Privacy
In Ad Network Nightmare, Microsoft Making 'Do Not Track' Default for IE 10 | Threat Level
<img class="alignright size-full wp-image-42428" title="footprints_snow_dnt" src="http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/threatlevel/2012/05/footprints_snow_dnt.jpg" alt="" width="398" height="600" /> Microsoft announced Thursday that the next version of its browser, IE 10, will ship with the controversial “Do Not Track” feature turned on by default, a first among major browsers, creating a potential threat to online advertising giants.Location Apps: 4 Privacy Settings You Need to Know
Microsoft Won't Back Down On Offering 'Do Not Track' By Default In Internet Explorer
Should Companies Be Able To Monitor Our Use Of Their Products For Our Own Good?
Reading the Privacy Policies You Encounter in a Year Would Take 76 Work Days - Alexis Madrigal - Technology
One simple answer to our privacy problems would be if everyone became maximally informed about how much data was being kept and sold about them. Logically, to do so, you'd have to read all the privacy policies on the websites you visit. A few years ago, two researchers, both then at Carnegie Mellon, decided to calculate how much time it would take to actually read every privacy policy you should. First, Lorrie Faith Cranor and Aleecia McDonald needed a solid estimate for the average length of a privacy policy. The median length of a privacy policy from the top 75 websites turned out to be 2,514 words.
There is no such thing as anonymous online tracking
A 1993 New Yorker cartoon famously proclaimed, "On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog." The Web is a very different place today; you now leave countless footprints online. You log into websites.Peacemaker: Lauderdale police put trouble spots under surveillance - South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
January 27, 2012 | By Ihosvani Rodriguez, Sun Sentinel FORT LAUDERDALE — Tania Ouaknine is convinced the police are watching her. She's not paranoid — it says as much on the red sign painted along the side on the hulking armored truck that's been parked in front of her eight-room Parisian Motel for several days. "Warning: You are under video surveillance," reads the bold message on the side of the truck.
“Right to be forgotten”: How Facebook, Google, and other companies can protect Internet user privacy
Should you have to live down that one crazy night forever? Ron The great paradox of today's Internet is that the Web feels less and less orderly, even as technology companies preach the virtues of control. Take Facebook: It has recently been caught hosting photos that its users had asked it to delete three years ago. Last year, a bug in its security system made the private photos of its founder, Mark Zuckerberg, publicly accessible.
Stealth Search Engine Offers Private Internet Browsing
The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here. Name: StealthIT Business - Business Advantage through Technology - Channel Recent News
The companies offered a glimpse at the work required to try to stay on top of data privacy issues
"The size of the teams is an indication of what's required today to keep pace with data privacy issues, said Kate Spelman, an attorney with Cobalt LLP. "People used to believe you could dip into privacy issues now and again," she said. "We've decided that's not possible any more. There is no ability to dabble in privacy." Instead, companies are hiring lawyers who are dedicated to handling data privacy."
Microsoft has 40 people fully dedicated to privacy, Google has 60. by Dec 10
A New Year for Privacy: The PRC Launches Online Complaint Center | Privacy Rights Clearinghouse
Copyright © 2012-2013 Privacy Rights Clearinghouse Posted January 3, 2012 The Privacy Rights Clearinghouse (PRC) is proud to announce the launch of an interactive online complaint center designed to serve as a clearinghouse for consumer privacy complaints. This builds upon our 19-year history of troubleshooting consumers’ complaints and questions regarding a wide variety of information privacy issues, including background checks, debt collection, data breaches, financial information, and online data brokers. The PRC's staff will review and respond to every complaint, providing individuals with information and strategies to address their problem. The impetus for the development of the online complaint center was the 2009 KnowPrivacy study , conducted by graduate students in the Masters program at the UC-Berkeley School of Information as well as the Law School at UC-Berkeley.Harsher data protection sanctions are coming
When Apollo wanted to stop Laokoon from warning the Trojans that there were Greek soldiers in the famous Trojan Horse, he sent two giant snakes to kill Laokoon and his sons. Talk about sanctions! Have we considered using killer snakes to punish data protection violations and to discourage future bad practices? Since 2012 has now begun, here's a prediction about the future: there's going to be a lot more privacy enforcement actions. By a lot of different government authorities, not just DPAs. And the sanctions/damages are going to go through the roof."Since 2012 has now begun, here's a prediction about the future: there's going to be a lot more privacy enforcement actions. By a lot of different government authorities, not just DPAs. And the sanctions/damages are going to go through the roof. Indeed, it's not easy to keep track of which government officials are in charge of data protection enforcement actions. There are a lot of them.
We all think of Data Protection Authorities, and similar bodies, like the Federal Trade Commission, as responsible for enforcing privacy laws. These bodies around the world have vastly different enforcement powers, investigative cultures, and sanctions traditions, even within Europe." by Jan 7
Do Privacy Rights in Electronic Communications Exist?
The Challenge of Creating Web-Based Identity Standards
John Fontana is the identity evangelist for Ping Identity and editor of the PingTalk Blog . Prior to joining Ping, he spent 11 years as a senior editor at Network World. Google , Facebook , Yahoo and others all want to be your identity platform on the web. But while it’s certainly convenient to have one credential for multiple websites, many would argue these services are only secure enough to access your grandmother’s online recipe book. Growing numbers of technologists, IT executives, organizations and governments believe an identity authentication model must establish set standards.The PII Problem: Privacy and a New Concept of Personally Identifiable Information
Unfinished. Dense, difficult read. by Dec 10
How Private Is Your Email? It Depends
"police sometimes point to the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986; it says they don't need a warrant for older emails." by Dec 8
Protecting a Cellphone Against Hackers
Since apps are a likely vector for malware transmission on smartphones, Roman Schlegel, a computer scientist at City University of Hong Kong who specializes in mobile security threats, advised, “Only buy apps from a well-known vendor like Google or Apple, not some lonely developer.”
It’s also a good idea to read the “permissions” that apps required before downloading them.
Also avoid free unofficial versions of popular apps, say, Angry Birds or Fruit Ninja. They often have malware hidden in the code. Do, however, download an antivirus app like Lookout, Norton and AVG. Some are free. by Feb 2
Mr. Bokath uses a prepaid subscriber identity module, or SIM, card, which he throws away after using up the line of credit. A SIM card digitally identifies the cellphone’s user, not only to the cellphone provider but also to hackers. It can take several months for the cellphone registry to associate you with a new SIM. So regularly changing the SIM card, even if you have a contract, will make you harder to target. They are not expensive (about $25 for 50 of them on eBay). by Feb 2
Cellphones can be hacked in several ways. A so-called man-in-the-middle attack, Mr. Bokath’s specialty, is when someone hacks into a phone’s operating system and reroutes data to make a pit stop at a snooping third party before sending it on to its destination.
That means the hacker can listen to your calls, read your text messages, follow your Internet browsing activity and keystrokes and pinpoint your geographical location.
Cellphones can be hacked in several ways. A so-called man-in-the-middle attack, Mr. Bokath’s specialty, is when someone hacks into a phone’s operating system and reroutes data to make a pit stop at a snooping third party before sending it on to its destination.
That means the hacker can listen to your calls, read your text messages, follow your Internet browsing activity and keystrokes and pinpoint your geographical location. by Feb 2