EFF: Privatunes doesn’t anonymize your iTunes files as promised:
Earlier this week, a bunch of posts popped up on sites including Slashdot and Wired Compiler about Privatunes, a free application that purports to anonymize DRM-free files you buy on iTunes.
Why would anyone need such an app? Well, because there’s been much controversy in recent weeks over allegations that Apple may be tracking personal information in the headers of these DRM-free files, in order to limit sharing.
I’m glad to see this finally called “anonymizing” since it has jack to do with privacy. Better to re-phrase the answer to “Why would anyone need such an app?” as “Because I don’t agree that copyright holders and their agents should be able to tell if distributed files can be traced back to me.”
This is interesting, since I am on a mailing list with a lot of musicians who were active long before the CD and digital reproduction and they are coming to grips with the fact that music is not the same high-value experience it once was, but at the same time, they’re pretty much against the “music should be free” ethos.
I really can’t relate to the BB’ers. They mostly derive income from being net.personalities and while that’s a great situation, most of us are not so lucky. How many people do you know whose business card could be as simple as their name and have that equal their name, title, job description, and in the Google-d age, their contact information? I don’t know of any.