How can I just delete my profile for Apple Communities?

You will find that the US "people" and its representatives in government will not take kindly to attempts at regulating our business. EU has no powers to enforce such regs.

TREATIES on the other hand are negotiated agreements. The Berne Convention is the venue for such matters.

Regarding your comment to another about Google and others collecting data... they collect search HISTORY data. Google+ is closest to Apple ID as it needs to hang onto payment method and past purchases - just like every other merchant on earth.

Every website you visit collects data about your visit as well in its server logs. This stuff is considered "metrics" - not personal data collection. You are anonymous with the exception of your IP address.

If you are concerned about Big Brother, do not go online, much less shop online. Pay cash at the checkout counter. Do not use a cellphone or landline. Do not use the mail service. Write your correspondence left at a dead-drop in invisible ink. The NSA - with the cooperation of many 'friendly' governments - is collecting EVERYTHING! (just Google "snowden")

... I think, your argument on corporate tax might apply for the iTunes and Apple store Sites but not for the Communities.

Do what MANY folks do (including me) - use a separate Apple ID for ASC... ChitlinsCC is used only here

One could argue that since you can change all data on an account to meaningless stuff, that you can effectively delete it. That leaves just the name.

I doubt many if any organizations truly delete an account. They hide it. Make it so you cannot log back in. Would be an interesting these to see if you could recreate the same account name a second time.

Even the European "forget me law", does not delete the data. It makes it harder to find.

R

I wonder if "forget me law" applies to backups? Imagine the amount of human resources required to purge all backups of a single database record, much less the potential for millions. The only "safe" backup is on read-only optical disk, in an offsite fireproof safe. Crazy!

I get the privacy aspect, but businesses 'snooping' is the least of folks worries... ask Snowden if you can find him.

I live in Texas, and the legislature passes all kinds of crazy laws that end up being struck down by constitutional scrutiny by our Federal Courts - voter ID law most recently

The suit was against Google. The law states that someone in certain european countries can submit a request that the requested data shall not be found by google. Google will not find the data. The data source isn't effected.

Google doesn't find certain things in certain european countries. Folks in the effected countries can still find these things by using the US based google search.

R

That sounds reasonable - "opt OUT", and be specific(?) - affects future behavior after the request = absolutely easily done.

In the US, we have a dealio called "The National Do Not Call Registry" - meant to stop unwanted solicitations over the phone. The governing law sez that all "tele-marketers" must consult this list before placing a solicitation call, IF they have not already done business with the registrant. $1000 fine per incident for non-compliance. The problem is that it relies on reporting by the victim - and then, the "apparent" phone number must be real, not spoofed. THEN, who knows what the enforcement budget is? Can this even be effectively enforced?

For these EU regs, who is gonna "monitor compliance"? How would an individual KNOW if the deeds are actually done? Then, who watches the watchers?

Pipe dreams, IMHO.

NSA (and their partners) see all. No matter what they SAY, they can KNOW almost all about you and who you hobnob with if you have a transit pass! - I saw a PBS show where a former spook laid it all out in simple terms how they can know all the pertinent stuff about anyone from a subway card # = follow the money is the idea.

Browser search habits and forum postings are the least of our worries... these regs are smoke and mirrors to placate folks.

Life is already changed forever. If you have nothing to hide, forget about it!

Europeans are far more privacy minded than the US. They've also had easily enforceable privacy intrusion laws for years and people do abide by them because they guard their privacy and the consequences can be serious: i.e. you cannot take my picture in a public place (unless I consent); you cannot make a telemarketing/cold call to anyone unless I contacted you and asked you to call me; etc, etc. They recently enacted an internet/email privacy law - your ISP now encrypts anything you send. Europeans have had chips in their credit cards for years - the US is just now waking up to that.

There is basically no privacy in the US - scammers as well as legit companies think it is acceptable to give out/sell/use your private information without your express consent, all in the name of greed/marketing and the do-not-call list is a joke as our three phone numbers are on there and yet we get spam/telemarketing/whatever calls every day. It is sad that we have had to resort to NOT picking up the phone unless we know who is calling or wait to see if they leave a message (scammers usually do not and just hang up).

Preach it sister! I am "in the choir". For all the good the sermon will do! (unfortunately)

My exact same experience with DNCR & getting calls anyway. We get daily calls from the NRA and currently have no guns in the house (although I have owned and handled guns since I was a mall lad). I have emailed the NRA to STOP, with no abate in weeks. Grrrr...

You have boiled the problem down for the US... the "people" are not a priority, business IS.

I see you have no comment about the NSA monitoring.

It already is a Brave New World. Book burning at precisely Fahrenheit 451 is right around the corner. Just wait for the Eagle Eye to contact you (without consulting the DNCR first).

