digital privacy

Supreme Court Sidesteps Digital Privacy -- for Now

Lindsy Embree — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 10:30:28 -0500

Full article: GigaOM
Derrick Harris
The Supreme Court deemed it unconstitutional in most cases to use GPS to track suspects without first obtaining a warrant -- calling the attachment of a GPS device to a suspect's property a trespass -- but the Court declined to address some major privacy issues also at play in the case. Here are three big questions the Court didn't answer, but that seem to be weighing heavily on several Justices' minds and might just arise again in future cases.

Feds Shift Tracking Defense

Lindsy Embree — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 10:36:13 -0400

Full article: Wall Street Journal
Jennifer Valentino-Devries
The U.S. Department of Justice now says its use of a cellphone-tracking device in a controversial Arizona case could be considered a "search" under the Fourth Amendment, a tactical move legal experts say is designed to protect the secrecy of the gadgets known as "stingrays."

The Shocking Strangeness of Our 25-Year Old Digital Privacy Law

Stevie Converse — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 12:52:47 -0400

Full article: Ars Technica
Jim Dempsey
Twenty-five years after it was passed, the Electronic Communications Privacy Act still governs much of our privacy online, and the Center for Democracy and Technology argues that ECPA needs an overhaul. The ECPA was signed into law on October 21, 1986. Although it was forward-looking at the time, ECPA’s privacy protections have remained stuck in the past while technology has raced ahead, providing us means of communication that not too long ago existed only in the minds of science fiction writers.

TV's Next Wave: Tuning in to You

Lindsy Embree — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 08:40:46 -0500

Full article: Wall Street Journal
Jessica E. Vascellaro
Data-gathering firms and technology companies are aggressively matching people's TV-viewing behavior with other personal data -- in some cases, prescription-drug records obtained from insurers -- and using it to help advertisers buy ads targeted to shows watched by certain kinds of people. The goal: Emulate the sophisticated tracking widely used on people's personal computers with new technology that reaches the living room.

Pressure Grows on Spain to Curb Digital Piracy

Lindsy Embree — Mon, 17 May 2010 08:34:29 -0400

Full article: New York Times
Raphael Minder
In the last decade, a surge of music and movie sharing online in Spain has thrilled fans, but it has also increased pressure from as far away as Hollywood to clamp down. Spanish lawmakers are expected to vote this year on a measure that would allow the swift closing of sites suspected of facilitating file-sharing.

Privacy in a New World

Lindsy Embree — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 10:36:07 -0400

Full article: New York Times
The Supreme Court heard arguments in a case about the privacy rights of a California police officer who sent very personal text messages on a city-issued pager. This case brings the court to a new frontier. As people use newer forms of communication, the court must ensure that privacy protections keep up.

Privacy Lawsuit Against Google Buzz Seen As Facing Hurdles

Lindsy Embree — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 11:26:16 -0500

Full article: MediaPost
Wendy Davis
Adding to Google's Buzz-related woes, a student at Harvard Law has sued the company for allegedly "forcing all Gmail users to share their personal data in a public forum."

Local Class Action Complaint Filed Over Google Buzz

Lindsy Embree — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 09:29:27 -0500

Full article: San Francisco Chronicle
James Temple
A class action complaint filed in San Jose, Calif. federal court alleges that Google broke the law when its controversial Google Buzz service shared personal data without the consent of users.

Google's Leap into Social Networking Stirs Privacy-Issue Buzz

Lindsy Embree — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 09:43:31 -0500

Full article: Miami Herald
Niala Boodhood and Bridget Carey
Google recently launched a social networking feature called Buzz. Basically, Buzz capitalizes on Gmail by creating social network connections based on the people you e-mail most. And early adopters have already started freaking out about privacy concerns.

Smart Grids Drag Utilities into the Swamp of Online Privacy

Lindsy Embree — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:43:04 -0500

Full article: Ars Technica
John Timmer
Ontario, Canada will have a smart meter in every home by the end of 2010, and its Information and Privacy Commissioner has now weighed in on the implications of placing detailed information on energy use online.