Microsoft owns the rights to all your HOTMAIL emails!!!

[dieselstation]

this is very scary! according to The Register and also The MoonGroup, any data you send through the Microsoft network (be it email/ftp/instant messages), is legally owned by Microsoft and they can do whatever they want with it according to their Terms Of Service. It includes anything in your emails such as stock tips or business notes or basically anything. Anything that passes through MSN services etc. Now i TRULY believe that microsoft is evil.

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

you mean people actually use their hotmail accounts for something other than a shadow email addy for irritating on-line forms that require email addies?

 

[LadyNiniane]

<< you mean people actually use their hotmail accounts for something other than a shadow email addy for irritating on-line forms that require email addies? >>



Well, I have a couple of listservs that end up in a Hotmail account, but I try to avoid having anything really critical sent there.

And I do have more than one Hotmail account, just for those fill-ins. Makes scanning the mail real easy.

Lady Niniane

 

[yakko]

So?

 

[Zenmervolt]

What Yakko said.

Big deal, AOL scans all the E-mail that goes through their system.

Zenmervolt

 

[yakko]

<< AOL scans all the E-mail that goes through their system. >>

Wrong. They could care less. If they went through the effort to scan everything they would do something about the crap that goes through that there are complaints about all the time.

 

[jacobnero6918]

The government also scans all emails...but pretty soon I think m$ will buy the government so I guess they will all get along.

If you want safe mail use hush mail.

www.hushmail.com

 

[JellyBaby]

You're just discovering MS wants to control your OS, apps and data now? Where have you been? They're not called The Great Beast of Redmond for nothing you know.

 

[dieselstation]

no. the point is they can take your intellectual property and do with it whatever they want. as in sell the info, use it for their own purposes or worse. It's like saying if i wrote lyrics to a song, and sent that lyric to someone via email, microsoft would then OWN those lyrics. do you see the implications now????

 

[Harvey]

We are Micro$oft.
Resistance is futile.
You WILL be assimilated.

So sayeth the Borg of Redmond :|

 

[geno]

Let's see, we use a service that runs at MS's expense, there's not too much to complain about there. You shouldn't handle anything too important over hotmail anyways IMO

 

[LadyNiniane]

<< no. the point is they can take your intellectual property and do with it whatever they want. as in sell the info, use it for their own purposes or worse. It's like saying if i wrote lyrics to a song, and sent that lyric to someone via email, microsoft would then OWN those lyrics. do you see the implications now???? >>



Check the TOS for Yahoo/Geocities. I think there are still clauses in there that do essentially the same thing.

When Geocities was bought by Yahoo a year or so ago, there was a huge stink about it. Yahoo said that they modified the terms, but the last time I looked, most of the same phrases were still buried in the legalese.

Yahoo has claimed that they would never &quot;assume&quot; ownership, but basically, you are trusting your stuff to their good graces. Yeah, right....

Lady Niniane

 

[Jothaxe]

Maybe Im just naive about this, but I have a feeling that if MS or Yahoo tried to claim ownership of your song lyrics etc. because you sent them over their email accounts, it wouldnt hold up in court. I am pretty sure that even if there is some hidden clause in the legal portion of the agreement, you could still take their a$$ to court and win. I have at least this much faith in the American legal system.

 

[Corn]

It's amazing how gullible some people are. What, because they saw it on the net it must be true?

Here is a snippet from the Register &quot;article&quot; linked above regarding the TOS for Passport:



<< &quot;By posting messages, uploading files, inputting data, submitting any feedback or suggestions, or engaging in any other form of communication
with or through the Passport Web Site ... you are granting Microsoft and its affiliated companies permission to:

1. Use, modify, copy, distribute, transmit, publicly display, publicly perform, reproduce, publish, sublicense, create derivative works from, transfer, or sell any such communication.

2. Sublicense to third parties the unrestricted right to exercise any of the foregoing rights granted with respect to the communication. >>




Here is the actual verbage from the TOS for the Passport service:



<< MICROSOFT'S RIGHT TO USE FEEDBACK OR SUGGESTIONS YOU SUBMIT

By submitting any feedback or suggestions to Microsoft concerning the Passport Web Site or the Passport Service, you warrant and represent that you own or otherwise control the rights necessary to do so and you are granting Microsoft and its affiliated companies permission to:


Use, modify, copy, distribute, transmit, publicly display, publicly perform, reproduce, publish, sublicense, create derivative works from, transfer, or sell any such feedback or suggestions; and
Sublicense to third parties the unrestricted right to exercise any of the foregoing rights granted with respect to the feedback or suggestions. >>



Nowhere in the TOS does is state &quot;By posting messages, uploading files, inputting data, submitting any feedback or suggestions, or engaging in any other form of communication with or through the Passport Web Site ... you are granting Microsoft and its affiliated companies permission to:&quot;

Yet just another pathetic attempt by the register to get hits on their site and another chance for the commies and linux zealots to attempt to win over &quot;converts&quot; to their side.

Morons.

 

[Stealth1024]

always read the fine print...

 

[dieselstation]

but did you read the line RIGHT after that? from microsoft's site:



<< The foregoing grants shall include the right to exploit any proprietary rights in such feedback or suggestions, including but not limited to rights under copyright, trademark, service mark or patent laws under any relevant jurisdiction. No compensation will be paid with respect to Microsoft's use of the materials contained within such feedback or suggestions. Microsoft is under no obligation to post or use any materials you may provide and may remove such materials at any time in Microsoft's sole discretion. >>



to me, that sounds pretty damn suspicious. &quot;include the right to exploit&quot;? &quot;including but not limited to rights under copyright, etc.&quot;? hmmmmmmm..

 

[Azraele]

<<Now i TRULY believe that microsoft is evil. >>

You didn't already know this???

 

[bleuiko]

shhhh... not so loud, forum walls have ears.

 

[BuckMaster]

They can read all spam mail they want from my hotmail account!

 

[ignorus]

oh no someone emailed me the latest linux kernel, now microsoft owns linux!

 

[atomicbomberman]

It is evil, but then so is the rest of the world.. so beat off

 

[palad]

All your Hotmail are belong to MS!


(sorry, I had to do it)