Cameras are watching you everywhere you go outside of your house - and according to a broadcasted demonstration for a journalist by Snowden, ALL of your devices can be commandeered to turn on as listening and video surveillance with a few keystrokes (an iPhone was used in the demo, if my memory serves - but I may well be wrong about that detail)

Once you change the details in your user Profile (click on your name in any Discussion or

in the top of your logged-in Support Community page) you can later change it again, etc.

While logged into the Apple discussions, there are several links within the page that are

active; most of them that go to personal information are not active until you log in.

One such thing you can access (by URL or saved page address) on login to change the

email settings regarding what you may get there, from in your profile is just one link.

Re: How do I turn off the mails from the community - link in one reply in a discussion

which also has an 'active blue-link ' you can change settings from. Example follows:

Within this ^ thread, notice the blue URL works for your Profile, when logged at ASC: Edit preferences

•An example of this, I posted in a 'how do i turn off mails from community' previous discussion:

"In your user Profile (click on your name in your post, for example) you can see options such as these:

• Manage Subscriptions
• Change photo & avatar
• Edit profile & privacy
• Edit preferences

The Fourth option - "Edit Preferences" (hot-link)

brings up Email ones... ~ Mine looks like this:

...Your ASC user Profile also has additional settings..."

Most of the options and choices appear to function as expected.

The Apple legal page(s) may be helpful to understand how the global business model is

based on rules. Some of those rules may be more advanced, and as such, began in areas

of the organized civil society where the issues needed to be addressed. Not every third-

world country needed a specific rule when the technologies had not yet arrived there; so

as time goes forward, certain rules and jurisdictions may also evolve to accommodate.

• Apple Legal - main portal:

https://www.apple.com/legal/

• Apple - Software - Legal - License agreements:

https://www.apple.com/legal/sla/

Time will tell how the final version of a different region or country may affect other rules

of law to suit their global position in the grand scheme of commerce. Maybe wait n see?

You can also change all your passwords, to ones more difficult to guess, more often.

For the most part, Apple servers are very secure and the choices in your user Profile are

easily adapted to filter you from your visible online self. Be sure other online preferences

and choices through other access points, are also adjusted if you are this concerned.

Good luck in any event...! 🙂

If, however, the profile has no user data and the user name can't be related to you, why does it matter if it's kept forever?

why does it matter if it's kept forever?

Having been brought up in a European country with a solid (and working) privacy law, I believe this can be attributed to a difference in perception of cultural differences/habits/traditions. They tend to be fiercely protective of their privacy with a country's history playing a large role in that. So, it does matter (FWIW, to me as well).

babowa wrote:

why does it matter if it's kept forever?

Having been brought up in a European country with a solid (and working) privacy law, I believe this can be attributed to a difference in perception of cultural differences/habits/traditions. They tend to be fiercely protective of their privacy with a country's history playing a large role in that. So, it does matter (FWIW, to me as well).

I'm curious why it matters if there is nothing in the profile that can be traced to you as an individual. It's a serious, not snarky, question. My current profile might be a different matter. I use my real name. If I cared about such things, it would be something I would probably want to remove. But, if my user name was, for example, "000daisy000" and my profile was empty, I don't think I'd care.

I'm also curious about the photo thing. If I'm in your country, taking a picture of my traveling companion in front of <Important Historic Monument that All Tourists Take Pictures Of> and you happen to be in the background, have I violated privacy laws?

I know it was a serious question; anyone growing up in a country during or past having had a dictator and secret police hauling you off in the middle of the night for no apparent reason (except that a neighbor reported you having had a light on) is naturally much more privacy minded and doesn't want to share anything with anyone.

And, seriously and honestly, I do not know how the taking a photo of you inadvertently (in the background) would be interpreted - I do know that you are entitled to the privacy of your image/face. I'd have to do some research on that and wouldn't be able to do that for a couple of days (time consuming commitments coming up).

babowa wrote:

I know it was a serious question; anyone growing up in a country during or past having had a dictator and secret police hauling you off in the middle of the night for no apparent reason (except that a neighbor reported you having had a light on) is naturally much more privacy minded and doesn't want to share anything with anyone.

Except that doesn't really answer my question. What are you sharing if there's no information in the profile that's personally identifiable? Records of machines that were used to access that account, if they are kept, could, conceivably be problematic.

And, seriously and honestly, I do not know how the taking a photo of you inadvertently (in the background) would be interpreted - I do know that you are entitled to the privacy of your image/face. I'd have to do some research on that and wouldn't be able to do that for a couple of days (time consuming commitments coming up).

LOL. No worries. Not expecting you to do research. Just thought, since you mentioned it, you might know. I guess I just don't understand how, if I'm in out in public, I have an expectation of privacy. I'm also guessing you don't live in the UK. 😉

But, I've gone far afield from the original poster's question.