Terms of Service (TOS) Under Scrutiny - Part XVII - A Personal Perspective
HAVING spent about 16 days covering TOS issues in 16 parts, we're getting close to the point of wrapping things up (part 18 tomorrow, "In Conclusion"). So far we've looked at some horrific TOS examples and discussed how people are practically forced to accept - at risk of losing one's job (or similar) - any Terms of Service thrown their way, plus any future changes. For legal reasons (or obligations) companies notify people of significant TOS changes but leave out an option to turn down those changes, short of cancelling service entirely (in many cases this results in data loss, job loss and so on).
The Terms of Service issue is hard to solve because of third parties. We live in a connected world and many sites say we must accept all sorts of terms or be denied access. Even some government sites do this. So even if one avoids online services and uses lots of Free software without a EULA, it'll be hard to go through life without signing any Terms of Service (or equivalent). Even when opening a bank account there's a de facto contract one must sign. Do you want not to sign one? So where will salaries go? Under the tiles in your home? From an employer that pays cash inside an envelope?
For me, personally, it boils down to committing oneself to the least obligations imposed by a Terms of Service "contact" and any future changes to it. If you buy almost everything with cash (as we do), you don't need to identity or sign anything. If you need water and power in your home, Terms of Services (or their equivalent in utility contracts) would be inescapable, unavailable.
The bottom line is, it's possible to reduce (albeit not entirely eliminate) how many things one signs, presses "OK" on and so on. For the Web, provided one avoids JavaScript and mostly uses simple sites, accounts with acceptance of terms (upon creation) are seldom required. Each time you press "OK" on those sorts of things you may inadvertently complicate life for yourself by making yourself subjected to more restrictions and legal threats (e.g. your account being terminated without due process). It's generally good practice to avoid signing any Terms of Service (where there are mostly safeguards for companies, not for you) if that is possible at all. They're indecently putting pressure on people to surrender; sceptics or people hesitant to sign are subjected to stigma and unwarranted name-calling.
You don't typically know what you're signing (it takes too long to read through, even if it's in plain English or a native tongue) and it'll change over time; you won't have power to negotiate the changes. █