Posted on 04/15/2005 10:15:58 AM PDT by Cagey
Everything that's great and everything that's frightening about the Internet can be summed up in a single word.
Zaba.
That's Zaba as in ZabaSearch.com, a so-called people search site that allows you to quickly track down the whereabouts of just about anyone, free of charge.
There are already numerous people search resources online, varying widely in reliability and fees.
(There's also an interesting story about the people behind ZabaSearch and the notorious mass suicide in Southern California involving the Heaven's Gate cult. But we'll get back to that.)
What makes ZabaSearch great is that, at no cost, it quickly and comprehensively places a remarkable amount of data about people right at your fingertips.
What makes ZabaSearch frightening is that, at no cost, it quickly and comprehensively places a remarkable amount of data about people right at your fingertips.
"It's extremely troubling," said Gail Hillebrand, a staff attorney with Consumers Union in San Francisco.
"It's a fundamental invasion of privacy because they've put all these records together and give them away for nothing instead of keeping them separate and making people pay to get them."
Robert Zakari, ZabaSearch's president, told me the service was quietly unveiled on Feb. 28 without any marketing or publicity. All traffic since then has been exclusively through word of mouth.
Once people discover the site, Zakari said, they typically begin hunting for old girlfriends or boyfriends, former classmates or military pals.
"It's all about making contact," he said. "It's addictive."
It's also in the eyes of some a threat to people's privacy and safety.
"Think what this could mean for anyone with a stalker problem or a restraining-order issue," said Hillebrand at Consumers Union.
But Zakari countered that ZabaSearch represents only "a natural evolution of technology."
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
bump
Wow, no matches for me.
Ping
You exist only on Freerepublic. Any other memories outside of this realm were put there in a grand conspiracy by the Bush Administration.
LOL!
I'm a figment of everyone's imagineation, including my own.
*chuckle*
Very odd. My address and phone # came up under a name with a middle initial that I never use. Meanwhile my real name and middle initial came up with someone else's info.
mark for searching ;)
Weird. I typed in my maiden name and it said I lived at your house.
Yeah, as long as only the government can do this, it's OK. In the hands of the serfs, it could be dangerous.
bookmark ping
They got my info right too.
I was glad to see that my unlisted phone number is... unlisted.
The site asked me for a credit card to process my request.
Not exactly free.
I think just the search is free.
I did not click the "Background Check" link.
It's nice to know that I still have a fair amount of anonymity. It didn't turn up anything on me without some serious hinting.
Looks like the free information costs $20.
It found several Fred Flintstones.
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