U.S. Privacy And World Privacy News
How a Microsoft Hire Helped Create DHS’s ‘Disinformation Governance Board’
The Spies Who Hate Us (DHS's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency)
https://brownstone.org/articles/the-spies-who-hate-us/
BS WARNING- Apple to pay $95M for secretly using Siri to spy on people's conversations for over a decade
"Each consumer could receive up to $20 per Siri-equipped device covered by the settlement, although the payment could be reduced or increased, depending on the volume of claims."
https://www.reuters.com/legal/apple-pay-95-million-settle-siri-privacy-lawsuit-2025-01-02/
https://gizmodo.com/apple-agrees-to-95-million-settlement-in-siri-eavesdropping-lawsuit-2000544806
Maybe It's Time to Delete Some Old Chat Histories
"If you're worried about possible expansions of government surveillance and access to your information, or simply want to do some digital purging so you're not saddled with old data, there are a bunch of concrete steps you can take to protect your digital privacy."
https://www.wired.com/story/old-chat-history-delete/
Judge finds Israel's NSO Group liable for hacking in WhatsApp lawsuit
https://www.reuters.com/technology/cybersecurity/us-judge-finds-israels-nso-group-liable-hacking-whatsapp-lawsuit-2024-12-21/
Gen Z Cashiers Can't Recognize Real Cash, Think They're 'Counterfeit'
https://www.newsweek.com/gen-z-cashiers-cant-recognize-bills-counterfeit-2004052
Bilderberg Group changes itself for the modern world
"Ex-Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg named co-chair Bilderberg."
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/dec/25/jens-stoltenberg-bilderberg-group-trump-presidency
Social Media Companies Face Global Tug-of-War Over Free Speech
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/30/technology/trump-administration-speech-policy.html
Obama’s ‘Censorship’ Office Goes Bankrupt
Trump’s Media Censorship Arsenal Is Growing
College faculty are more likely to self-censor now than at the height of McCarthyism
https://www.thefire.org/news/college-faculty-are-more-likely-self-censor-now-height-mccarthyism
FIRE to Congress: More work needed to protect free speech on college campuses
https://www.thefire.org/news/fire-congress-more-work-needed-protect-free-speech-college-campuses
Elon Musk’s Critics Stripped of Verification Badge After Publicly Challenging Billionaire
HORRIFYING- The Fifth Circuit’s Campaign to Undermine Section 230 Is Making Progress–AB v. Salesforce
Pornhub Is Now Blocked In Almost All of the U.S. South
https://www.404media.co/pornhub-is-now-blocked-in-almost-all-of-the-u-s-south/
The Supreme Court case that “could eliminate longstanding free speech protections for sexual content"
https://www.vox.com/scotus/391248/porn-supreme-court-free-speech-coalition-paxton-first-amendment
A New Year’s Resolution: Let’s Get the U.S. Out of the Censorship Business
https://jonathanturley.org/2024/12/31/a-new-years-resolution-lets-get-the-united-states-out-of-the-censorship-business/
One day after National Press Photographers Association and FIRE lawsuit, Congress passes changes to filming permits in national parks
ChatGPT Search can be tricked into misleading users
https://techcrunch.com/2024/12/26/chatgpt-search-can-be-tricked-into-misleading-users-new-research-reveals/
IRS Failed To Properly Dispose of Sensitive Tax Documents
BS WARNING- Biden administration finalizes rule to block sale of Americans’ personal data to adversaries
The Biden administration hasn't stopped private companies from selling Americans' personal data to data brokers
https://therecord.media/biden-admin-finalizes-rule-to-block-sale-of-bulk-data-to-adversaries
It’s not just Tesla. Vehicles amass huge troves of possibly sensitive data
Food Tracking App To Delete Users’ Previously Recorded Meals After Being Sued By Food Data Company (Trustwell)
Net neutrality eviscerated by appeals court ruling
25 Tech Laws Slated To Take Effect in 2025
https://reason.com/2024/12/30/25-tech-laws-slated-to-take-effect-in-2025/
False-label lawsuit against Poland Spring water’s parent company allowed to continue
In the original lawsuit, plaintiffs alleged that “not one drop” of Poland Spring’s bottled water came from a natural spring, and that the actual Poland Spring in Maine “ran dry” long before Nestle bought the brand in 1992. The water, plaintiffs alleged, was nothing more than “ordinary groundwater” from wells. Further, they said the company was deceiving them into overpaying with labels that claimed its bottles contained “100% Natural Spring Water.”
