Bongo knows all!
by Jaheb Barnett
Who knew that a funky monkey playing on a bongo could know more about you than you knew about you.
I didn’t know an animal knew of me until the cheeky monkey played with my name.
Sure, I had seen the television ad telling me “Bongo knows all” as it promotes Bongo the texting service which allows a user to send in a name and location to 4333 to receive a wealth of information about that person.
But immediately my university education kicked in and I just plainly ignored it and never gave it a second of further thought; especially as it sets you back $3 on your mobile bill.
However, it wasn’t until someone else texted in my name and location to the monkey, that I was taken back by the words which described a somewhat truth about me.
Sending in Jaheb Barnett, Devonport, got back this reply: Bongo knows Jaheb Barnett, 21, always makes it obivous when he checks out ladies, he stares and almost drools! Some said he is a guy who is loves a challenge.
Sure, the monkey isn’t too flash with his grammar and spelling, but he sure knows a thing or two about me. It got me thinking maybe we should be listening more intently to scientists who say monkeys are our parents of the past?
But scary isn’t it? A monkey that can tell you details that only you write about in your ‘dear diary’ late at night.
I don’t actually write in a diary but when I received the text I was instantly surprised. Just that night before I was in a bar checking out the talent and I don’t recall seeing a monkey stalking me, just a few fish in the tank.
I refused to believe a monkey would know information about me, I had only been to the zoo a couple of times and I didn’t sit down to have coffee with any monkeys. Who was this monkey? A man in a suit? I needed answers. Not from a gypsy at Victoria Park Market; but some answers from someone who knew the behaviour of a monkey.
After some vigorous investigating I found out that people are employed to use search engines and software that link your name with specific sites and data about you.
If you have your own social networking site like Facebook or are featured in a newsletter thats online for example, the chances of Bongo finding information about you is high.
Furthermore, all members of the Bongo team are linked through an intranet system so when users subscribe on multiple occasions they leave behind a history. If Bongo is unable to find sources of information, they resort in using their vague scenario templates which bank on being so open to interpretation most people will buy into it.
In my case Bongo certainly did know. Maybe a little too much for my liking but still the monkey has got a business going on here and its working cause now I’m $6 down on my mobile phone credit.
All in all, he really is a clever little monkey. I wonder if he gets paid in bananas?
Jaheb, do you wonder about giving too much information to these clever monkeys at Bongo?
Who else has access to their ‘history’ of you?
Welcome to the surveillance society.
It’s a scary concept - that anyone, anywhere can access details which you never thought could end up in someone elses hands.
Sites like facebook and myspaces are popular portals to finding information; messages that you posted can be found just by searching through Google!