Verizon wants your call info

When I was a Verizon customer, I was very satisfied. They had GREAT coverage - even in the parts of my home town where no other cell carrier had any signal. I left them over high prices and the lack of a really good SmartPhone for me. In my times since, I have enjoyed various Sidekick's under T-Mobile and now the iPhone under AT&T Wireless, but neither have as good coverage as Verizon. But now, Verizon is quickly destroying any positive sense I have for then with a new policy that would allow them to use your call history for whatever they want.

Verizon Wireless has been contacting its customers via snail mail to inform them of their intent to share CPNI data with its "affiliates, agents and parent companies (including Vodafone) and their subsidiaries." The company says that customers who do not want their CPNI data shared need to call 1-800-333-9956 to "opt-out." Upon dialing the opt-out number, Verizon customers will be prompted for their phone number, billing ZIP code, and last four digits of their Social Security Numbers (in the case of businesses, their Employer ID numbers). Failure to opt-out will be interpreted by Verizon Wireless as "consent" to the company's data-sharing practices.

This data would most likely be used for targetted advertising (call NetFlix customer service and get a text message advertising Blockbuster) but could also be used to advertise themselves to your friends and family who are not yet Verizon Wireless customers. If you are a Verizon customer, please call now. If not, think twice before making the switch.