Privacy

Covered California Board Members Being Pressured to Release Emails

July 2, 2014  ·  Mark Reback

<p><span style="font-size: 14px;">There's pressure on California's health insurance exchange to go public with board members' communications. But the board is using a technicality to deny the request.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 14px;">The group Consumer Watchdog is still trying force Covered California to release emails exchanged between the health exchange's board members and insurance companies as part of a public records request.  </span></p>

Actually, Facebook Changed Its Terms To Cover That Experiment After It Was Over

July 1, 2014  ·  Mark Reback

<p>As you may know, it has come to light that Facebook <a href="http://www.webpronews.com/did-facebook-cross-the-line-this-time-2014-06">ran an experiment</a> with nearly 700,000 users in 2012, showing how it could manipulate emotions by showing users more positive or negative content in their News Feeds.</p>

How Do We Know Driverless Cars Are Safe? Google Says ‘Trust Us’

July 1, 2014  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Driverless cars are on the road now - Google's fleet has logged about 700,000 miles of autonomous driving - and the California DMV <a href="http://www.dmv.ca.gov/vr/autonomous/auto.htm">will be issuing regulations</a> in a matter of weeks allowing self-driving cars to be sold to the public, possibly setting the regulatory pattern for the rest of the country (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4tXJ3AhY4Y&feature=youtu.be&t=1h40m09s">video</a>).

Manipulative User Research Earns Facebook a Shiner

June 30, 2014  ·  Mark Reback

<p><strong>Facebook just got another black eye, but as usual, it doesn't care. In fact, like the scrappy neighborhood kid who's always looking for trouble, Facebook may be kind of proud of it. After all, this time, it got an esteemed academic journal to join in its hijinks. So a group of researchers secretly tampered with the emotional state of a random assortment of Facebook members -- ethics, schmethics.</strong></p>

Google Wi-Fi Snooping Could Lead To Class-Action Lawsuits

June 30, 2014  ·  Mark Reback

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Google Starts Removing Some Search Results in EU

June 27, 2014  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Google has started removing some search results in the EU following an EU court telling it last month to respond to requests by people seeking the ''right to be forgotten,'' Bloomberg reports.</p> <p>The company started offering an online tool to allow people to ask for search results to be redacted after the EU Court of Justice ruled on 13 May that the fundamental rights of citizens could be compromised by information on the web and where there was no public interest in its publication.</p>

Google Must Allow U.S. Users To Be Forgotten

June 26, 2014  ·  John M. Simpson

<p><img class=" alignright size-full wp-image-2787" alt="" src="https://consumerwatchdog.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/images_online-privacy-920724.jpg" style="width: 200px; height: 133px; float: right;" width="449" height="299" />Google today <a href="http://online.wsj.com/articles/google-starts-removing-search-results-under-europes-right-to-be-forgotten-1403774023">began removing some search results</a> in Europe under the recently court-upheld “right to be forgotten.”  The Internet giant should offer U.S. users the same basic right to privacy.<br /> <br />

Google Starts Forgetting

June 26, 2014  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Google on Thursday begin rolling out new filters on searches in Europe, after a top court last month ordered the company to delete some links.</p> <p>Implementation of the so-called “right to be forgotten,” which allows people to request that some embarrassing or outdated links are taken down, would be a gradual process, Google said. As the process continues, it is likely to increase tension over the fine line between personal privacy and transparency.</p>

Google Starts “Forgetting” Things In Europe

June 26, 2014  ·  Mark Reback

<p class="ng-scope">Google on Thursday said that it is "forgetting" things in Europe to comply with a legal ruling granting people the power to have certain information about them removed from searches.</p> <p class="ng-scope">"This week, we're starting to take action on the removal requests that we've received," Google said in an email response to an AFP inquiry.</p> <p class="ng-scope">"Each request has to be assessed individually and we're working as quickly as possible to get through the queue."</p>

Opinion: Google Starts Forgetting In Europe. Should It Do So In The U.S. Too?

June 26, 2014  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Google started its forget-me-now program in Europe on Thursday, complying with an order handed down by the continent's highest court last month. Under that order, individuals can demand that Google remove links to information that they consider "inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant, or excessive."</p>

Editorial: Cleanup At Toxic Field Lab Looks Like A Mirage

June 23, 2014  ·  Mark Reback

<p>July will mark the 55th anniversary of the partial nuclear meltdown at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory in the hills near Simi Valley.</p> <p>That event occurred from July 12 to July 26, 1959, which some have described as the longest nuclear accident in history.</p>

Facebook Changes Tracking Practices — Again

June 20, 2014  ·  Mark Reback

<p class="bodytextragright"><span id="default"><span id="MNGiSection">Facebook users beware: The company has -- yet again -- unilaterally changed its mind about its data collection practices. As users should know, that's not a good thing for their privacy.</span></span></p>