Privacy is a growing concern in today’s world. Follow along with all our coverage related to privacy, security, what Apple and other companies are doing to keep your information safe, and what steps you can take to keep your information private.
A New York Times report last month pointed to the growing problem of smart home devices being used to harrass and stalk former partners.
Smart home technology is being used to inflict new forms of domestic abuse on partners and former partners. Examples include everything from video surveillance through cameras to blasting out loud music through smart speakers and turning up thermostat temperatures to oppressive levels.
A British university has now put together a series of links to resources which can help those who find themselves being targeted in this way …
Timehop, an app which resurfaces memories from your past social media posts, says that it has been hacked. Names, email addresses and phone numbers have been obtained, and the company urges users to take urgent steps to protect their cellphone numbers …
It’s not uncommon for people to think that Facebook is spying on their conversations when online ads appear to advertise something they discussed offline. The reality is often simply coincidence or more often based on cookies when searching online for something related.
But that doesn’t mean Facebook doesn’t know how to spy on users — even if the company swears it won’t use the technology…
A Who’s Who of tech giants is expected to get together on Wednesday in San Francisco for an all-day meeting on how to tackle growing consumer concerns about data privacy …
In line with Apple’s stance, a new Supreme Court decision this morning has ruled that in general the government will need a warrant to collect information from wireless carriers like location data.
We noted yesterday one of many calls for the US to adopt European-style protections for personal data, and the White House is now reported to be examining options …
The WSJ features an interesting debate on whether or not the US should follow Europe’s example in enacting tough privacy regulations requiring individual consent for storing and processing personal data …
Governments around the globe seem to be lining up to demonstrate their ignorance about how strong encryption works, with Australia the latest to do so.
The Australian government has announced its intention to reveal new laws to force tech companies like Apple to provide access to the encrypted data of suspected criminals …
The controversy over third-part companies getting access to Facebook user data doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon. The latest revelation is that Apple, Samsung, Microsoft and Blackberry were just a handful of more than 60 device makers given ‘deep access’ to user data …
Apple takes user privacy very seriously. The company believes that privacy in software, hardware, and services is part of a user’s rights and should be valued as such.
There’s been some amusement as a certain well-known ‘adult entertainment’ site announced the launch of its own VPN service.
Smutty jokes aside, there’s never been a more important time to use a VPN. Less than $100 will now buy a bad guy the equipment they need to carry out a man-in-the-middle attack – where they spoof a public WiFi hotspot and intercept the traffic. Some of these devices are even small enough to be disguised as a power plug, meaning they could be left in a coffee shop happily collecting data to be later used at leisure.
And the loss of net neutrality raises the prospect of ISPs offering a two-speed Internet, or even blocking sites altogether. Most are adamant that they’d never do so, but then they were equally vocal about wanting to end net neutrality, which makes no sense unless they planned to take advantage of the change …
Europe’s tough new privacy law, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), came into force today. It provides the strongest protections the world has ever seen for customer and user data.
Even Apple – a company famed for its respect for customer privacy – had to strengthen its safeguards in order to meet the extremely high standards set by GDPR. But while the law only applies to European Union citizens, Apple and some other companies have said that they plan to roll out the same privacy standards worldwide …
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was widely criticized yesterday for failing to answer many of the questions put to him by the European Parliament.
He promised written answers to these, and some have been provided, but more than half of the unanswered questions remain so …
With the European Parliament having passed some extremely tough privacy legislation, and many members being well-versed in the issues as they relate to tech companies, there were high hopes for yesterday’s grilling of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
Tough and pertinent questions were indeed asked, far more so than in Congress – but Zuckerberg failed to answer more than 40 of them …
Apple has today launched its new Data and Privacy website, allowing Apple users to download everything that Apple personally associates with your account, from Apple ID info, App Store activity, AppleCare history to data stored in iCloud like photos and documents. This is currently only available for European Union accounts, to comply with GDPR, and will roll out worldwide in the coming months.
There are also simple shortcuts to updating your info, temporarily deactivating your account and options to permanently delete it. Here’s how to do it …
If you enjoyed watching Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg squirming while being asked difficult questions and trying to keep a straight face while being asked stupid ones during his testimony to Congress, you might want to tune in to the sequel today …
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s testimony to Congress was the video stream that launched a thousand memes – and now meme creators will get another opportunity. The European Parliament has announced that its meeting with Zuckerberg tomorrow will also be livestreamed …
Facebook has suspended around 200 apps as part of the internal investigation prompted by data misuse by Cambridge Analytica …
Google is making it easier to see the search, browsing and YouTube viewing history it keeps on you, to delete any items you don’t want included, and to stop the company from logging your activity in future …
A large part of the issue with the Cambridge Analytica scandal was that the Facebook data obtained by the company didn’t just come from those who clicked through to the survey, but also their Facebook friends. That, says a WSJ report, is a growing issue.
The Cambridge Analytica scandal—where 270,000 people who downloaded an app led to a data breach for 87 million Facebook users—is the first large-scale example of the importance of maintaining “group privacy,” says Yves-Alexandre de Montjoye, head of the computational privacy group at Imperial College London.
In a hypothetical example, Prof. de Montjoye’s group reported that if just 1% of cellphones in London were compromised with malware, an attacker would be able to continuously track the location of more than half the city’s population …
Facebook is actively exploring the possibility of offering a subscription-based option which would remove ads from the feeds of those choosing to pay a monthly or annual fee …
Facebook may have taken a huge PR hit from allowing personal data to be misused by Cambridge Analytica, but the impact on the political consultancy itself appears to have been more significant. The firm says that it has ceased most operations, and is filing for bankruptcy …
Reform Government Surveillance is a coalition of major tech companies that looks to guide legislation for how the government can surveil individuals and access their information. Apple joined RGS back in 2013 and the coalition has recently issued a statement as talks have begun again about US officials pushing for a mandate to make tech companies build backdoors into their devices and services.
WhatsApp has today shared its updated privacy policy and terms of service. Additionally, the messaging service has made a FAQ sheet available for its upcoming data download tool, detailing how it will work.