Spotify has basically run away with the music market over the last couple of years, boasting over 75 million active users. But the popular streaming service this week ticked off a bunch of those customers this week when it updated its privacy policy and user terms and conditions. And their timing couldn’t have been worse: the combination of seeming to add a dramatic and invasive new set of permissions to their apps, in a week when privacy concerns and hacks are already the top headline, set off an angry internet firestorm. [More]
privacy
Comcast Unmasks Anonymous Commenter In Defamation Case
By 8.21.15
Do online commenters have a right to remain anonymous? If their comments are possibly defamatory, should the subject of those statements have to prove the defamation before learning the identity of the writer? This are questions surrounding the story of an Illinois Comcast subscriber who, after a nearly four-year legal battle, has been identified as the writer of inflammatory comments directed at a local politician. [More]
Very Personal Information For Over 30 Million Ashley Madison Users Set Loose On Internet In Wake Of Hack
By 8.19.15
Ashley Madison, the website for cheating cheaters who specifically want to go have an affair, was hacked in July. A day later, the company said that it was working to secure its users’ data and all personally identifiable data had been taken down. But perhaps the company is taking after the worst habits of its member base, because that too turns out to be a pack of dirty lies: the full data for over 30 million Ashley Madison accounts is now out there in the wild. [More]
Leaked NSA Documents: AT&T “Highly Collaborative” With NSA Spying, Has “Extreme Willingness” To Help
By 8.17.15
The NSA’s spying operations on regular Americans are the unwanted, terrible gift that just keeps on giving. Although most telecom and internet companies have cooperated with the surveillance efforts to one degree or another, at least some of them have the decency to act mildly chagrined about it. But not AT&T. [More]
Patients At NYC Hospitals Will No Longer Become Accidental Reality TV Stars
By 8.13.15
We don’t know about you, but the last thing we want when we go to the hospital is for anyone — not even our loved ones — to shoot video of us. We certainly wouldn’t want to find out that we’re being filmed without our permission by a crew for some cruddy reality TV show. And after one such show actually broadcast the secretly recorded death of a patient in a New York City hospital, it looks like patients in NYC may not have to worry about being caught on camera at your worst. [More]
Hanes Website Is The Latest, Oddest Victim Of Data Breach
By 7.30.15
To be honest, we had no idea that you could buy Hanes underwear (and socks, shirts, etc) from the Hanes website, mostly because we’d never really thought to look at the Hanes website. But if you have been shopping at Hanes.com — and potentially at other sites in the Hanes Brands catalog — some of your information may have been compromised. [More]
The Pros & Cons Of Windows 10 Sharing Your WiFi Passwords With Your Contacts
By 7.29.15
All around the world today, Windows users are updating their operating systems to Windows 10, better known as Microsoft’s attempt to atone for the sins of Windows 8. However, the newest version of Windows has a feature that is either — depending on who you speak to — a huge privacy concern, or maybe not that big a deal. [More]
eBay Will Send Your Full Name, Location, And Phone Number To Any Auction Bidder Who Asks
By 7.21.15
Reader A. is a full-time eBay seller, who recently listed and sold a pricey item for a relative, splitting the proceeds. Relatively early in the auction, something happened that surprised and upset A: one of the bidders requested his contact information on file from eBay, which included his phone number and the city and state where he lives. eBay automatically sent it to the bidder without consulting him. Why? [More]
Federal Data Breach Reportedly Affects An Additional 21 Million People
By 7.9.15
Remember when it was announced that more than four million federal employees in the country were part of a massive data breach last month? Well, turns out that was just one of two rather large data breaches to hit the Office of Personnel Management, with the newly announced second, larger hack affecting upwards of 21 million current and former employees, as well as prospective employees, their families and others who applied for federal background investigations in the last 15 years. [More]
California Tempts ID Thieves, Prints Full Social Security Numbers On Millions Of Mailed Documents
By 7.9.15
From ruining your credit to giving you a criminal record, a clever ID thief can do some significant damage with a stolen Social Security number, so why is one California state agency putting this information out there in the mail for these fraudsters to swipe? [More]
Survey Says: You’d Rather Have Your Nude Pics Leaked Than Your Financial Information
By 7.9.15
MasterCard wants to know how you feel, so they asked a bunch of people: Do you feel safe? Do you feel secure? Do you feel like you need a cookie and a nice cup of cocoa? Wait, scratch that last one. MasterCard’s survey only covered feelings about how safe and secure you feel your financial information is. The answer? Not very secure at all. [More]
Should We Have The “Right To Be Forgotten” By Google In U.S.?
By 7.7.15
Even those of us who didn’t grow up in the Internet age can still find traces of our much younger selves online, which can occasionally make for a fun trip down memory lane. But not everyone is pleased with the idea that every online mention of their name may be forever etched into Google’s search memory. In 2014, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that people have a legal “right to be forgotten” by Internet search engines, requiring Google and others to consider such removal requests from residents of the 28 EU countries. A new complaint filed today with federal regulators is calling for a similar program in the U.S. [More]
Amazon Is Data Mining Reviewers’ Personal Relationships
By 7.6.15
Any Amazon customer is likely aware that the e-tail giant knows a lot about them. That’s how it personalizes product suggestions and customizes the marketing e-mails it sends. But some Amazon users are now finding out that the site knows — or at least it thinks it knows — who your friends are, and is restricting their reviews accordingly. [More]
Credit Card Data Breach Confirmed At Trump Hotels
By 7.1.15
Hotel properties owned by Donald Trump’s Trump Organization are the latest consumer-facing businesses to become the subject of a cybercrime, with the company acknowledging that a data breach has occurred at locations run by the Trump Hotel Collection. [More]
Your Personal Information Is Probably Going To Be For Sale When The Company You Gave It To Is
By 6.29.15
You’ve signed up for a dating site, and it has promised up and down not to sell your data for marketing purposes. One year in, so far so good. Except the site folds, and someone else buys its assets — and those assets include all your personal info. The new owners made no privacy promise, and now your likes, dislikes, and dating history are floating down you-know-what creek without you. [More]
Facebook Develops Technology To Recognize You Even When Your Face Is Covered
By 6.23.15
If you regularly shield your face in photos for fear someone might recognize you on Facebook, then you might need to find another way to stay incognito when it comes to the social media site. [More]
Senator Pushes For System To Notify Consumers ‘The Moment Access To Their Credit Is Requested’
By 6.22.15
It seems like every day, another retailer, service provider, or government agency falls victim to a data breach, and if a hacker uses that stolen info to open up a new line of credit in your name, you may not know until long after the fact. One lawmaker is hoping to curb identity theft by giving consumers a heads-up whenever their credit reports are accessed. [More]
Supreme Court: L.A. Hotel Owners Can’t Be Forced To Turn Over Guest Info Without A Warrant
By 6.22.15
Should the police, without a warrant, be able to walk into a hotel and get the names, addresses, license plate numbers, and other information about any guest who stayed there in the last three months? And should hotel owners face criminal charges if they fail to comply? The City of Los Angeles thinks so, but this morning the Supreme Court disagreed. [More]
