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Daily Archives: December 5, 2022

Stop Before You Shop – Are Your Shopping Apps Sharing Access to Your Device?

incogni blog: “In a recent consumer survey, 88% of respondents reported having at least one shopping app installed on their mobile device. Given their popularity, you might think these apps are pretty harmless.  In our previous research, we already looked into the Google Play Store data safety section and how to determine the amount of data apps really “share”. This time around, our researchers found something else consumers should be looking out for: ad libraries. With the biggest shopping season around the corner, our researchers analyzed 640 of the most popular shopping apps from the Google Play Store to uncover how they can potentially affect your online privacy and security. They found that two-thirds of shopping apps share permissions with an average of 1.8 ad libraries. This means that with each of these apps you grant permissions to, you’re giving the same permissions to not one, but around three companies.

Key findings:

  • Two-thirds (65.2%) of analyzed shopping apps use ad libraries.
  • The shopping apps that use ad libraries use an average of 1.8, meaning you’d be granting permissions to three companies on average, instead of one.
  • 4 out of 5 (83%) analyzed shopping apps request permissions. Some of the most alarming ones are:
    • 22.3% request permission to record audio 
    • 48.3% request permission to access precise (GPS) location
    • 15.8% request permission to read your contacts
    • 6.1% request permission to read calendar events plus confidential information AND add or modify calendar events and send emails to guests without owners’ knowledge
    • 1.6% request permission to read your text messages (SMS or MMS)
    • 8.0% request permission to directly call phone numbers..”

The Supply and Demand of Legal Help on the Internet

Hagan, Margaret, The Supply and Demand of Legal Help on the Internet (October 17, 2022). Margaret D. Hagan “The Supply and Demand of Legal Help on the Internet,” Legal Tech and the Future of Civil Justice, edited by David Freeman Engstrom. Cambridge University Press, Forthcoming., Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4250390 “Faith in technology as a way… Continue Reading

How an Early Oil Industry Study Became Key in Climate Lawsuits

Yale Environment 360: “For decades, 1960s research for the American Petroleum Institute warning of the risks of burning fossil fuels had been forgotten. But two papers discovered in libraries are now playing a key role in lawsuits aimed at holding oil companies accountable for climate change. Carroll Muffett began wondering in 2008 when the world’s… Continue Reading

As fatal police shootings increase, more go unreported

Washington Post $ – “Flawed FBI data has left thousands of deaths uncounted and complicates efforts to hold troubled police departments accountable. Fewer fatal police shootings are recorded by the federal government every year, despite renewed scrutiny of police use of force and millions of dollars spent to encourage local law enforcement to report the… Continue Reading

Why Have So Few People Heard of the Magic of Ctrl+Shift+T?

CNET: “What is Ctrl+Shift+T (or Cmd+Shift+T for Mac users)? I’d argue that it’s one of the most important and useful keyboard shortcuts there is, right up there with Ctrl+Z. In fact, it performs a similar function: undoing a mistake. Specifically, the mistake of accidentally closing a browser tab or window. Ctrl+Shift+T is the easiest way… Continue Reading

National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board Report

Regional Twelve-Year Bottleneck Analysis, December 2, 2022 – “Bottom Line Up Front: results of staff’s analyses show a complex set of occurrences, but with one persistent top-ranked bottleneck. Today’s presentation will look at: The PDA Suite bottleneck tool methodology, how options within the tool cause variations in results, and caveats; Observations on how choosing alternative… Continue Reading