Online mobile number directory shuts down in a flash
Intelius, a firm that appears to make a business out of trolling for private information and providing it to whomever has the appropriate coin, has shut down its online directory of mobile phone numbers -- a directory that contained some 90 million entries -- allegedly "in response to consumer feedback" after boatloads of people responded in anger to the service's very existence. The biggest problem for folks was that the directory wasn't opt-in, it was opt-out -- and opting out required jumping through ridiculous hoops like faxing (yes, faxing) your driver's license to the company. For its part, an Intelius spokesperson says that the company is simply "ahead of [its] time." If by "ahead of its time" they mean that in the future any nutjob with a few bucks will be able to look up your private cell number by name, then we're just fine with staying in the present, thankyouverymuch.
