IMDB now automatically creating user accounts when you are signed into Amazon | Hacker News Reader

IMDB now automatically creating user accounts when you are signed into Amazon

I discovered the hard way that IMDB is now automatically creating accounts for you if you are signed in with amazon and it appears details such as my name and email are being shared without my consent. Several other people are also reporting this.

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Perhaps related to a recent change, where you now must be logged in to IMDB.com in order to view the User Reviews for movies.

Amazon has been an absolutely terrible custodian of IMDb. I am still nostalgic about user forums...

Are they really sharing anything without your consent though? IMDB is part of Amazon.

I had this happen to me yesterday. I immediately deleted the account it created (I already had one under a different email address). I sent very negative feedback to IMDB about it, they emailed me back today with a pretty generic response.

To me, this crosses a major line. I don't feel I can trust any site Amazon owns going forward. Any accounts I have currently with this (including my preexisting IMDB account) I now plan to delete, and avoid like the plague so I avoid having more accounts created without my consent. I think people need to react very negatively to this, as it sets a horrible precedent. Imagine every site that currently pops up with "Sign-in with Google" just taking it upon themselves to proactively create an account for simply visiting the page.

I found this help article that explains they're doing it. This doesn't make it better, it just shows it isn't a mistake. Someone made this decision, it was supported internally, and implemented.

https://help.imdb.com/article/imdb/general-information/imdb-...

Are there any open alternatives to IMDB?

There's TMDb

https://www.themoviedb.org/

+1 for TMDB. A breath of fresh air in comparison, simple but elegant. Also has a comprehensive API.

Why do you need an open alternative?

To defend against enshittification. Why would I use a big tech controlled resource when avoidable? If I avoid consuming or building on imdb in this context, I avoid inevitable platform decay. Investing in and leveraging public goods > eventual rug pull. Try to avoid the rug pull, when efficient to do so.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enshittification

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/infinite-scroll/the-age-of... | https://archive.is/Pn0tm

https://www.democracynow.org/2025/10/10/cory_doctorow

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