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Category Archives: E-Records

FTC Cracks Down on Mass Data Collectors: A Closer Look at Avast, X-Mode, InMarket

“Three recent FTC enforcement actions reflect a heightened focus on pervasive extraction and mishandling of consumers’ sensitive personal data. Proposed Settlements with Avast X-Mode and InMarket. In mid February, the FTC announced a proposed settlement to resolve allegations that Avast, a security software company, unfairly sold consumers’ granular and re-identifiable browsing information—information that Avast amassed… Continue Reading

Wyden’s Gets FTC To Protect Data Of 1.6 B People Tracked By Now-Bankrupt Data Broker

TechDirt: “There are two major reasons that the U.S. doesn’t pass an internet-era privacy law or regulate data brokers despite a parade of dangerous scandals. One, lobbied by a vast web of interconnected industries with unlimited budgets, Congress is too corrupt to do its job. Two, the U.S. government is disincentivized to do anything because it exploits… Continue Reading

LLRX February 2024 Issue

Articles and Columns for February 2024 Scam Baiting: An Innovative Approach to Combating Online Fraud – Kyra Strick AI in Banking and Finance, February 29, 2024 – Sabrina I. Pacifici Toward a durable, dictator-proof Washington Post – David H. Rothman What Happens to Your Sensitive Data When a Data Broker Goes Bankrupt? – Jon Keegan Publishing… Continue Reading

These Video Doorbells Have Terrible Security. Amazon Sells Them Anyway

Consumer Reports – “The devices are also sold by Walmart, Sears, and other retailers—and big platforms have faced few consequences for shipping flawed products. On a recent Thursday afternoon, a Consumer Reports journalist received an email containing a grainy image of herself waving at a doorbell camera she’d set up at her back door. If… Continue Reading

Black Families Can Now Recover More of Their Lost Histories

The New York Times [Dr. Fields-Black is the author of “Combee: Harriet Tubman, the Combahee River Raid, and Black Freedom During the Civil War]: “…African Americans searching for their family histories often have only small irregular pieces of an enormous puzzle. Most of those pieces are missing because enslaved African Americans were not recorded by… Continue Reading

The Best VPNs to Protect Yourself Online

Wired – “It won’t solve all of your privacy problems, but a virtual private network can make you a less tempting target for hackers. A virtual private network (VPN) is like a protective tunnel you can use to pass through a public network, protecting your data from outside eyes. Whether you’re worried about hiding your… Continue Reading

The Slack generation can’t communicate with the email generation

Fast Company – Why more platforms are dividing the workplace – “Workplace miscommunication and conflict are on the rise, as work becomes more decentralized and multigenerational. Should you leave important information in a voicemail to a colleague? Should you pick up a phone call from your boss after hours? How do you determine what rises to… Continue Reading

Biden Issues Executive Order to Protect Americans’ Sensitive Personal Data

“President Biden issued an Executive Order to protect Americans’ sensitive personal data from exploitation by countries of concern. The Executive Order on Preventing Access to Americans’ Bulk Sensitive Personal Data and United States Government-Related Data by Countries of Concern, marks the most significant executive action any President has ever taken to protect Americans’ data security, authorizes the… Continue Reading

How to stop your devices from listening to you

PopSci: “Our smartphones and smart speakers can listen for specific voice commands and take action accordingly, but maybe you don’t want your devices always having one digital ear open. Aside from privacy concerns, the smart assistants inside our gadgets can be triggered accidentally–by someone else in the house or even someone speaking on television. Turning… Continue Reading

Tumblr and WordPress to Sell Users’ Data to Train AI Tools

404Media: “Tumblr and WordPress.com are preparing to sell user data to Midjourney and OpenAI, according to a source with internal knowledge about the deals and internal documentation referring to the deals. The exact types of data from each platform going to each company are not spelled out in documentation we’ve reviewed, but internal communications reviewed… Continue Reading

With elections looming worldwide here’s how to identify and investigate AI audio deepfakes

Nieman Lab: “…Media manipulation investigators told GIJN that fake AI-generated audio simulations — in which a real voice is cloned by a machine learning tool to state a fake message — could emerge as an even bigger threat to elections in 2024 and 2025 than fabricated videos. One reason is that, like so-called cheapfakes, audio… Continue Reading