data privacy
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The case against the TikTok ban bill
The renewed support for banning or forcing a sale of TikTok doesn’t seem to be tied to any newly uncovered information about TikTok, ByteDance or the Chinese Communist Party.
HIPAA protects health data privacy, but not in the ways most people think
With misinterpretations of HIPAA starting with just its name, misunderstandings of what the law actually does greatly impact our ability to recognize how the kinds of data do and don't fall under its scope. That’s especially true as a growing number of consumer tech devices and services gather troves of information related to our health.
The FTC wants to strengthen COPPA to make it harder for companies to monetize kids’ data
The FTC is proposing changes to the COPPA to make it harder for tech companies to track and monetize children’s data.
Police are using pharmacies to secretly access medical information about members of the public
A Congressional letter called on the Department of Health and Human Services to revise HIPAA so that these warrantless searches couldn't occur.
Smarter public transit comes at the cost of rider anonymity
Payment information, location data and trip patterns can all be attached to our ridership data. Agencies say they use it to better understand how riders use the services and make improvements. But the flip side is transit agencies selling user data to advertisers like a lot of private companies do, or sharing it with law enforcement.
Every car is a smart car, and it's a privacy nightmare
The technology in today’s cars has the ability to collect these kinds of personal information, and the fine print of user agreements describes how manufacturers get you to consent every time you put the keys in the ignition.
Researchers posed as foreign actors, and data brokers sold them information on military servicemembers anyway
Researchers at Duke University released a study on Monday tracking what measures data brokers have in place to prevent unidentified or potentially malign actors from buying personal data on members of the military.
Crunchyroll will pay you $30 for violating your data privacy rights
The anime-streaming service chose to settle with its customers in a class action suit for digital privacy violations.
The legal loophole that lets the government search your phone
“Technically and legally there's not much really truly blocking the government from getting the information they want if they want it,” Allison Young, digital forensics analyst at The Legal Aid Society, told Engadget.
Tech companies are selling your privacy back to you
This resurgence of privacy-focused ads has a lot to do with the popularity of data laws. That’s not to say advertising privacy is new, it dates back as far as these companies themselves, but regulation made compliance a selling point.
GoodRx now offers an iOS 'Medicine Cabinet' for managing prescription meds
Health tech company GoodRx, best known for offering a prescription drug price comparison tool, has launched “Medicine Cabinet.” The new product will expand the company's offering and expand user engagement.
New privacy deal allows US tech giants to continue storing European user data on American servers
The European Union has adopted a plan that will allow US tech giants to continue storing data about European users on American soil.
Texas AG subpoenas Pfizer to release Meta ad records
The Texas AG has subpoenaed Pfizer to release any advertising data it has associated with the social media giant Meta.
The dos and don’ts of location sharing
Like other kinds of personal information, location data is presented by companies as a trade-off: consumers willingly expose where they are, usually for a more convenient user experience; the companies in turn gather crucial intel about customers and, more often than not, resell that data to third-parties for additional profit.
Eight months post-Roe, reproductive-health privacy is still messy
Data privacy awareness boomed last June when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, limiting access to safe, legal abortion. Privacy experts say not to let your guard down. Legislative bodies have made little progress on health data security.
Google is failing to protect users and contractors post-Roe, workers say
Alphabet was among the many tech companies to alter its healthcare and data policies once abortion access was no longer guaranteed. Workers say the company isn't doing nearly enough.
FTC says it will pursue companies that exploit location and health data
The Biden Administration has tasked the agency to guard data privacy post-Roe.
TikTok says it's storing US data domestically amid renewed security concerns
TikTok says it’s achieved a “significant milestone” toward its promises to beef up the security of its US users’ data.
Leaked document indicates Facebook has little insight into how user data is handled
The report casts doubt on the company's ability to comply with privacy regulations.
Ukraine may move its top-secret data and servers abroad
The country fears its most sensitive data could soon be compromised by Russia’s invading forces.
