St Louis Uber driver has been streaming his passengers online. Most have no idea • Hacker News Board

Re: St Louis Uber driver has been streaming his passengers online. Most have no idea

#21

Post by writepub » Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 8:46 PM UTC

DoreenMichele wrote: post #9

Gargac’s videos fit into the newer “IRL,” or “In Real Life,” section that encourages users to stream their life outside of games. Gargac says he’s earned about $3,500 off Twitch users so far, including subscriptions, donations and tips called “bits.” That’s on top of about $150 to $300 he earns from fares on an average night. He typically drives on weekend nights because, he says, the bar crowd makes for the most ent…

No. You cannot rationalize someone's malicious intent to exploit and profit off of trust people place in you by getting into your cab on the gig economy, or anything else. That's a slippery slope where bad actors place blame on non causal issues for their actions

Re: St Louis Uber driver has been streaming his passengers online. Most have no idea

#22

Post by WalterGR » Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 8:48 PM UTC

What is the expectation of privacy in a vehicle in a public place, according to the law?

I’m not weighing in on what it should be - not being a lawyer I’m curious what the law or precedent dictates.

Re: St Louis Uber driver has been streaming his passengers online. Most have no idea

#23

Post by DoreenMichele » Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 8:49 PM UTC

writepub wrote: post #21

DoreenMichele wrote: post #9

Gargac’s videos fit into the newer “IRL,” or “In Real Life,” section that encourages users to stream their life outside of games. Gargac says he’s earned about $3,500 off Twitch users so far, including subscriptions, donations and tips called “bits.” That’s on top of about $150 to $300 he earns from fares on an average night. He typically drives on weekend nights because, he says, the bar crowd makes for the most ent…

No. You cannot rationalize someone's malicious intent to exploit and profit off of trust people place in you by getting into your cab on the gig economy, or anything else. That's a slippery slope where bad actors place blame on non causal issues for their actions

I am neither rationalizing it, nor justifying it. However, having spent several years homeless and found that classism, sexism and other societal crap were huge barriers to me getting my life back, I think it is unrealistic and cruel to not criticize the sick system that helps foster such bad choices.

If you make it hard enough to make good choices that you approve of, don't be shocked when some people's moral fiber fails the test and they get on with meeting survival needs instead of ethically and high-mindedly starving.

Re: St Louis Uber driver has been streaming his passengers online. Most have no idea

#24

Post by jeffdavis » Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 8:55 PM UTC

DoreenMichele wrote: post #23

writepub wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No. You cannot rationalize someone's malicious intent to exploit and profit off of trust people place in you by getting into your cab on the gig economy, or anything else. That's a slippery slope where bad actors place blame on non causal issues for their actions

I am neither rationalizing it, nor justifying it. However, having spent several years homeless and found that classism, sexism and other societal crap were huge barriers to me getting my life back, I think it is unrealistic and cruel to not criticize the sick system that helps foster such bad choices. If you make it hard enough to make good choices that you approve of, don't be shocked when some people's moral fiber…

I don't see how any of what you said applies to the current story. We don't know whether the driver has financial problems or not.

On the surface, it seems likely that the driver is simply an unethical person who is abusing his customers' trust for money and/or fame.

Re: St Louis Uber driver has been streaming his passengers online. Most have no idea

#25

Post by jMyles » Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 8:55 PM UTC

Am I the only one who has no problem with this? You're in someone else's car. Of course that person has a right to record you. And freedom of the press is a crucial cornerstone of a democratic state. Of course this person has a right to publish anything they please.

This is just journalism paired with a new and novel social and technological configuration. Nothing more.

Meanwhile, actual eavesdropping-style surveillance is ongoing via state institutions. Are we perhaps bothered by our conscience a bit here?

Re: St Louis Uber driver has been streaming his passengers online. Most have no idea

#26

Post by freehunter » Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 9:00 PM UTC

orastor wrote: post #3

Some videos are still up: https://www.twitch.tv/justsmurf/videos/all Creepy as fuck to be honest

I think “creepy” is one of the least interesting arguments someone can have. Plenty of things are creepy, and the word “creepy” itself falls into the same category as “offensive” or other very subjective accusations.

“Creepy” is not a good argument. What’s offensive to you is normal to me, what’s creepy to me is normal to you.

Re: St Louis Uber driver has been streaming his passengers online. Most have no idea

#27

Post by Symbiote » Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 9:01 PM UTC

Does anyone have a feeling for what the GDPR fine would be, if this had taken place in Europe? The number of people affected is fairly small, but this isn't the usual negligence or incompetence.

(Ironically, the site is geoblocked for the EU.)

Re: St Louis Uber driver has been streaming his passengers online. Most have no idea

#28

Post by michelledepeil » Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 9:04 PM UTC

jeffdavis wrote: post #24

DoreenMichele wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am neither rationalizing it, nor justifying it. However, having spent several years homeless and found that classism, sexism and other societal crap were huge barriers to me getting my life back, I think it is unrealistic and cruel to not criticize the sick system that helps foster such bad choices. If you make it hard enough to make good choices that you approve of, don't be shocked when some people's moral fiber…

I don't see how any of what you said applies to the current story. We don't know whether the driver has financial problems or not. On the surface, it seems likely that the driver is simply an unethical person who is abusing his customers' trust for money and/or fame.

I feel some very valid assumptions about an uber driver were made in the initial comment, that might explain this behaviour. These comments were made with regards to his income situation.

I agree with you though that it might not be for making money, but just because the driver is a morally bad individual.

A much more likely scenario than him being a bad actor is that he might've thought he had found a hole in the market that would bring him 15 minutes of fame, and that's where his rational and moral thoughts went out the window.

Re: St Louis Uber driver has been streaming his passengers online. Most have no idea

#29

Post by underwater » Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 9:06 PM UTC

Cowardly behaviour to hide behind the “it’s legal” line. If the majority of your passengers, who don’t know they’re on camera, think this is creepy then ethically you’re in the wrong.

Re: St Louis Uber driver has been streaming his passengers online. Most have no idea

#30

Post by DoreenMichele » Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 9:06 PM UTC

jeffdavis wrote: post #24

DoreenMichele wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am neither rationalizing it, nor justifying it. However, having spent several years homeless and found that classism, sexism and other societal crap were huge barriers to me getting my life back, I think it is unrealistic and cruel to not criticize the sick system that helps foster such bad choices. If you make it hard enough to make good choices that you approve of, don't be shocked when some people's moral fiber…

I don't see how any of what you said applies to the current story. We don't know whether the driver has financial problems or not. On the surface, it seems likely that the driver is simply an unethical person who is abusing his customers' trust for money and/or fame.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17583690

My dad was a veteran with shrapnel in one eye that made him unable to purchase additional life insurance and it caused blind spells that left him intermittently unemployed for months at a time. I've had a class on Homelessness and Public Policy. I know something about both veterans and homelessness. (For those not bothering to click on the link above, veterans are over-represented amongst the homeless.)

Veterans tend to be proud people. They may not tell you how maimed their military career left them and it may not be obvious why they can't get a better job. I also don't see where the article made any effort whatsoever to understand why he has chosen to do such a thing.

So perhaps you don't see how my remark applies to the current story because the current story would like to vilify him while glossing over the context in which this is occurring.