EA's XBL Privacy Policy: Should You Be Concerned?

[Maskatron]

I just spotted this very interesting post (http://dubiousquality.blogspot.com/2006/08/privacy-new-misnomer.html) over at Bill Harris' gaming blog Dubious Quality (http://dubiousquality.blogspot.com/). Apparently EA Online is grabbing quite a lot of info from Microsoft's Xbox Live service. How much?

Information collected will vary depending upon the activity and may include your name, e-mail address, phone number, mobile number, home address, birth date and credit card information. In addition, we may collect demographic information such as gender, zip code, information about your computer, hardware, software, platform, media, Internet IP address and connection, information about online activity such as feature usage, game play statistics and scores, user rankings and click paths and other data that you may provide in surveys or online profiles, for instance. We may combine demographic information with personal information.From EA Online's "Privacy Policy" (http://www.ea.com/global/legal/privacy.jsp#infoCollected).

So if EA is not collecting money directly from XBL subscribers, can anyone think of a reason why they should be allowed to collect credit card numbers? I can't think of why they would need my address or cell phone number either. Do you think it's right for Microsoft to divulge this info to EA?

[Vermillion]

I can't even put into words how displeased I am with this. Okay, I'll try. FARK YOU EA.

They don't need ANY of that data. I should at least have the option to "OPT IN" if I really wanted to give it out. The fact that they can have all my personal information, plus have access to my credit card info makes one more potential hole in the system that some can hack to do identity theft.

If MS wants to force me into doing prepaid cards and putting in false info into their system, then I can play their game too.

[Atepsflame]

Right to privacy? What's that?

[absolut taco]

Wow! Now I really want to see the Cleopatra's Unfortunate Equestrian Adventures screens.

[silv]

not buying another EA game

fuck those guys

[Varsity]

Now here, for once, is a privacy issue that isn't just paranoia. Glad I've never got involved with any of this stuff.

[[Jez]]

This makes me feel better for not having a 360 and hating almost all EA games

[Dag-Sabot]

Holy shit! Now even EA will know how much midget-porn i surf.

[fitbabits]

This is somewhat of a non-issue, I think.

[J3DI]

']This makes me feel better for not having a 360 and hating almost all EA games


If this is their policy with the 360 what makes you think this doesn't apply to the PS2/PS3? This EULA is not specific to the Xbox 360... It says they collect information during player match up or other online services (not specific to 360) and through the use of their software or online services.

This does not mean that EA is only taking information from the 360, it means that in addition to everything else it also gets your account info from LIVE, most likely because LIVE is a unique system.

[Jack B]

I don't think Microsoft should give out anything but the basics. It doesn't make me feel any better about EA, but I've almost given up on worrying about who has my credit card info. I've given it out to so many web sites over the years, I wouldn't have a clue who has it anymore. I'm sure about 1,000 clerks in retail stores have it too if they just look at the receipts in the garbage etc.

I get new numbers every so often and I'm not liable for 100% of the amount stolen anyway. I heard a consumer was limited to $50 although, I've never had my number stolen to speak 1st hand.

I'm not happy about it, but life goes on and I really don't have anything to hide anyway, so for me... Go for it EA. Have a field day. Send my some more junk mail and direct mail. Might as well. Everyone else does.

I have bigger problems to worry about. I'd need a database to track all the companies and websites I should boycot for ethical reason. Maybe I'll boycot EA. Until Madden 2007 of course... :)

[GoblinToe]

']This makes me feel better for not having a 360 and hating almost all EA games


Ditto.

The solution to this one is easy: Don't buy EA games.

See how easy that was?

[Dag-Sabot]

This is somewhat of a non-issue, I think.

Because no one with two brain cells to rub together would buy a an EA game?

[Jack B]

Because no one with two brain cells to rub together would buy a an EA game?

I have more than two, so I'm buying Madden. :)

[fitbabits]

Because no one with two brain cells to rub together would buy a an EA game?
Heh! Did I say that? :rolleyes:

Actually, I own a bunch of EA games and play them on Live. I'm just not too perturbed that they have my personal information. They're not the only ones who have it. Heck, Evil probably has as much on me as EA does. :)

[fitbabits]

I have more than two, so I'm buying Madden. :)
My advice to you is to wait for the unbiased reviews. As with NCAA 07 on Xbox 360, some features are missing from the 360 version of Madden...

[kickmybum]

Who cares anymore? This is the way things have been going for the last decade especially with apps like amazon, google and steam, which are hugely popular and do this all the time. It shouldn't affect you as long as you're not doing anything you shouldn't be.

[Maskatron]

Who cares anymore? This is the way things have been going for the last decade especially with apps like amazon, google and steam, which are hugely popular and do this all the time. It shouldn't affect you as long as you're not doing anything you shouldn't be.

The question I have though is: why do they need all this info? Can anyone think of a compelling reason other than "Don't worry, all your info is already out there"?

[Jack B]

My advice to you is to wait for the unbiased reviews. As with NCAA 07 on Xbox 360, some features are missing from the 360 version of Madden...

