My privacy is being violated!

[RecoveringKinkoid]

"Shouldn't that person be entitled to theirs as well? "You have my number, address, etc, so why can't I have yours?"

Yeah, actually. I have asked persistant clerks if I could have their home information. Fair's fair and all that.

Strangely, nobody's given their info to me. Imagine that.

[Kara]

Yeah, actually. I have asked persistant clerks if I could have their home information. Fair's fair and all that.

If it weren't for the potential of people being crazy enough to show up at my front door and stab me, I wouldn't have a problem with that (not so likely for customers hundreds of miles away, but the locals call in too and the can be just as nuts).

Same as my phone number. It's bad enough dealing with a lot of the jerks I get that call in the customer care line. I would rather not become somebody's pet customer service rep.

[Boozy]

If I notice it's a manager ringing me up, I will politely voice my displeasure at being asked for personal info, but otherwise, I just say "No, I don't give that out." And frequently get treated like I just called someone's mom a nasty name for it.

I never give out personal info for a basic purchase either. My husband is in an unusual line of work (a perfectly legitimate one, I should add) that requires us to be very cautious about who has our address and phone numbers. The cashiers have never been rude about it, probably because I have never been rude in my refusal. But I get these looks that say, "What? You're saying NO? How odd." They must be so used to people just mindlessly spewing out all their private information. My husband says I would be amazed at the amount of information people will give up about themselves, just because someone ASKS.
Sometimes they just ask for my postal (zip) code. That's so they can figure out where people are coming from, and if they should put a store closer to that area. If I would like to see that particular store in my neighbourhood, I sometimes share that info. (I'm one of the few residents of North America that DOESN'T have a Starbucks within spitting distance of their home. Shamefully, I'd like one closer. Preferably in my basement.)

[Imogene]

WHAT?!?! I'M NOT GIVING YOU THAT, YOU'LL SELL IT!

*Stewie starts dialing phone*
"111-1111. Lois? Damn!
111-1112. Lois? Damn!"
I'll find your phone number some way or other, moron.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

"If it weren't for the potential of people being crazy enough to show up at my front door and stab me, I wouldn't have a problem with that (not so likely for customers hundreds of miles away, but the locals call in too and the can be just as nuts)."

Well, right, but the reality is that that problem DOES exsist and you DO have a problem with giving out your number, and with very good reason.

I don't give the zip out, either. Not that I think there's any harm in giving it out, it's just that I do not want to encourage polling at cash registers. I do not like the practice of info collecting on demand at registers. So I simply give no info out, regardless.