(Zero Hedge) Guess who wrote the following text: “When Alexa runs your home, Amazon tracks you in more ways than you might want. Would you let a stranger eavesdrop in your home and keep the recordings? For most people, the answer is, ‘Are you crazy?’ Yet that’s essentially what Amazon has been doing to millions of us with its assistant Alexa in microphone-equipped Echo speakers. And it’s hardly alone: Bugging our homes is Silicon Valley’s next frontier.”
privacy
More Creepy Surveillance Capitalism: Kroger and Walgreens Installing Cameras in Stores to Read Shoppers’ Facial Expressions to Sell Them More Stuff
(B.N. Frank)It’s reasonable to expect stores to install security cameras to protect themselves from theft and property damage. But is it reasonable for them to install facial recognition cameras to determine shoppers’ moods to try to sell them more stuff? After all, stores are already able to collect data from shoppers who use store discount cards. Why is it now necessary for them to know how elated we are when we find toilet paper on sale? D’oh! It’s so they can try to sell us more stuff.
Facebook Leak Reveals Global Bribery Scheme to Soften Data Privacy Laws
(Zero Hedge) A leak of internal Facebook documents reveals that the company has conducted a global lobbying campaign to against data privacy legislation, targeting politicians around the world with promises of investments and incentives, according to The Guardian.
Airbnb Patrons Are Finding More and More Cameras In Their Rooms — Here’s How To Check For Cameras
(Aaron Kesel) Airbnb is having more and more of its hosts hiding security cameras in rooms, and it doesn’t seem to be worried about the practice if innkeepers are disclosing the cameras and they aren’t in the bathrooms or bedrooms, according to a report by Fast Company.
Change Your Phone Settings So Apple, Google Can’t Track Your Movements
(Jen King) Technology companies have been pummeled by revelations about how poorly they protect their customers’ personal information, including an in-depth New York Times report detailing the ability of smartphone apps to track users’ locations. Some companies, most notably Apple, have begun promoting the fact that they sell products and services that safeguard consumer privacy.
Shocker: One Of The Biggest At-Home DNA Testing Companies Is Secretly Sharing Data With The FBI
(Zero Hedge) Just one week ago, we warned that the government — helped by Congress (which adopted legislation allowing police to collect and test DNA immediately following arrests), President Trump (who signed the Rapid DNA Act into law), the courts (which have ruled that police can routinely take DNA samples from people who are arrested but not yet convicted of a crime), and local police agencies (which are chomping at the bit to acquire this new crime-fighting gadget) — was embarking on a diabolical campaign to create a nation of suspects predicated on a massive national DNA database.
Facebook Bug Exposed Millions of Users’ Private Photos, Here’s How to See if You Were Affected
(Matt Agorist) Facebook just announced that four months ago, a bug in their software allowed third parties access to your private photos. Here’s how to see if you were exposed.
Twitter Can Collect Your Data Even If You Log Out And Delete The App
(Mac Slavo) Twitter is able to track and collect your online activity data even you have chosen to log out and delete their app. This is all thanks to an obscure and hidden setting that can only be disabled by accessing a particular page on Twitter’s website.
Apple Website Reveals EXACTLY What They Know About You — You Can Download Your Data
(Annie Palmer) Apple now lets users download any data the iPhone maker has collected on them.
New Mexico Suing Google & Twitter for Knowingly and Illegally Exploiting Children Online
(Matt Agorist) The state of New Mexico has filed a lawsuit against Google and others for willfully breaking the law to exploit the collection of children’s data online.
Robotic Dove-Shaped Drones Are Now Spying On People From Above
(Arjun Walia) Fascism has been approaching the developed world for a long time. It comes in the form of governments that can read every single email, GPS you at any time, track your every move, every step, know your internet habits better then you do. If they decide, they can put a bunch of information together and use it against you, especially if you become “an enemy of the state,” one who threatens the interests of the global elite.
Google Maps Is Tracking Your Every Move, And There’s Even A Website To Prove It
(Adam Goldberg) Even the Associated Press is willing to point out the fact that Google is tracking just about every user’s location at all times. According to a report they recently published (the Associated Press is a collection of sort of mainstream-certified reporters, of course), Google Maps users aren’t provided with as many options as they are led to believing.
23andMe Teaming Up With Big Pharma To Sell Your DNA Data
(Arjun Walia) I joined the CE team in 2010 shortly after finishing university and have been grateful for the fact that I have been able to do this ever since :) There are many things happening on the planet that don’t resonate with me, and I wanted to do what I could to play a role in creating change. It’s been great making changes in my own life and creating awareness and I look forward to more projects that move beyond awareness and into action and implementation. So stay tuned :) [email protected]
Health Apps Are Bad for Your Privacy: 80% or More Share Your Data, Research Reveals
(Michelle Simmons) A European study revealed that mobile health apps were sending health-related data to third-party companies, harming the privacy of its users. This study was conducted by a team of researchers from the University of Pireus in Greece and Rovira I Virgili University in Spain.
Is Your DNA Safe? You Might Be Unpleasantly Surprised By The Answer
(Collective Evolution) Have you used a service like Ancestry or 23andMe before? What about the last time you donated blood, genetic testing or a biopsy? We all want good health, to help others and put in our best for a good cause, but did you consider what happens with the results from those activities?