Tag Archives: privacy
That Really Cool App You Put on Your Smart Phone is Probably Collecting All Sorts of Information – and You Don’t Even Know It
A few weeks ago I warned that mobile applications may not behave the way that users expect them to. (See “App Happy Downloaders May Get More Than They Expect.”) As a follow-up to that post, I talked more in-depth with Domingo Guerra, president and co-founder of Appthority. Guerra’s company has analyzed hundreds of thousands of mobile apps to discover what … Read more
Amended COPAA Rules Expand Data Privacy Protections
Effective July 1, 2013, the amended Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) will take effect. In today’s world, as those of us in security and compliance know all too well, the same information that enables our business and moves our world quickly to the latest and greatest innovation, puts our private information and that of our friends and family at … Read more
Posted in Data Protection
Tagged Compliance, COPAA, Data Collection, data protection, privacy
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Trojans for the Bundestag: German Police Acquired Finfisher
In December of last year, the German public prosecutors’ office had declared that there was no legal basis for the use of the so-called “Bundestrojaner” spyware, which was used to spy on German citizens. On top of it being illegally used, it was also found to be of very poor quality after extensive research performed by the Chaos Computer Club. … Read more
Posted in Security Threats
Tagged FinFisher, law enforcement, malware, Monitoring, privacy
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App Happy Downloaders May Get More than They Expect
On January 7, Apple announced that customers have downloaded over 40 billion apps, with nearly 20 billion in 2012 alone. The App Store has over 500 million active accounts and had a record-breaking December with over two billion downloads during the month. Apple’s developer community has created over 775,000 apps for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. The Android app market … Read more
Posted in Application Security
Tagged Application Security, mobile application, privacy, Secure Coding
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Lawsuit Asks What Rights You Have to Your Own Social Media Profile
A lawsuit filed recently in federal court begs the question, “Who is permitted to create a social media profile on someone other than himself?” It’s a sticky question but one that hangs out there in legal limbo, for now. As this article in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette indicates, Rick Senft, president and CEO of the Passavant Memorial Home Foundation, has … Read more
Countdown to Data Privacy Day – Top 10 Recommendations for Protecting Your Privacy
Data Privacy Day takes place annually on January 28 and is sponsored by the National Cyber Security Alliance, an organization focused on cyber security education. The purpose of Data Privacy Day is to serve as a reminder of the importance of protecting people’s privacy and maintaining control of their digital footprints. As stored data becomes more and more critical in … Read more
Posted in Data Protection
Tagged Data Privacy Day, digital footprint, privacy, security awareness
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The Dutch, the Yanks, the Cloud and YOU
Recently a research project by the Amsterdam University [PDF Alert] revealed that US law allows for the US government to access information stored in the Cloud, by (ab)using the PATRIOT act. Multiple Dutch politicians have started asking questions from state secretary Teeven of the Justice Department as to whether he knew about this before the research project, and whether he … Read more
FTC Guidelines Take Aim at the Widespread Use of Facial Recognition Technology
Imagine a world where your every move can be tracked via closed circuit video systems, or through seemingly innocuous photos of the crowd at an event you attend that are posted by someone else on social media outlets. Even more disturbing, envision a world where hidden cameras are strategically placed to capture your facial expressions in order to assemble a … Read more
Posted in Security Threats
Tagged Facial recognition, Federal Trade Commission, Guidelines, privacy
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Can You Be Shamed Into Casting Your Vote for U.S. President? Let’s Hope this Never Happens
Election campaign season is in full swing, and both major political parties are in a frenzy to get voters to cast their ballot. Technology plays a larger role in this election than any previous year. The campaigns have used blogs, emails and social networking effectively in the past, but this year’s hot technology appears to be business intelligence. The New … Read more
Posted in Data Protection
Tagged data mining, Do Not Track, privacy, social media, tracking cookies
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Court Rules Email Accounts are Fair Game for Hackers
Did you think your private correspondence stored by email providers like Google and Yahoo is safe from unauthorized access? Think again… In a devastating blow to privacy and the sanctity of proprietary data, the South Carolina Supreme Court has ruled that such data in not protected by the Stored Communications Act (SCA). In a landmark decision, the Court ruled that … Read more
Posted in Data Protection
Tagged Courts, email security, Information Security, Legal, privacy
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