Is it illegal to collect data that is publicly available in the internet, create a database from that and sell it to companies?
My idea is to have a database that includes:
- Names of Companies and their address
- Names of the managers
- The email address and phone number, if it's publicly available
- Interest of the firm like investment style of a family office for example
Would this be legit or illegal?
Need your advice Veeky Forums!
this is some next level shekeling
There's nothing illegal about collection of information that is made freely available by the companies
The question is, who would buy something that is freely available?
My question is, who do you think will buy this? Start ups will likely stiff you and the big guys won't fall for it.
It's all about the work you put into it. In my opinion, I've become excellent in finding any available information in the minimum amount of time. So if I would invest a few hundred hours of work in it and sell it to them for the promise that it is accurate. They save the time of someone checking the information and I make money because of the rule of scale.
can you find SSNs?
Where I come from we don't have that system. But as long as something is available somewhere in the public internet, I can find it.
people pay for convenience.
and if you're someone who know's that, you can use this for your advantage and make a shit load of money
But I work for a company with a big database right now. Would it be suspicious to start with that business after I've quitted the job? Does some people might think that I've stolen the database, although I've just taken the data that has been available online in the public internet?
There is already huge websites which companies buy data off for marketing Purposes.
It's not illegal but publicly scraped information isn't that valuable.
Have fun competing with LexisNexis.
If you are that good, you may want to consider skip tracing as a business.
This already exists in far more detail. Places that need it or want it already have it. You have no added value and are not a reputable entity, either. Don't bother.
look at instant checkmate
that product/service is really just made of free info but they market it in such a way that makes it looks like a secret database. the guys who started it have a huge background in performance advertising so if you don't know what that is you have some more learning to do
Buzzfeed's entire business model is based on an even more illicit version of this.
The thing with data is as I understand the "arrangement" (so the database itself) is copyrightable, not the data itself. As long as you've acquired the data through legitimate means (not hacking in anywhere, not through extortion, fraud, or breaking any third party TOS) you should be golden.
I still think you haven't answered 's question satisfactorily.
What specific benefit does your database offer? Don't just say "oh it saves my clients the effort". SELL IT, find a "point of differentiation" a "value proposition"
>oh it saves my clients the effort". SELL IT, find a "point of differentiation" a "value proposition"
Yes. Find mass access to data that requires a lot of effort like data that you have to go to town hall in person to acquire.
Can you make a database of hot girls in universities instead
The data base will consist of pension funds, independent wealth managers, family offices, foundations, insurances and banks. Many databases of companies have inaccurate information, whether who is in which position, who is responsible for what etc. Clarifying this and having the perfect foundation for gathering new prospects, allows any asset management company to cover it's possible investors completely.
The database offers transparency, clarity, and the possibility of new valuable costumers for a comparably very cheap price.
>Is it illegal to collect data that is publicly available in the internet, create a database from that and sell it to companies?
Yes and no. Yes if they don't give permission and it's personal/identifying information. No if it's not. There are plenty of exceptions in plenty of countries though.
>- Names of Companies and their address
Already exists
>- Names of the managers
Already exists
>- The email address and phone number, if it's publicly available
Already exists
>- Interest of the firm like investment style of a family office for example
wat
You're competing with the likes of Advertising firms, Facebook, LinkedIn etc, and you're essentially copying existing freely available information.
That's not a reason this can't make money, it's just not a very good idea imo
You also seem to be unaware that the only time companies pay for this information is when it's up-to-date. That is, using scrapers or direct fulfillment.
Instead you seem to be scraping once which is retarded.
>But I work for a company with a big database right now. Would it be suspicious to start with that business after I've quitted the job? Does some people might think that I've stolen the database, although I've just taken the data that has been available online in the public internet?
This however, is illegal. No reason you can't simply use the same collection methods though.
Like others are saying, you offer nothing new or of benefit.