Category «Privacy»

EPIC Sues Army for Information About DC Surveillance Blimps

“EPIC has filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the Department of the Army for documents about JLENS, a sophisticated surveillance system that will be deployed over Washington, DC during the next three years. JLENS is comprised of two 250′ blimps. One blimp conducts aerial and ground surveillance over a 340-mile range, while the other has …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Defense, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research, Patriot Act, Privacy

Search Engine DuckDuckGo Reimagined and Redesigned

DuckDuckGo Community Forum: “Over the past year, as our userbase and community have grown substantially, we’ve heard great feedback from new and long-term users. Now, we’d like to show you how we’ve incorporated your feedback with a reimagined and redesigned DuckDuckGo: https://next.duckduckgo.com/ This next version of DuckDuckGo focuses on smarter answers and a more refined look. We’ve …

Subjects: Internet, Knowledge Management, Privacy, Search Engines

New Report Details Basics of Cybersecurity for Decision Makers

“At the Nexus of Cybersecurity and Public Policy offers a wealth of information on practical measures, technical and nontechnical challenges, and potential policy responses. According to this report, cybersecurity is a never-ending battle; threats will evolve as adversaries adopt new tools and techniques to compromise security. Cybersecurity is therefore an ongoing process that needs to evolve …

Subjects: Cybercrime, Government Documents, Internet, Knowledge Management, Privacy

Smart phone thefts rose to 3.1 million last year, Consumer Reports finds

“About 3.1 million American consumers were victims of smart phone theft in 2013, Consumer Reports projects, based on our latest nationally representative survey of adult Internet users. That’s nearly double the number we previously projected had been stolen during 2012. The survey also projects that 1.4 million smart phones were lost and never recovered last …

Subjects: Cybercrime, E-Mail, Privacy

Annual FISA Report Shows Decrease in Surveillance Orders, Questions About Scope Remain

EPIC: “The Department of Justice has published the 2013 FISA Report. The brief report provides summary information about the government’s use of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. In 2012 the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court granted 1,789 FISA orders and 212 “Section 215” orders. In 2013, there were 1,588 requests to conduct FISA surveillance, with 34 modifications. …

Subjects: Courts, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research, Patriot Act, Privacy

EPIC – White House Publishes Report on “Big Data and Future of Privacy”

“The White House has released a report on big data and the future of privacy. The report “Big Data: Seizing Opportunities, Preserving Values” makes several recommendations to the President: “(1) advance the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights; (2) pass national data breach legislation; (3) extend privacy protections to non-U.S. persons; (4) ensure data collected on students in schools is …

Subjects: E-Commerce, Economy, Education, Health Care, Internet, Legal Research, Legislation, Privacy

Risk and Responsibility in a Hyperconnected World

“Research McKinsey conducted in partnership with the World Economic Forum suggests that companies are struggling with their capabilities in cyberrisk management. As highly visible breaches occur with growing regularity, most technology executives believe that they are losing ground to attackers. Organizations large and small lack the facts to make effective decisions, and traditional “protect the …

Subjects: Cybercrime, Internet, Legal Research, Privacy

Forthcoming – Anonymous Login and an Updated Facebook Login

[On April 30, Facebook ] “announced Anonymous Login, a brand new way to log into apps without sharing any personal information from Facebook, along with a new version of Facebook Login with even better privacy controls. People tell us they’re sometimes worried about sharing information with apps and want more choice and control over what personal …

Subjects: E-Commerce, Internet, Privacy

NIST Revises Guide to Use of Transport Layer Security (TLS) in Networks

“The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released an update to a document that helps computer administrators maintain the security of information traveling across their networks. The document, NIST Special Publication 800-52 Revision 1: Guidelines for the Selection, Configuration, and Use of Transport Layer Security (TLS) Implementations, updates the original SP 800-52, released in 2005. Sensitive data—from …

Subjects: Internet, Patriot Act, PC Security, Privacy

Google Stops Scanning Student Emails, Ends Data Collection for Advertising

Via EPIC: “Google has announced it will stop scanning student emails for advertising purposes. Google has also stated that it will no longer display new advertisements in its Apps for Education. Google’s announcement follows the demise of inBloom, a private company that acquired student data from school districts across the country. Amid public backlash, inBloom announced it was shutting down. …

Subjects: E-Commerce, E-Mail, Privacy

Paper – The Grey Web

The Grey Web – Dataveillance Vision Fulfilled through the Evolving Web. Richard Gomer, University of Southampton; Natasa Milic-Frayling, Microsoft Research; m.c. schraefel, University of Southampton. 2014. “Over the past three decades, Web has evolved from an information medium to an intricate economic ecosystem. Initially focused on supporting the transition from traditional business practices to e-commerce, the Web has given rise to new, …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, E-Commerce, Economy, Internet, Marketing, Microsoft, Privacy

The Target Data Breach: Frequently Asked Questions

CRS – The Target Data Breach: Frequently Asked Questions. N. Eric Weiss. Specialist in Financial Economics; Rena S. Miller, Specialist in Financial Economics. April 22, 2014. “According to Target, in November and December of 2013, information on 40 million payment cards (credit, debit, and ATM cards) and personally identifiable information (PII) on 70 million customers was compromised. The Secret Service has …

Subjects: Cybercrime, ID Theft, Internet, PC Security, Privacy