Chinese company ByteDance faces growing concerns from governments and regulators that user data from its popular short video-sharing app TikTok could be handed over to the Chinese government. The concern is based on China’s national security laws, which give its government the power to compel Chinese-based companies to hand over any user data. More than
Social Media
SEC Charges Social Media Influencers with Stock Manipulation and Warns Investors
The Justice Department and the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) have charged eight men of using their social media clout to manipulate investors in a stock pump-and-dump scheme [view related]. The defendants allegedly took to Twitter and Discord to promote themselves as seasoned stock traders and, according to the SEC’s press release, fed their…
Facebook Is Removing Some Sensitive Information from Public Profiles
Starting December 1, Facebook reportedly will remove several biographic details from user profiles, including “Religious views,” “Political views,” “Interested in” (indicating the user’s sexual orientation), and “Address.” Many state privacy laws, including California’s Privacy Rights Act, restrict how businesses can collect and use these types of sensitive personal information. Facebook has not confirmed why it…
Texas AG Sues Meta, Alleging Massive Collection of Face Geometries Without Consent
Texas enacted a biometric information privacy law way back in 2001, which was amended in 2009. That was a long time ago in the context of the development of privacy laws, and even longer when it comes to biometric information privacy laws. In this rapidly changing area of law, Texas was surely ahead of its…
Privacy Tip #319 – How Facial Recognition Technology Works and Why You Should Care
I have written about the privacy concerns of facial recognition technology many times before [view related posts].
Many individuals are unaware of how facial recognition technology works, who is collecting their facial geometry, and how their biometric information is being used and disclosed.
The Texas Attorney General sued Meta Platforms (fka Facebook) this week,…
Irish DPA Hits WhatsApp with $266M Fine for Alleged GDPR Violations
When GDPR became effective three years ago, companies took notice of the fines and penalties attached to violations of the stringent privacy law—4 percent of global annual sales. The fines have been racking up, including the most recent one by the Irish Data Protection Commission against WhatsApp—$266 million. WhatsApp is owned by Facebook.
The fine…
Privacy Tip #290 – 700 Million LinkedIn Users’ Data for Sale on Hacker Forum
Although a security researcher has confirmed that LinkedIn users’ data, including full names, gender, email addresses, telephone numbers, and industry information is for sale on RaidForums by a hacker self-dubbed “GOD User TomLiner,” LinkedIn has stated that it is not from a data breach of its networks. According to LinkedIn, “[O]ur initial analysis indicates that…
Privacy Tip #159 – Consider Risks When Using Facebook and Other Social Media Platforms
Facebook announced late last week that it had suffered the largest breach in its history with 50 million accounts were compromised, and another 40 million accounts affected. Yes, that equals 90 million accounts. If you use Facebook and were locked out of your account over the weekend, your account was most likely affected. The 50…
Privacy Tip #151 – Can Banks Give or Sell My Information to Facebook or Other Social Media Platforms?
Many readers questioned me about the Wall Street Journal article this week entitled, “Facebook to Banks: Give Us Your Data, We’ll Give you Our Users.”
The questions and comments ranged from “Can they really do this?” to “This is outrageous!”
Without getting into a legal analysis, there are laws that banks have to follow when…
Protect Yourself From Year-End Charitable Giving Scams
December is traditionally a busy month for charitable giving, as many donors are inspired by the holiday season to give generously to those in need, while others look to make year-end gifts that will qualify for a tax deduction in the current tax year.
Unfortunately, because of the increase in charitable giving, there is often an increase in charity scams during the holiday season. Donors should be wary of communications from unfamiliar organizations, including emails, texts, and phone calls, and should not provide personal or financial information without verifying the legitimacy of the request. Scammers often use popular charitable causes to solicit contributions, for example, by claiming that contributions will be used to help veterans, children, or cancer patients. The New York Attorney General recently announced the forced dissolution of one such organization, VietNow National Headquarters, which falsely claimed that contributions would be used to provide services and medical treatment to veterans.
Continue Reading Protect Yourself From Year-End Charitable Giving Scams