Optus Opting All Customers into Marketing and Monetising Data to Third Parties on July 30

Lskeptic on 28/07/2017 - 10:25
Last edited 28/07/2017 - 15:17

Email from Optus:

Hi ,
We've made some changes to our privacy policy. This affects information we collect about use of your service.
From 30 July, we may provide trusted 3rd parties and advertisers with anonymous data.
Click here for more information or to opt out of having anonymous data shared with 3rd parties.

The link given by Optus provides zero information on how to opt out. The steps are well hidden. This is not the first time Optus has engaged in this type of abhorrent behaviour. This time, however, they are doing it "legally", by opting all customers in.

Please spread the word to friends and family. Customers have until July 29 before their information is shared to third parties.

Customers will be automatically opted into:

  • Door-To-Door
  • Location-Based Offers
  • Market Research
  • Offers From Trusted Partners
  • Personalised Bill Messages
  • Targeted Online Ads By 3rd Parties
  • Targeted Online Ads By Optus
  • Share anonymous insights with 3rd parties

Opt out steps:

  1. Log into My Account
  2. Click on Profile tab
  3. Expand General Marketing
  4. Turn off All Marketing
  5. Click Save Preferences

Additional steps for mobile customers:

  1. Log into My Account
  2. Click on the Mobile phone service you'd like to edit or review
  3. Click on Settings tab from my My Account dashboard
  4. Click on Premium SMS Spend Control from Settings menu (you will be advised that this link will now
    take you to the Mobile Zoo portal)
  5. Log into Mobile Self Care
  6. Click on Premium SMS Spend Control dashboard
  7. Move the slider to $0
  8. Click Submit

Credits for mobile instructions

I was assured that making the "spend limit" $0 would cause the opt out.
So, unless you're quite persistent and prepared to spend a lot of time on what should be a simple mouse click - there will be no opting out. Surely this is misleading conduct.

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Comments

  • ProjectZero on 28/07/2017 - 10:37
    +1

    Just when I was thinking of going for the $40 for 15GB deal… going to rethink now. Thanks for the heads up.

  • akd on 28/07/2017 - 10:47
    +3

    Thanks for detailed instructions. Optus instructions were not very clear in email.

  • Wallace on 28/07/2017 - 11:32

    Good man! Will opt out for family members with Optus accounts.

  • Xyzzy on 28/07/2017 - 12:54
    +3

    We should be able to up-vote forum posts. Thanks muchly.

  • slowcoach on 28/07/2017 - 13:00

    Thanks for posting OP, hadn't heard about this. A comment about the mobile section though - transactions shows what premium sms stuff you've done before. Need to go to Premium SMS Spend Control to find the slider bar.

    • skeptic on 28/07/2017 - 15:18

      Edited OP. Thanks.

  • whooah1979 on 28/07/2017 - 14:11
    -1

    From 30 July, we may provide trusted 3rd parties and advertisers with anonymous data.

    what harm can this do?

    • original15 on 28/07/2017 - 14:24

      It's interesting isn't it. What harm does anonymous data do? what value does it have to share if it's truly anonymous?

      • whooah1979 on 28/07/2017 - 14:44

        Anonymous data can be used to predict anonymous behaviour by anonymous people?

      • Big Trev on 29/07/2017 - 13:14

        There's ample research to show that "anonymised" data is still able to be traced back to individuals

        • Big Trev on 29/07/2017 - 13:21

          https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/01/29/with-a-few-bits-of…

          Although the information had been “anonymized” by removing personal details like names and account numbers, the uniqueness of people’s behavior made it easy to single them out.

          In fact, knowing just four random pieces of information was enough to reidentify 90 percent of the shoppers as unique individuals and to uncover their records, researchers calculated. And that uniqueness of behavior — or “unicity,” as the researchers termed it — combined with publicly available information, like Instagram or Twitter posts, could make it possible to reidentify people’s records by name.

        • Big Trev on 29/07/2017 - 13:23

          https://thestack.com/security/2017/02/07/72-of-anonymous-bro…

          "Researchers at Stanford and Princeton have succeeded in identifying 70% of users by comparing their web-browsing history to publicly available information on social networks.

          The study De-anonymizing Web Browsing Data with Social Networks found that it was possible to reattach identities to 374 sets of apparently anonymous browsing histories simply by following the connections between links shared on Twitter feeds and the likelihood that a user would favour personal recommendations over abstract web browsing."

  • original15 on 28/07/2017 - 14:22

    Gee. Doesn't sound great does it
    Thanks for warning. Sif I needed anymore reason to go back to Tel$tra

  • aboabo on 28/07/2017 - 14:44

    Thank you skeptic. I ditched Optus earlier this month and now see that my account and ported number still exist with them. I too had to opt out of marketing.

  • Showmethebargains on 29/07/2017 - 08:53

    Thankyou skeptic!
    Without your post I would not have been able to find the option to turn off marketing. It was well hidden.

  • DelhiBelly on 29/07/2017 - 09:27

    Thanks OP.. So first Optus baited us with 25% discount offer and now selling our info to 3rd parties..

  • momov3 on 29/07/2017 - 12:16

    Wow, thanks for that tip! Only read it this morning and immediately went into my account. True to word, all the boxes were ticked on default to allow every marketing type! I unticked everything except allowed marketing offers on my ebill in case a better Broadband/NBN Bundle is made available to me. The worst that can happen is my ebill will have some promo words on it, or an extra page?

  • Big Trev on 29/07/2017 - 13:21

    Thanks for this. My mother is with them so have sorted her out.

  • Ayanami on 29/07/2017 - 19:23

    Brilliant post, thanks OP!

  • notevasive on 29/07/2017 - 20:54

    Thanks so much for this post skeptic, much appreciated.

  • Bok on 30/07/2017 - 10:54

    Thank you very much OP!

  • HarmonicMelody on 30/07/2017 - 17:34

    I wonder if they will be spying on Internet traffic and selling that too?

  • DamonT on 31/07/2017 - 09:09

    Thanks OP

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