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The ACLU claims that the four major mobile carriers — AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint — are not doing enough to protect users’ private and personal data related to security updates on their Android devices. The ACLU says the mobile providers are all using a “deceptive and unfair business practice” — but what exactly are they doing?
Click to find out what security holes could be compromising your Android mobile phone.
Are you a social worker, attorney, or someone who likes helping others work to help resolve the issues identity theft causes?
If so, check out a new video from the Federal Trade Commission. The video is designed to help facilitators who assist consumers in repairing their identity. Entitled Helping Victims of Identity Theft, it’s the latest addition to the FTC’s library of resources that explain not only how to recognize identity theft, but also how to report it and repair the damage it can cause.
The FTC says it gets more complaints about identity theft each year than any other consumer issue, and estimates that nine million consumers become identity theft victims each year.
Other studies say that every three seconds, someone becomes a victim of identity theft. Click to check out this infographic made by insurance provider Protect Your Bubble. Read More
The Federal Trade Commission has some “new” information about how to protect your personal information online.
We say “new” in quotes because, well, the security tips aren’t so new to anyone who is aware of encryption and virtual private networks like Private WiFi.
Click to find out more about the four newly released videos from the FTC. Read More
Mobile device manufacturer HTC America has agreed to settle charges that it failed to patch a security vulnerability on its smartphones and tablet computers.
These failures introduced security flaws that placed sensitive information about millions of consumers at risk. The flaw was first discovered by a developer in 2011.
Click to find out more about the settlement with the FTC. Read More
What are the boundaries for collecting personal data and information for marketing purposes?
Today in Las Vegas, at the Consumer Electronics Show, two leaders from the Future of Privacy Forum will be on a panel discussion that explores the boundaries for collecting such personal information.
As consumers, we’ve almost come to expect an extreme amount of online tracking. But the Future of Privacy speakers will point out some interesting inconsistencies with those attitudes. For example, the grocer who bombards shoppers with questions about other lifestyle choices (e.g., where they vacationed, what movies they recently viewed, what books they read, where their children attend college) does breach norms of appropriateness.
Parents, are you taking advantage of your COPPA rights?
After all, your child’s sensitive personal information is extremely valuable. But you have to know your rights before you can start to protect your child’s online identity and security. But nowadays, where to begin?
Lately it seems that children are born and have their entire lives documented online — first it’s by parents uploading newborn photos (along with child’s name and birth date!) to Instagram and Facebook (all of the photos shared with dodgy security settings at best).
Next it’s uploading innocent home videos to YouTube that expose not just a glimpse into the family home, but also potentially reveal personal details like home address, where and when you take vacations, when you celebrate birthdays, and with whom, along with the names, faces, and approximate ages of every family member (why not have the camera zoom in on recent bank statements to make a cybercrook’s job that much easier?).
Read more to learn ways to protect your family — and which popular websites are taking advantage of your child’s personal information.
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A new school year means filling out paperwork like registration forms, health forms, and emergency contact forms, to name a few. But many school forms require personal and sensitive information that, in the wrong hands, could be used to commit fraud in your child’s name.
After all, and as we’ve long pointed out, a criminal can use a child’s Social Security number to get government benefits, open bank and credit card accounts, or rent a place to live.
Most parents and guardians don’t expect their child to have a credit file, and rarely order or monitor a child’s credit report.
Identity thieves steal kids’ Social Security numbers because their credit is generally untarnished. It’s not until years later — when they apply for a store credit card, a college loan, or a job — that they find out their credit has been destroyed.
Read more to find out about FERPA and why it’s absolutely ok to safeguard your child’s Social Security number on school forms. Read More
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Did anyone else catch the very busy Twitter chat about the FTC’s fine against Google?
It can be found by using the #FTCpriv hashtag, and the chat centered on the Federal Trade Commission’s $22.5 million fine to settle charges that Google circumvented privacy settings in Apple’s Safari browser.
While some privacy advocates are excited by the ruling, others say that it amounts to a little more than a slap on the wrist. Read More
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Ever had the frustrating experience of discovering your so-called “private” photo album on Facebook has been made public for all the world to see? Well, here’s a bit of good news.
On Friday afternoon, the Federal Trade Commission finally reached its long-awaited privacy settlement with Facebook, resolving charges that Facebook deceived consumers by telling them they could keep their information on Facebook private, and then repeatedly allowing it to be shared and made public.
This concludes a long saga between the FTC and Facebook, and although Facebook admitted no wrong-doing, the FTC pressed on with its case for months. What were some of the privacy offenses? Read More
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The Federal Trade Commission has filed a lawsuit against Wyndham Worldwide Corporation and three of its subsidiaries for alleged data-security failures and weak security systems.
Even after the hotel chain’s first-known data breach in 2008, Wyndham failed to fix its massive security vulnerabilities, alleges the FTC.
As a result, Wyndham’s security was breached two more times in less than two years. Read More
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