Worries me enough to blog an entry - which will hopefully do something useful. Now, I'm not bashing the program - but the EULA and privacy statement. I know Vista has started collecting a lot of information, but this goes way beyond what I would have ever expected.
First, it transmits a bunch of stuff to websites that you visit, like a regular browser:
- IP Address
- OS Version
- Browser Version
- Application Version
- Regional and Language Settings
Ok, and this irregular stuff about your hardware (which really shouldn't be needed - but I can live with):
- Device manufacturer
- Device name
- Device version
Some information is sent to Microsoft, now let's list this. Oh wait, there's no list, but interesting quotes:
- Content of communications (communications to who is not specified... could be any data silverlight sends - that's communication).
And think Microsoft will keep it to themselves?
- Share it to uphold the law - ok.
- Protect Microsoft's rights and property - ok - sounds like DRM.
- To protect the safety of people - I want examples of this - seems too far fetched, and I could see weird things happening - must be my imagination in overdrive that finds ways to use this as a 'carte blanche'.
Ah, the DRM: The component just gives me the chills. The only interesting point is revocation - which happens on a per-individual basis. For me to even use it - there must have a way to bypass it, or a promise that if the servers go down, the DRM will be disabled.
Lastly, my favorite: Microsoft can change this privacy statement at any time. Please, check the date and time, remember it, and check it again every so often. I know this hasn't been used for evil so far - but it's still there and annoys me to death.
I like the EULA though. Nice, simple, compact. Essentially Microsoft will only give you 5$ if Silverlight destroys your system. Much nicer than the BSD license - or any license for that fact - which essentially say you're on your own.
In the end, there is not enough transparency for me to trust them. And given how much data collection goes on in Vista - the paranoid bone in me says it's a huge data grab.
Here's the privacy statement - the one I bashed - and tell me if I'm crazy: http://www.microsoft.com/silverlight/resources/privacy.aspx?v=2.0.31005
