Oh, What A Night!

Interesting note from the Hank Green podcast:

The Amnesty International report that JK Rowling is trying to censor through legal threats.

>landlord of my building changes >new online portal for paying rent >required to set up an account with Bilt Inc. >Bilt will add $10 a month to my rent if I pay it using my debit card >look for ways to avoid this fee by paying directly through my bank account >required to set up an extra account with Plaid Inc. >Plaid demands the password to my bank account (!!!!!!!) to connect, after which their terms of service will allow them to monitor all of my financial activity and sell that data to the highest bidder >look for a way to set up my account through a regular ACH process without taking this massive security risk >download the Bilt app on my phone because it's the only way to directly contact their help desk >realize that the Bilt app has an ACH option for connecting my bank account that is available on the app but completely unavailable on their web portal (illegal?) >finally enter my routing and account numbers like a normal human being >app still tries to redirect me towards giving away my bank account password >avoid this again >Congratulations! Your account has been set up! >doomed to a future of both email and physical mail spam from Bilt trying to pressure me into a Bilt Rewards credit card that allows me to earn 4% of my spending back in Bilt Cash that can be redeemed at qualifying establishments, terms and conditions apply >this is considered an efficient mechanism for transferring money between two accounts

Stephen King when his buddies got drafted