Re: Yet another reason to hate Yahoo

In article <jayNOlawSPAM72-D8EF1C.18055821122004 (AT) comcast (DOT) dca.giganews.com>,
Jason Lawrence <jayNOlawSPAM72 (AT) mac (DOT) com> wrote:

In article <toihs0h0bpieprb9321arnrke91kkk3o42 (AT) 4ax (DOT) com>,
Richard <none (AT) none (DOT) com> wrote:

On Tue, 21 Dec 2004 16:14:22 -0800, Jason Lawrence
jayNOlawSPAM72 (AT) mac (DOT) com> wrote:

In article <Xk1yd.1301$v_.554 (AT) fe61 (DOT) usenetserver.com>,
"Citizen_Cain" <noemailhere (AT) askmenicely (DOT) invaild> wrote:

http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/interne....ap/index.html

Dead Marine's kin plead for e-mail
Tuesday, December 21, 2004 Posted: 11:01 AM EST (1601 GMT)

WIXOM, Michigan (AP) -- The family of a Marine killed in Iraq is pleading
with Internet giant Yahoo! for access to his e-mail account, which the
company says is off-limits under its privacy policy.
Lance Cpl. Justin M. Ellsworth, 20, was killed by a roadside bomb on
November 13 during a foot patrol in Al Anbar province. The family wants the
complete e-mail file that Justin maintained, including notes to and from
others.
"I want to be able to remember him in his words. I know he thought he was
doing what he needed to do. I want to have that for the future," said John
Ellsworth, Justin's father. "It's the last thing I have of my son."
But without the account's password, the request has been repeatedly denied.
In addition, Yahoo! policy calls for erasing all accounts that are inactive
for 90 days. Yahoo! also maintains that all users agree at sign-up that
rights to a member's ID or contents within an account terminate upon death.
"While we sympathize with any grieving family, Yahoo! accounts and any
contents therein are nontransferable" even after death, said Karen Mahon, a
Yahoo! spokeswoman.

What is wrong with Yahoo's policy? It sounds perfectly sane to me. I
would not want my family to have every email I have sent or received.

The guy is dead. What is the worst that could happen?
-Rich

Feeling could be hurt, memories could be destroyed. Others live on
after his death.

Yahoo can't give up the password. For this specific tear-jerker; if
your son's words were so precious why did you deleted them from your
inbox.

OTOH, I would like to see in the ISP's EULA/privacy preferences a
checkbox that allows legal next of kin to compose one last message. It
would be sent, under Yahoo's name, to everyone in the address book.
Serious proof (ie a death certificate) would be required. Kin would
not be given the contents of the address book.







--

a d y k e s @ p a n i x . c o m

Don't blame me. I voted for Gore.

Al Dykes <adykes (AT) panix (DOT) com> wrote:

In article <jayNOlawSPAM72-D8EF1C.18055821122004 (AT) comcast (DOT) dca.giganews.com>,
Jason Lawrence <jayNOlawSPAM72 (AT) mac (DOT) com> wrote:
In article <toihs0h0bpieprb9321arnrke91kkk3o42 (AT) 4ax (DOT) com>,
Richard <none (AT) none (DOT) com> wrote:

On Tue, 21 Dec 2004 16:14:22 -0800, Jason Lawrence
jayNOlawSPAM72 (AT) mac (DOT) com> wrote:

In article <Xk1yd.1301$v_.554 (AT) fe61 (DOT) usenetserver.com>,
"Citizen_Cain" <noemailhere (AT) askmenicely (DOT) invaild> wrote:

http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/interne....ap/index.html

Dead Marine's kin plead for e-mail
Tuesday, December 21, 2004 Posted: 11:01 AM EST (1601 GMT)

WIXOM, Michigan (AP) -- The family of a Marine killed in Iraq is pleading
with Internet giant Yahoo! for access to his e-mail account, which the
company says is off-limits under its privacy policy.
Lance Cpl. Justin M. Ellsworth, 20, was killed by a roadside bomb on
November 13 during a foot patrol in Al Anbar province. The family wants the
complete e-mail file that Justin maintained, including notes to and from
others.
"I want to be able to remember him in his words. I know he thought he was
doing what he needed to do. I want to have that for the future," said John
Ellsworth, Justin's father. "It's the last thing I have of my son."
But without the account's password, the request has been repeatedly denied.
In addition, Yahoo! policy calls for erasing all accounts that are inactive
for 90 days. Yahoo! also maintains that all users agree at sign-up that
rights to a member's ID or contents within an account terminate upon death.
"While we sympathize with any grieving family, Yahoo! accounts and any
contents therein are nontransferable" even after death, said Karen Mahon, a
Yahoo! spokeswoman.

What is wrong with Yahoo's policy? It sounds perfectly sane to me. I
would not want my family to have every email I have sent or received.

The guy is dead. What is the worst that could happen?
-Rich

Feeling could be hurt, memories could be destroyed. Others live on
after his death.

Yahoo can't give up the password. For this specific tear-jerker; if
your son's words were so precious why did you deleted them from your
inbox.

Please don't use "your" when it is not appropriate, or at least
indicate to which person you are referring. Anyway, what is desired is
not (what was in) the *fathers* "inbox", but (all) the (deceased) son's
*folders*. There *is* a difference, you know.

OTOH, I would like to see in the ISP's EULA/privacy preferences a
checkbox that allows legal next of kin to compose one last message. It
would be sent, under Yahoo's name, to everyone in the address book.
Serious proof (ie a death certificate) would be required. Kin would
not be given the contents of the address book.

We're not talking about an ISP, but a MSP, and (probably) a free one
at that.

There is little chance that anyone can prove they are "legal
next of kin", since it is difficult to prove who was the real owner of
the mailbox. It's not like Yahoo requires/check any valid information
(They only require gender, ZIP code, country and birthdate and accept
basically anything you throw at them.).

And sending to 'everyone' in the address book? You *are* joking,
right? What makes you think that anyone, except perhaps you, might want
to inform 'everyone' in their address book of their death? I don't know
about you, but I don't want, for example, a car rental company, hotel,
etc. be informed of my death.