arch13

Link

This artical serves as a good read for everyone. That's an amount of data that is just stagering. And the questions it raises are great.

Who designed the storage system? Dell? Ibm? That must have been an large contract with constant service argrements.

What does Walmart do with that data when not coming to the amazing realization that beer sales went up before hurricane Charlie?

Do you think that Walmart collects too much data on it's shoppers, or that such data collection needs to be limited by privacy laws that make sure that their use of the data is in line with our beleifs as a larger society, or do you beleive that Walmart owns that data and could do with it what they wish?
Do you think Walmart would rather destroy/scrub their database than allow the court to use it against them in determining backpay? Do you think it's existance makes it of fair use by the court against Walmart?

I do think that if walmart made it, then it's availiable for supena whether Walmart likes that or not. I think that Walmart wants to have the database without restrictions but wants no governing body to know what it contains or use that data against them. I don't beleive they can ahve it both ways.

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MrFlux

I don't really care about Walmart's data collection, but I'd just like to point out that the above quote is a crock of shit. p2p servers often have upwards of 30tb shared, and there are lots of p2p servers.

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rfra3645

i totally belive there is that much data collected and stored by wallmart the BIGGEST company in the world. as far as cutomers go. evreytime you use your debit card or write a check... can you even begin to imagine "the bad check list" 75% of evrey middle class and lower person in the us has been in one and bought somthing.. id say there file conatians evrey itme purchased by evreyone even in 1 in x amount of years. i dont know what it takes to "store data" but im believe if you go in there and buy somthing they have the right to save that info. id also say they dont know how to use it verry good ( i have done sevral shady tranasaction resulting in my favor) but by all rights it should be theres. its woudl be the same as 7.11 never erasing there survailance tapes.... anyone venture to guess the number of transactions average evryeday at the super meglo mart wal-mart...... 1000000000???????????

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maleficent

I've never been in a walmart, but do they have the "shoppers" cards like many supermarkets do, which could track buying habits of an individual shopper.

Otherwise, if it's just tracking store data, rather what the store is selling, rather than what I am buying, then I'm not sure it matters, it's the easiest way for the store to know what to stock and what to not stock, as well as helpful info as to what to run sales on.

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denim

Definitely a crock of shit. These days, with 300GB+ individual disks, 1TB isn't as much as it used to be.

Echodork

Since Wal-Mart doesn't have my name and address, I could care less what data they track. Yeah, they have the name on my credit card and the fact that someone with my first and last name bought a 12-pack of soda on 10/28/04, but they don't mail me anything or harass me in any way. Let them store whatever they want, I care not.

Drider_it

well employees have a 10% discount card.. that at least lets them know what their employees are buying. and the handy instore bar code reader so people can see what the price is of what they might want to buy. a person scans that then puts it back. that night doing inventory they check out everything find it still on the shelf then compare the bar code readings shows them it was too much.

the ultimate in spyware. "welcome to wal-mart. please take this card home with you. huh? what beeping sound. also if you could put it into any slot that will take it you can get 400 free internet minutes" lol

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rfra3645

to my knowledge walmart dosnt have a shopper card.

i kinda question the 10% discount for employees as my wife worked there for 2 years allmost and she didnt have a card like that,,

if they did offer that itd be a better benifet than insurance.....


my personal ( ie familly) wallmart expenses is close to 1000 a month. higher if you avreage christmass.

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Cynthetiq

Walmart was the first to use the UPC, and now they are trying to be the first to use RFIDs... they are a private business and can and should be allowed to do all that they can to stay on top of their game to be the best business they can, so long as they aren't breaking any laws.

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Bill O'Rights

Hmmm...better check on that. My ex-wife works at Walmart. She has a 10% discount card. She loans it to our daughter when my daughter asks. Technically...that's legal, as the discount applies to family members. However, I always decline her offers to allow me to use her card, as I am no longer her "family member", thank you very much. Though, in truth...it's more that I don't want to be beholden to my ex, than it is cheating Walmart out of their 10%. In any event...look into it. 10% is 10%.

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Phage

"460 terabytes"
- Yes, that is a lot of data especially when you think of it as being pure text and not large programs or high quality media like in MrFlux's p2p example. However I don't see the privacy issue.

"Who designed the storage system?"
- Who cares? Most likely they hired skilled programmers and had a custom inventory and sales system designed and then operated by the same team.

