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Privacy

Unencrypted hospital laptop exposes 2k patient records

Greg Masters May 23, 2012

An employee of the Boston Children's Hospital lost a laptop holding patient information.

On CISPA: Threat info sharing shouldn't be a spy project

Dan Kaplan April 24, 2012

Private and public sectors must take seriously the need to share threat data to prevent cyber attacks, but a heavy-handed approach like CISPA places us at far greater risk as a country.

A room of her own: Philips Electronics North America and Wisegate

Greg Masters April 05, 2012

A privacy officer at a global company found a way to collaborate efficiently at a top level, while ensuring the protection of company assets, reports Greg Masters.

Facebook advises users: Don't share passwords

Greg Masters March 23, 2012

Facebook issued an advisory on Friday to make certain its users do not reveal their passwords to prospective employers.

Obama introduces privacy "Bill of Rights" for online users

Dan Kaplan February 24, 2012

The Obama administration has taken the biggest step yet toward addressing online privacy, but the framework may fall on deaf ears unless there is proper enforcement.

Google faces suit over proposed privacy policy

Stephen Lawton February 13, 2012

The Electronic Privacy Information Center filed suit in federal court seeking to compel the Federal Trade Commission to stop Google from enacting its new privacy policy prior to March 1.

Google privacy policy changes raise concerns

Stephen Lawton January 26, 2012

A new blueprint by which Google will share user information across its offerings, similar to how Facebook does, is geared to enhance the experience, but critics fear the move is a privacy quagmire.

Keep taking the tablets...

David Harley, ESET senior research fellow • January 25, 2012

Taking your Android's pulse before you give it access to your health records.

Canadian government officials downloading illegal content

Danny Bradbury January 10, 2012

Representatives from the Pirate Party of Canada highlighted the irony of Canadian government officials using file-sharing sites to infringe on copyright.

Online privacy and security breeds customer confidence

Chris Babel, CEO, TRUSTe December 09, 2011

Studies show that online consumers are concerned about security and privacy. That means web retailers must ensure they are taking all the steps necessary to ensure a safe and transparent shopping experience.

Podcast: Fixing the SSL certificate chain

Dan Kaplan November 30, 2011

In this podcast, Access' Gustaf Bjorksten discusses why the SSL system has failed and what is necessary to improve its existing design and implementation. He helped author a call-to-action paper, and believes the future trust and privacy of the internet relies on finding a solution.

Facebook to alter privacy practices following FTC ruling

Greg Masters November 29, 2011

The Federal Trade Commission has come down hard on Facebook over allegations of "unfair and deceptive" privacy promises, and the social networking behemoth has responded by admitting to its mistakes and appointing two new privacy heads.

Privacy, identity, and the Nym of the Rose

David Harley, ESET senior research fellow • November 22, 2011

Anonymity and pseudonymity: A once and future thing.

Anonymous calls for protests of piracy bill

Angela Moscaritolo November 21, 2011

The Anonymous hacking collective on Sunday called for a "worldwide internet and physical protest" against a controversial bill making its way through Capitol Hill called the Stop Online Piracy Act.

Internet privacy tools too confusing for most users

Angela Moscaritolo November 03, 2011

Most individuals don't understand how to configure advertising "opt-out" tools, according to a new study, which means the debate over how best to give users control over their privacy rages on.

Social engineering and social media

David Harley, ESET senior research fellow • October 14, 2011

Truth when Symantec inadvertently blocks access to Facebook.

FTC, file-sharing app developer settle charges

Dan Kaplan October 12, 2011

The Federal Trade Commission has settled a case with the maker of a mobile peer-to-peer application over allegations that the program automatically shared files with the public by default. The agency's complaint against FrostWire LLC said this caused consumers who downloaded the app to "unwittingly disclose personal files, like pictures and videos, stored on their smartphones and tablet computers," according to an FTC news release on Tuesday. Under the deal, FrostWire is barred from using default settings that allow these files to be shared and is required to freely update users to a new version that corrects the problem.

Amazon Kindle tablet routes web traffic to cloud first

Darren Pauli, SC Australia/New Zealand edition October 03, 2011

Amazon's Silk browser, used on the newly announced the Kindle Fire tablet, has raised privacy concerns because it directs all traffic through its EC2 cloud service.

Making the grade: Privacy maturation

Angela Moscaritolo October 03, 2011

The work being done by Kathleen Styles at the U.S. Department of Education is emblematic of a growing surge of privacy-led initiatives within the public and private sector. But many other firms are still falling short.

Hide My Ass service not as secret as suspect likely believed

Dan Kaplan September 26, 2011

Some of the evidence used to indict a 23-year-old Phoenix man, accused of hacking into the Sony Pictures website, was gleaned from a supposedly anonymous VPN service.

National breach notification bill passes hurdle

Greg Masters September 23, 2011

Three separate national breach notification bills making their way through the Senate came a step closer to being enacted into law on Thursday. The bills are intended to bolster privacy protections, and would supersede 46 state laws while nationalizing breach notification provisions. However, passage is a ways off, as Senate Republicans have raised objections, claiming the bills would burden businesses with further regulations. The Personal Data Privacy and Security Act, the Data Breach Notification Act, and the Personal Data Protection and Breach Accountability Act all passed the Senate Judiciary Committee with a 10-8 vote, split along party lines.

FTC to examine implications of facial biometrics

Dan Kaplan September 21, 2011

The Federal Trade Commission in December plans to hold a workshop to investigate the privacy and security implications of facial recognition technology. The agency announced this week that the workshop, which is free and open to the public, seeks to bring together consumer protection groups, privacy experts, and industry and academic leaders. The meeting is expected to address such topics as whether consumers should consent to the collection and use of their images. Facial recognition products can provide an added security layer at places like airports or automate photo tagging on sites such as Facebook, but critics worry they also could be used for intrusive surveillance. As a result, offerings have emerged that can help people hide their faces from the technology.

New Senate bill aims to prevent, deter data breaches

Angela Moscaritolo September 12, 2011

The Personal Data Protection and Breach Accountability Act of 2011 would require businesses with data of more than 10,000 customers to implement privacy and security programs.

Shared border vision agreement nearing completion, say sources

Danny Bradbury September 12, 2011

Talks on the unified border agreement between Canada and the United States first unveiled in February are complete.

Lawmaker urges Sprint, T-Moble to bolster voicemail security

Angela Moscaritolo September 01, 2011

U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer is urging telecommunications companies Sprint and T-Mobile to improve voicemail security in light of the ongoing U.K. scandal accusing Rupert Murdoch's media empire of phone hacking.

More insiders snooping into health records, says survey

Greg Masters August 31, 2011

Breaches into protected health information (PHI) are on the rise, and staffers are responsible for more than a third of the intrusions, a new survey has found.

Canadians raise alarms over government powers

James Hale August 26, 2011

As the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks approaches, a number of Canadians are voicing their concerns about Prime Minister Stephen Harper's plan to give law enforcement agencies sweeping new powers.