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Re:IMF researchers: digital footprint yields better credit a... by thereisnospork on Friday February 12, 2021 @07:55PM (#26120458)
The politics do get ugly around skin color, but ethically it comes down to whether it is 'fair' to judge someone for something they have no control over[0] (genetic skin color, or genetic tallness.)

Do we want a society where it is okay to charge red heads more for car insurance because they are red heads? Why should people have to bear the sins of others who happen to look like them?

[0]And isn't intrinsic, e.g. people with big feet might pay more for shoes, but not for mortgages.

Re:IMF researchers: digital footprint yields better credit a... by thegrimmest on Friday February 12, 2021 @08:01PM (#26120487)
Well, to talk about that we first have to agree on a definition of "fair". This doesn't seem practical in a society with such a diversity of opinions on the subject as ours. The more important question is to what degree is it ethical to impose your definition of "fair" on others? I would say that there is no ethical basis for the sort of extreme imposition that's currently the status quo.

If some groups wants to charge redheads more, it's their choice. If someone else sees that as a market inefficiency, they can start their own shop where they don't do that. Who cares if you or I think it's "fair"?

Edit: My original point was, the more nuanced we can be about whom we decide to give credit to, which these sorts of techniques provide, the less someone will find themselves lumped into a group in which they don't belong, and the more deserving people will have access to credit.