"What does Walmart do with that data when not coming to the amazing realization that beer sales went up before hurricane Charlie?"
- Exactly that same sort of thing. Large companies with huge stores need to manage their inventory carefully in order to maximize profit. Specific statistical data over 50 years would allow them to chart demand for each type of product they sold and allow them to keep their number in stock at the optimal level.

"Do you think that Walmart collects too much data on it's shoppers, or that such data collection needs to be limited by privacy laws that make sure that their use of the data is in line with our beleifs as a larger society, or do you beleive that Walmart owns that data and could do with it what they wish?"
- Walmart has the right to record anything that happens in their store, and any information you decide to give them. Their use of this data is already limited by what is thought fair; you cannot use someone's picture or voice without their permission, and their personal data such as credit card information is obviously private. Beyond that, it is both absurd and exceedingly arrogant for anyone to feel that they can dictate what people are allowed to remember (and record).

"Do you think Walmart would rather destroy/scrub their database than allow the court to use it against them in determining backpay? Do you think it's existance makes it of fair use by the court against Walmart?"
- I would think that the relevant information would be the employee wage records which I believe any accountant would tell you are required to be retained by law. What is fair for the court to use is not really a point of opinion. In the article it is simply stated that the use of the software would be against what Walmart desired, without offering any reason. I believe that what Walmart wants is for there to be no discrimination proved, but if there is they would welcome their database providing a fair settlement figure rather than the women coming up with millions in inflated "suffering".

"I do think that if walmart made it, then it's availiable for supena whether Walmart likes that or not. I think that Walmart wants to have the database without restrictions but wants no governing body to know what it contains or use that data against them. I don't beleive they can ahve it both ways."
- Again, what is available for subpoena is already a matter of law so what you 'feel' does not really matter. In any case, I cannot see why the managers of Walmart would want to hide that information; what could they have that they should not? I don't understand why you would think that Walmart is "hoarding data" and also attempting to keep it secret from the government; they are merely recording data vital to the efficient operation of their company while requiring that the proper procedures be followed to obtain access to that data by outsiders (they would deny me if I asked to see their sales records and rightly so).

sailor

NCR. Its a product called Teradata, which is designed to work with huge amounts of information like that. I dont know who handles the actual service (must be a bitch monitoring/replacing that many drives).

http://www.ncr.com/products/software/teradata_nt.htm

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ironman

I couldn't care less...

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Clark

This is a huge indestry and not only Wallmart dose it. If you do not want to be tracked pay cash and never use any kind of discount card, otherwise your data will be tracked. Most other companies give data to AC Nelson who than dose the same kind of customer tracking for them. The only reson that Walmart stoped working with them is that there own system is so big and can get good data with out needing others. In my MBA I used a one of these systoms live to devlope a marketing plan. The level of detail you can get on customers is amazing.

The data is on customer groups not indaviduals.

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tropple

The whole thing is a non-issue.

How much data to do you figure the US government has squirreled away? Birth, military, FBI, student loans, there's so much data filed away that Wal-mart's share is paltry.

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Phage

Again I am wondering... what is everyone afraid they are going to do with this data? If it is something that is already illegal then that is all that can be done.

guthmund

I'm just amazed that they had it and had kept it under the radar for so long. I always knew that they must have something, but the scale and complexity well...

I was watching a show on CNBC about Wal*Mart the other night and there was a good 15-20 minutes on their computer juggernaut. The lady in charge of the main installation made mention that when a purchase is made the inventory at the individual store is corrected within 15 minutes. It will find it's way up to the main installation within an hour.

That's amazing. Immediate inventory corrections in every Wal*Mart considering the kind of business they're doing. Maybe it's not, but I think it is.

She also said the information consists basically of what's on the receipt plus some tracking information. I don't see what they could do with it, but to have access/ownership to that kind of database must be a great boon.

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Fate

I don't have a problem with it, before this turns into a major issue by people with nothing better to do on their hands but act like victims to a major corporation. Wal*Mart might want to make a note on the recipt or a sign on the door saying they 'Collect Item data and non-personal consumer information to best suit the consumers needs' just to be on the safe side.