Yep, I can almost guarantee EA will leave stuff out. I'm really not happy about it. I'm sure it will be a better version than last year's 360 version, so I look at it like I'm buying a $60 roster update with a few enhancements (lead blocking does look cool, though). Probably much less than it could be, but a little better.

I'm getting porked and I know it. Hurry up EA, so I can bend over on August 22nd like most everyone else.

I could vote with my wallet..., but I'll pick up all my litter and let some other more rightous user do the right thing and stand up to EA. There is almost no chance I could live without the new version. I'm addicted to NFL football. I'm a sheep. Baahhhh, baaahhhh.... Someone help me please.... :eek:

I know. I'll boycott EA's NBA Live... :)

[Food Nipple]

I first noticed this EULA with Burnout Revenge. Before you connect to XBL for the first time, the privacy policy pops up. I haphazardly began to scroll down, and my jaw dropped as I began to comprehend just how long the agreement was. I read through the whole thing and noticed the same part about the credit card number, etc.

I first called EA's support line, which dumps you to a voicemail, no one responded to my message. I then called Microsoft's hotline and spoke to one of their customer service representatives. He was just as shocked by the EULA as I was. After discussing it with his supervisor, he got back to me and told me that EA may be sent the last 4 digits of your CC as a way to synchronize your XBL account with whatever draconian system they run on their own servers. The guy basically told me that no one had access to your full CC number, end of story.

[MosBen]

Well that's good to hear Food Nipple, thanks for the info.

And Jack B, if you must have a game but don't want to support the company, just buy it used. Yeah, you don't save much money on a new game that you buy used ($5 maybe?), but more importantly, the money doesn't go to the publisher. This works both ways of course, so I never buy used copies of games like Psychonauts where I want to support the developer. Still, buying a used game is about the least taxing form of protest ever. At most you have to wait a couple weeks to find a used copy of the game.

[Dag-Sabot]

You think thats unreasonably exhaustive? Try the Final Fantasy XI registration process. I was genuinely surprised they didn't ask for my blood type.

[Reanimated]

Standard EA EULA. It's on their PS2 games, PC games, Xbox games, and Xbox 360 games.

[kokyunage]

This is somewhat of a non-issue, I think.

Just wait until your identity or personal information is used to charge items. You will be singing a different tune. Happened to me 6 months ago thanks to a disgruntled employee at my bank. It's not fun.

[Jack B]

Well that's good to hear Food Nipple, thanks for the info.

And Jack B, if you must have a game but don't want to support the company, just buy it used. Yeah, you don't save much money on a new game that you buy used ($5 maybe?), but more importantly, the money doesn't go to the publisher. This works both ways of course, so I never buy used copies of games like Psychonauts where I want to support the developer. Still, buying a used game is about the least taxing form of protest ever. At most you have to wait a couple weeks to find a used copy of the game.

Hmmm, yeah I'd forgotten about that... I almost never ever buy used, but maybe just this once! :)

Oh, crap I can't wait long enough for Madden to become a used game... Somebody help me... ***Don't fly towards the light!*** :eek: ***Ack... I can't stop myself*** :(

[Kamalot]

I wrote a bit about this (http://kamalot.blogspot.com/2006/03/ea-snatches-your-privates.html) when I tried the Battlefield demo on the 360. Right after loading the demo, I was signed up on some stupid, dirty Electronic Arts mailing lists.

Look EA. I didn’t want to be part of your community. I wanted to try out your game. I don’t like the way you wrangle my email address out of me. It isn’t fair.

Perhaps if you spent more time creating compelling games, you could spend less time trying to trick people into giving up their personal information. It is rude, sneaky and dirty.

[Achilles]

When you try to go online with an EA game they ask you if you’ll give them this info. You can say “No” but if you do I don’t think they’ll let you on. So that’s what I did; said “No” because I don’t want EA to have my information (mostly because I assume they'll spam my e-mail account), and then didn’t play their game online. MS isn’t giving out this information, you are if you agree to their request.

[Ted Huge]

It's astounding how many times, and in how many different ways, EA can crap in the underoos of the people. Actually, the astounding thing is how people still pull them up and get comfy....begrudgingly, blithely, or somewhere in between, they still do it.

I could extemporize about the evils of EA, how they're so far offside on this particular issue, blah blah blah. Instead I'll go with the stock answer:

Fuck You, EA, and your McGames. I know theyr'e bad for the industry, but, like Chicken McNuggets, they are phsyiologically impossible to resist. Pricks.

[Savok]

What happens when you buy EA. I wouldn't be surprised if they started adding rootkits to their PC stuff at some point.

[Vandenh]

>Do you think it's right for Microsoft to divulge this info to EA?

No it is not and it was not the plan. MS had to bend over to get EA on Live...

That is what you get when all the no-brainers buy EA games like mad and EA decides to support PS2 online instead. EA should not even be on Live IMHO but sadly MS needed them and wanted to stop them from making their PS2 games online only (that looked bad for the online image of the XBox).

