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@Robotistry@fediscience.org

2026-05-22 10:58 UTC

@dave@alvarado.social @TexJoachim@blabber.rocks @totalclaireity@toot.lgbt For over half my life, every year the phone company would drop a giant brick of a book in tiny print with every single family's phone number and address, listed by name (white pages), every single business's phone number and address with optional larger ad (yellow pages), and phone numbers for regional and federal government agencies (blue pages). I personally spent over 20 years handing out business cards with a phone number on them to total strangers, with the implicit understanding that if they ran into someone who might be relevant, they should give them that information. I get the message on consent, but it's not intuitively obvious (especially to older people) that *a phone number in particular* is naturally private information. For generations, a phone number was *explicitly* understood to be public information.

Replies (1)

  • @TexJoachim@blabber.rocks 2026-05-22 11:01

    @Robotistry@fediscience.org @dave@alvarado.social @totalclaireity@toot.lgbt Well, I am old and remember phone books and the like. The world has changed though and even my mum, nearly 90 now, got her number de listed ages ago.

    Open ##2957825