
systems.  Transparent functioning is a huge win for privacy.

Adam