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Category Archives: Privacy

Florida braces for lawsuits over law banning kids from social media

Ars Technica: “On Monday, Florida became the first state to ban kids under 14 from social media without parental permission. It appears likely that the law—considered one of the most restrictive in the US—will face significant legal challenges, however, before taking effect on January 1. Under HB 3, apps like Instagram, Snapchat, or TikTok would need to verify the ages of users, then delete any accounts for users under 14 when parental consent is not granted. Companies that “knowingly or recklessly” fail to block underage users risk fines of up to $10,000 in damages to anyone suing on behalf of child users. They could also be liable for up to $50,000 per violation in civil penalties. In a statement, Florida governor Ron DeSantis said the “landmark law” gives “parents a greater ability to protect their children” from a variety of social media harm. Florida House Speaker Paul Renner, who spearheaded the law, explained some of that harm, saying that passing HB 3 was critical because “the Internet has become a dark alley for our children where predators target them and dangerous social media leads to higher rates of depression, self-harm, and even suicide.” But tech groups critical of the law have suggested that they are already considering suing to block it from taking effect. In a statement provided to Ars, a nonprofit opposing the law, the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) said that while CCIA “supports enhanced privacy protections for younger users online,” it is concerned that “any commercially available age verification method that may be used by a covered platform carries serious privacy and security concerns for users while also infringing upon their First Amendment protections to speak anonymously.”

Airlines are not making flights more expensive by tracking your search habits

Gizmodo: “Why So Many People Think They Can Get Cheaper Flights Using Incognito Mode…Economists from Berkeley, Yale, and the University of Chicago recently studied the pricing algorithms of an unnamed large US airline. The study found that the overall bookings for any given flight will affect the price, but your personal interest has no impact… Continue Reading

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, March 23, 2024

Via LLRX – Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, March 23, 2024 – Privacy and cybersecurity issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, finance, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on… Continue Reading

What We Know About You: Welcome to the Surveillance State

Via LLRX – What We Know About You: Welcome to the Surveillance State – Kevin Novak begins his article with a reference to a report in The Wall Street Journal that caught his attention. Commercial data brokers are selling their third-party data to the government. If you’re an optimist, you would think this could be… Continue Reading

Users ditch Glassdoor, stunned by site adding real names without consent

Ars Technica: “Glassdoor, where employees go to leave anonymous reviews of employers, has recently begun adding real names to user profiles without users’ consent, a Glassdoor user named Monica was shocked to discover last week. “Time to delete your Glassdoor account and data,” Monica, a Midwest-based software professional, warned other Glassdoor users in a blog.… Continue Reading

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, March 16, 2024

Via LLRX – Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, March 16, 2024 – Privacy and cybersecurity issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, finance, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the… Continue Reading

Browse safely with real-time protection on Chrome

Google Blog: “Cybersecurity attacks are constantly evolving, and sometimes the difference between successfully detecting a threat or not is a matter of minutes. To keep up with the increasing pace of hackers, we’re bringing real-time, privacy-preserving URL protection to Google Safe Browsing for anyone using Chrome on desktop or iOS. Plus we’re introducing new password… Continue Reading

Automakers Are Sharing Consumers’ Driving Behavior With Insurance Companies

The New York Times – unpaywalled: “Kenn Dahl says he has always been a careful driver. The owner of a software company near Seattle, he drives a leased Chevrolet Bolt. He’s never been responsible for an accident. So Mr. Dahl, 65, was surprised in 2022 when the cost of his car insurance jumped by 21… Continue Reading

Understanding the Risks of Uploading Client Information to Generative AI Platforms

ABA: “Lawyers owe sacrosanct ethical and legal obligations to their clients. Among the most important of these include the duty to maintain client confidentiality, protect privileged client communications, and apprise the client of the risks and benefits of proposed legal strategies. A lawyer’s inadvertent breach of these duties may irreparably harm the client, stain the… Continue Reading