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water_boy1999

I don't see anything wrong with Wal Mart collecting this data at all. As has been said, if it is not being used for illegal purposes, and is only beiong used to analyze over time to maximize their business profits, then who really cares. I think those that really care have some sort of grudge against Wal Mart or are jealous of their success. Or, perhaps your significant other who works there didn't receive their 10% employee discount card. hehehe.....

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Lefty04

I know there are limits, but I think Wal-Mart has been very good for this country. They go out of their way to do things right (efficiently). If they are doing it, it must serve some very useful purpose.

rfra3645

persoanly i love walmart


but there are those who woudl go to war over what you said..

to alott of people walmart is the great evil...

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asdf1001

Wal-Mart is probably the biggest cause of the transfer of wealth in the US and abroad. They have shifted hundreds of thousands of jobs from the US to China and many other countries (is anyone reading this?). Also, thousands of US businesses, which contracted significant amounts of their production to Wal-Mart, were forced out of business when Wal-Mart quit purchasing from them. Yes, they have offered lower prices to the consumers, but time has proven that in the markets that they control, those prices have gone right back up. Those same markets, Wal-Mart will continue to control due to their global buying power.

Shall I go on? If anyone is interested, they should visit www.walmartwatch.com

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rfra3645

i knew 1 would show up.....


at least its only 1 out of 22

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if you cant read my post i dont want to hear about it move on. thanks

Drider_it

what i truely hate about walmart... home town stores. they get whatever is on the truck. hence the store in my town. they have everything you could possibly want but nothing you really need atm. sigh then you have to drive 20-50 miles to the super walmart to get what you need.

on the phone they tell you sure we can order that .. but when you get there you are told that because its a home town store they cant order anything just what they get on the truck.

granted certian items they always get but like that rare console game or dvd.. bah forget it. Ive tried for three years to talk them into branching out on thier pc games and getting a real gamer section. nothing yet. the same sim's games sit there collecting dust with the random cool game that is bought within an hour of it being put on the shelf. strange how a person knows this. i blame the employees holding it for thier friends.

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It means only one thing, and everything: Cut. Once committed to fight, Cut. Everything else is secondary. Cut. That is your duty, your purpose, your hunger. There is no rule more important, no commitment that overrides that one. Cut. The lines are a portrayal of the dance. Cut from the void, not from bewilderment. Cut the enemy as quickly and directly as possible. Cut with certainty. Cut decisively, resoultely. Cut into his strength. Flow through the gaps in his guard. Cut him. Cut him down utterly. Don't allow him a breath. Crush him. Cut him without mercy to the depth of his spirit. It is the balance to life: death. It is the dance with death. It is the law a war wizard lives by, or he dies.

rfra3645

drider....

im gettin SUPER_STORE in my town of 5100.....

heheh

oh but not to rub it in i know what ur feeling...

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this post is a natural product made from recycled electrons.
the slight variations in spelling, grammar and punctuation
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if you cant read my post i dont want to hear about it move on. thanks

Blackthorn

The technology for this sort of data warehouse has been commercially available for several years. It was developed by a company called Teradata which is a division of NCR -- just up the road from me.



Link to Teradata

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bookiebye

Good for WalMart, they are in business to do one thing - make money. If they've developed a better way manage inventory and suppliers and in turn increasing profits then we should respect them for that.

On the issue of collecting personal data at the checkout, this is ususally done for two reasons. First to do a return and second to make payment with a check or credit card which ID is usually required.
Both of these situations are optional. If you don't want give your info for a return, don't make a return - be careful about what you buy. If you don't want to give your info to make a check or CC purchase, use cash. Companies that collect information such as this do so to protect themselves from frauds and other criminal activites. You can't fault them for wanting to protect their interests.

And who really cares if somebody knows what we are doing or buying, unless you shouldn't be doing it in the first place. Then you shouldn't be doing it.

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arch13

How un-patriotic.
I was born in the United States where it is no one's right to know anything about me unless it is needed for legal reasons and approved by a judge in the form of a supena.
The argument for freedom and privacy in this country has never been "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to worry about."
That's Orwelian logic at work.

As for Walmart, they only need that data for the 30 days where a return is valid. After that the only need for your personal information is to bombard you with direct market advertisments (they do sell personal data for a profit you know). WalMart has never been shy about data mining, even with those who use them as an ISP.
But I expect no less from a company that hires elderly workers, takes out life insurance on their lives, and collects the money at their death, all without ever letting the indiviguals family know they profited from their family members death.

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