Accurate, Focused Research on Law, Technology and Knowledge Discovery Since 2002

Daily Archives: June 4, 2014

Cyberbullying Triples According to New McAfee “2014 Teens and the Screen study”

News release: “McAfee, part of Intel Security, today released findings from the company’s 2014 Teens and the Screen study: Exploring Online Privacy, Social Networking and Cyberbullying. The annual study examines the online behavior and social networking habits of U.S. preteens and teens. The most significant finding from this year’s study reveals that 87% of youth have witnessed cyberbullying versus last year when 27% of youth witnessed cruel behavior online. This behavior was perceived to result in anger and embarrassment, leading to a broader theme about how online behavior is impacting their offline lives. The study highlights how risky online activity can follow them offline and possibly make them even more susceptible to cyberbullying. “Parents must discuss online activity with their children to better ensure their safety and security offline,” said Michelle Dennedy, chief privacy officer at McAfee. “Whether a child is a victim or an instigator of cruel behavior such as cyberbullying, the negative behavior can deeply affect their identity and their reputation.” Cyberbullying – Despite significant efforts to discourage cyberbullying, and its negative effects, the number of occurrences continues to grow with 87% of youth having witnessed cyberbullying. Of those who responded they were cyberbullied, 72% responded it was due to appearance while 26% answered due to race or religion and 22% stated their sexuality was the driving factor. Of those who witnessed cyberbullying, 53% responded the victims became defensive or angry while 47% said the victims deleted their social media accounts, underscoring its significant emotional impact. While the study reveals cyberbullying continues to represent a serious problem for youth, the 2014 survey found 24% of youth would not know what to do if they were harassed or bullied online.”

Rationales and Approaches for a U.S. Program of Human Space Exploration

“The United States has publicly funded its human spaceflight program on a continuous basis for more than a half-century, through three wars and a half-dozen recessions, from the early Mercury and Gemini suborbital and Earth orbital missions, to the lunar landings, and thence to the first reusable winged crewed spaceplane that the United States operated… Continue Reading

Federal Reserve Board Beige Book – June 4, 2014

Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions by Federal Reserve District: “Economic activity in the Second District has continued to grow at a moderate pace since the last report. Prices of finished goods and services remained generally stable, and businesses report modest upward pressure on input prices. Manufacturers report that business activity has picked up considerably… Continue Reading

The Art and Science of Data-Driven Journalism

Alexander Howard – The Tow Center for Journalism, June 2014. “Journalists have been using data in their stories for as long as the profession has existed. A revolution in computing in the 20th century created opportunities for data integration into investigations, as journalists began to bring technology into their work. In the 21st century, a revolution in… Continue Reading

EFF – New Gmail data shows the rise of backbone email encryption

“For the past few years, EFF has been working on promoting the universal use of encryption for Internet protocols. We started by pushing major sites to switch from HTTP to HTTPS, and gave individual users ways to pull things along. Last November, we launched our Encrypt the Web Scorecard, which in addition to Web encryption, added a second focus on… Continue Reading

FTC Testifies on Geolocation Privacy

“The Federal Trade Commission testified before Congress on the Commission’s efforts to address the privacy concerns raised by the tracking of information about consumers’ location, as well as proposed legislation to protect the privacy of geolocation data. Delivering testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee for Privacy, Technology and the Law, Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC… Continue Reading

U.S. Digital Video Benchmark

Adobe Digital Index Q1 2014 “Online video viewing and TV Everywhere authenticated video is being led by mobile devices, gaming consoles, and OTT devices as publishers and advertisers look for ways to engage the multi-device user. To meet the evolving needs of these demanding consumers, who are watching more video online than ever before, marketers… Continue Reading

Transit and Ground Passenger Transportation Industry on the Rise

“First Industry Series Statistics Released from the 2012 Economic Census – Shuttle services, vanpools and similar businesses employed 17,719 people in 2012, a rise from 11,696 in 2007 or 51 percent, according to the first 2012 Economic Census industry series statistics released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. These businesses (part of the All Other Transit and… Continue Reading

2013 Characteristics of New Housing

“Using data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction, which is jointly funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, this report provides annual statistics on the characteristics of new privately owned residential structures in the four U.S. regions. The report includes characteristics such as the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, the type of… Continue Reading

New GAO Reports – VA Real Property, Consumer’s Data Location, DHS Intelligence Analysis, Education Grants and Promotion, Maritime Security

VA REAL PROPERTY: Action Needed to Improve the Leasing of Outpatient Clinics, GAO-14-300: Published: Apr 30, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 3, 2014. CONSUMERS’ LOCATION DATA: Companies Take Steps to Protect Privacy, but Practices Are Inconsistent, and Risks May Not be Clear to Consumers, GAO-14-649T: Published: Jun 4, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 4, 2014. DHS INTELLIGENCE ANALYSIS: Additional Actions Needed to Address Analytic… Continue Reading