# AT&T's "affiliates" get my personal information? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 24, 2006, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-ts-affiliates-get-my-personal-information/349777 "2006-03-24T20:41:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-ts-affiliates-get-my-personal-information/349777/1 "2006-03-24T20:41:37Z")
The “do not call” list was a great idea while it lasted. > [@a thingy AT&T sent in the mail](#): > > AT&T … would like to share your Customer Proprietary Network Information within the AT&T family of companies for our own marketing purposes, including using that information to offer you additional products and services. Your CPNI includes the types of telecommunications services you currently purchase, how you use them, and the related billing for those services. CPNI does not include your telephone number, name, and address. > > No action is required on your part to allow AT&T to use your CPNI. … If at any time you prefer that AT&T not use your CPNI for these purposes, … call 1 800 645-6309. Maybe I’m overreacting but it sounds as if AT&T will be the “business relationship” that bypasses the do-not-call list by proxy. It won’t give out your phone number, but the affiliates can ask AT&T to market crap to you on their behalf. And it’s opt-out. I sure hope I’m wrong. But I opted out anyway. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-ts-affiliates-get-my-personal-information/349777/2 "2006-03-25T04:51:10Z")
Generally the phrase “family of companies” when followed by a company name means the various companies within the parent organization. In this case, ATT (or SBC) is the parent company to ATT wireless, ATT business, ATT residential, ATT internet, etc etc etc. It is _those_ companies, not an outside organization like, say, McDonalds or Disney, that they are giving the CPIN to. At least, that’s how I read it. ---
**Author:** ![if6was9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e47c2d/32.png) [@if6was9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/if6was9)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-ts-affiliates-get-my-personal-information/349777/3 "2006-03-25T05:44:30Z")
I don’t quite understand exactly what they’re sharing (email addy at least, I guess) but what they’re saying is “We’re going to do this. If you lose this letter, ignore it, don’t care, don’t understand it, or any number of other reasons that you might not respond, then we take that as your implicit _acceptance_ of this sharing of your information.” Ma Bell… still fucking people after 130 years… ---
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-ts-affiliates-get-my-personal-information/349777/4 "2006-03-25T16:16:16Z")
Even **if** all they’re doing is sharing data on my phone usage with other subsidiary companies (say, Cingular), _then I don’t want them to._ I do not want them calling my cellular phone every 4 hours with some Latest Greatest Offer or slamming my service into some other carrier as some “special offer.” The subsidiary company won’t get my _personal_ information but they’ll get enough data where they can come back to AT&T and say, “Yeah, _that_ guy. Call him up and offer him the new 1.5 terafluff data devouring service for $40 a day. We don’t need his number; you call him for us.” AT&T doesn’t get it. I am on the do-not-call list for a _reason_ and it’s because I don’t want companies calling me from nowhere and offering me crap I didn’t ask for. I may do business with AT&T but I have chosen **not** to do business with its subsidiaries. AT&T apparently assumes that since I once contacted AT&T about something, then everybody affiliated with them gets a crack at me. This is an end-run around the do-not-call list, as far as I can tell. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-ts-affiliates-get-my-personal-information/349777/5 "2006-03-25T16:33:41Z")
I don’t want anyone sharing any information about me without my express permission. Nobody. At. All. ---
**Author:** ![lowkey\_but\_high\_locks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/59ef9b/32.png) [@lowkey\_but\_high\_locks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lowkey_but_high_locks)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-ts-affiliates-get-my-personal-information/349777/6 "2006-03-25T17:47:29Z")
Would default permit hold up in court? IE If they started calling you could you nail AT&T with harassment? Remember folks don’t trust a company with the death star as a logo. ---
**Author:** ![Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tastes_of_chocolate/32/3232_2.png) [@Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tastes_of_Chocolate)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2006, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-ts-affiliates-get-my-personal-information/349777/7 "2006-03-26T17:12:55Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Generally the phrase “family of companies” when followed by a company name means the various companies within the parent organization. I just took care of this. When you call up, the term they use is AT&T and it’s authorized agents. Vague terms like “authorized agents” make me rather nervous, especially when the list of information included is billing information. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2006, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-ts-affiliates-get-my-personal-information/349777/8 "2006-03-26T17:33:39Z")
[http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/alerts/dncbizalrt.htm](http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/alerts/dncbizalrt.htm) A quick rundown of the DNC regs.