[soco]

i've been worried about this for sometime. what annoys me the most is that in games like burnout revenge, they try to present the EULA for you, but it's like 500 pages and they present it in a box about the size as the quick reply box here. it's almost impossible to read. for all i know, i could be agreeing to give up my house to EA.

now that the games are out there and their competitors are all supporting XBL, if people could actually arrange a successful boycott, EA would bend over. a successful boycott has about a 1 in 5 trillion chance of ever working as most people are too lazy and just wanna go play with their friends :D

[Tia]

So all you people that boycott EA... are you also not going to play Spore? Just wondering.

Personally I couldn't give a damn. What the hell are they going to do with my information? Club baby seals to death with the paper? See how boring I really am? Who cares.

[Savok]

Will Wright is an anomally within EA whose genius exempts him from much. That said Spore needs to be online, which makes me rethink a purchase.

[phantomhitman]

this fucking sucks. i understand the name-address-demographic type stuff but not credit card info. is there a number I can contact to bitch to a person that cannot help me out and really doesnt give a shit?

[MosBen]

I absolutely boycott EA and yes, I'm going to buy Spore. As I said in my previous post, I just wait until I can find the game I want used. That way I get to play my game without giving any money to EA. It's a "Have cake, will eat." scenario.

[Citizen Philip]

The question I have though is: why do they need all this info? Can anyone think of a compelling reason other than "Don't worry, all your info is already out there"?

So it can be sold to the NSA for tax cuts. You know, like every phone company let the NSA wiretap all of the lines: except for some west coast company. And THEN the President declined to give the Justice Department the security authorization to investigate the possible consitutional breeches.

Good times!

[Tia]

Actually it seems to me like that EULA just covers everything. The collection of credit card info for example, might in reality only apply to games that require monthly fee. They said they reserve the right to collect it, not that they are going to.

What are you so afraid of? The EA will still money from you? I mean, do you really think EA needs your credit card info or your money? What next, Bill Gates will hold up a convenience for ten dollars and some change? I mean, seriously.

BY the way, the cool thing about Spore is that it will be online, I love that idea. I also want to buy it new, because I want the developer to get money back for what they spend on a game. I know it sounds all peachy and bleh, but I think devs deserve to get paid for their work. And when you "screw" a publisher you are actually end up hurting the developer a lot more.

*shrug* to each her on.

[Kamalot]

So all you people that boycott EA... are you also not going to play Spore? Just wondering.

Personally I couldn't give a damn. What the hell are they going to do with my information? Club baby seals to death with the paper? See how boring I really am? Who cares.
I boycott Electronic Arts.

When Spore comes out, I'll evaluate the game and decide for myself. Truth be told, I may wait for the EA-Online Hack that will prevent Spore from ever reporting to the mothership.

[Tia]

But then you will have an empty galaxy. Not as fun.

[Kamalot]

But then you will have an empty galaxy. Not as fun.
From what I have read, the game is fully populated with creatures on every scale. It is possible to play the entire game without ever having it sync with the Internet.

[Tia]

oh cool. I thought you had to be connected to get the galaxy populated, because of the offline-multiplayer-downloaded-automatically-special-part so you can get all the genitalia shaped creatures because we know how people around the net can be... ummm... "creative".

[Pluvious]

What are you so afraid of? The EA will still money from you? I mean, do you really think EA needs your credit card info or your money? What next, Bill Gates will hold up a convenience for ten dollars and some change? I mean, seriously.


Not only is it a matter of NONE OF THEIR BUSINESS.. but more importantly .. why should this sensitive information be put in yet another database somewhere that god knows how safe it is. EA isn't safe from hackers.. Think about the VA desaster with all that info getting "lost". TWICE.

[Kamalot]

oh cool. I thought you had to be connected to get the galaxy populated, because of the offline-multiplayer-downloaded-automatically-special-part so you can get all the genitalia shaped creatures because we know how people around the net can be... ummm... "creative".
From what I understand, the game can synchronize over the internet and bring you creatures that fit into different ecological niches, on any scale, as you move through the game. The game will have plenty of content for you to play without needing to sync for more creatures.

I'm REALLY opposed to the spam list that EA put me on for trying a demo. They snagged my Xbox Live account information for simply TRYING their battlefield demo and put me on some spammy lists.

If you play online with the PSP using an Electronic Arts game, you have to enter in your personal information before you can play. You can opt out, but you have to PAY $2 to NOT be put on their goddamn lists.

I really wouldn't have a problem with EA if they put out fabulous games. Instead, they put out half-ass shit and trick people into giving out their personal info. I bet EA has a HUGE department looking at stats for who playes what, what features are used, how long people play, etc. They build their games around these stats and numbers. It shows.

EA games have no soul.

[Tia]

EA games have no soul.

but they have Will Wright :p

[Dag-Sabot]

I bet EA has a HUGE department looking at stats for who playes what, what features are used, how long people play, etc. They build their games around these stats and numbers. It shows.

EA games have no soul.

-Oh and they also sell this massaged data to other developers/publishers.

[Kamalot]

but they have Will Wright :p
And Will Wright has a soul. So, maybe EA DOES have a soul by proxy (or by money) :)