Amazon Workers Launch Largest Strike Yet: 'It Doesn't Feel Like a Job That Should Be Legal'
https://www.labornotes.org/2024/12/amazon-workers-launch-largest-strike-yet-it-doesnt-feel-job-should-be-legal
Amazon FINALLY agrees to worker safety measures to settle US probe
https://www.reuters.com/technology/amazon-agrees-worker-safety-measures-settle-us-probe-2024-12-19/
Google Cannot Represent Apple's Interests In Antitrust Trial
Epic Games Urges Court To Uphold Antitrust Victory Over Google
https://venturebeat.com/games/epic-files-its-argument-for-punishing-google-for-antitrust-violations/
New details reveal how hackers hijacked 35 Google Chrome extensions
Walmart illegally opened high-fee bank accounts for 1M workers
SEC Writes Off $10 Billion in Fines It Can’t Collect
Bill requiring federal agencies to share custom source code with each other becomes law
https://fedscoop.com/agencies-must-share-custom-source-code-under-new-share-it-act/
Federal agencies report over 1,700 AI use cases
https://fedscoop.com/federal-government-discloses-more-than-1700-ai-use-cases/
A 9th telecoms firm has been hit by a massive Chinese espionage campaign
https://apnews.com/article/united-states-china-hacking-espionage-c5351ef7c2207785b76c8c62cde6c513
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Sues Big Banks Over ‘Widespread’ Fraud on Zelle Payment App
32.6M companies must submit their private ownership information to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
Former NSA cyberspy's not-so-secret hobby: Hacking Christmas lights
https://www.theregister.com/2024/12/25/joyce_christmas_lights/
Insurers Continue to Rely on Doctors Whose Judgments Have Been Criticized by Courts
https://www.propublica.org/article/mental-health-insurance-denials-unitedhealthcare-cigna-doctors
HHS Barred From Enforcing Abortion Privacy Rule Against Doctor
https://www.hipaajournal.com/texas-doctor-sue-hhs-reproductive-health-care-privacy-rule/
Doctors are using AI. Will it make health care better or break it?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/12/25/ai-health-care-medical-doctors/
Health Giant Ascension Informs 5.6M Patients Their Personal Data Was Compromised 6 Months Ago
State & Local Privacy News
If You Live in One of These States, You’ll Have New Privacy Protections in 2025
MA- Hundreds of police officers accused of finishing some online training too quickly
MA- Police training academies ‘inadequate,’ audit report finds
https://www.mass.gov/audit/audit-of-the-municipal-police-training-committee
MA- Boston reports lowest homicide rate since 1957
https://www.masslive.com/boston/2024/12/boston-reports-lowest-homicide-rate-since-2007.html
MA- Camera-based ticketing for passing school buses, blocking bus stops could be law
SC- Bill Would Limit Police Use of License Plate Readers
WV- The West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles and IDEMIA Launches Next-Generation Digital ID
WTF? Appeals Court rules residents have no right to bodies of water ‘free of pollution’
IL- Digital driver’s licenses to take effect in 2025
IN- Indiana University president reported to her own bias team
https://www.thecollegefix.com/indiana-university-president-reported-to-her-own-bias-team/
IA- State Supreme Court Overturns Lower Court Ruling Protecting Renters from Unconstitutional Searches
https://ij.org/press-release/iowa-supreme-court-overturns-lower-court-ruling-protecting-renters-from-unconstitutional-searches/
TX- AG hits data brokers for not registering, underscoring a larger privacy problem
https://therecord.media/texas-hits-data-brokers-for-not-registering
AR- Judge rules law allowing criminal charges against librarians is unconstitutional
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/24/us/arkansas-book-ban-law.html
CA- Judge blocks state law preventing reporting of sealed arrest records
CA- Appeals Court Reverses Dismissal of Lawsuit Challenging Humboldt County’s Unconstitutional Fine System
CA- Government Rolls Out New Privacy Resource
https://privacy.ca.gov/
CA- Liberty Mutual to drop all condo policies
https://www.sfchronicle.com/california/article/insurance-liberty-mutual-condos-19987101.php
World Privacy News
World (World Coin) has used Iris recognition to ID 20M people
"2024 was a landmark year for World Network, which has grown to over 20 million participants including 9,716,735 verified humans. As AI continues to advance, the ability to prove humanness online is only becoming more important. Here are the four key moments that have paved the way for World ID and the global World community to continue to scale in 2025 and beyond."
https://world.org/blog/worldcoin/world-review-4-milestones-defined-2024
World Bank wants 180M Nigerians to use digital IDs
iProov Uncovers Major Dark Web Operation Selling Verified IDs in Latin America
The digital surveillance and control agenda (digital ids) quietly marches forwards
https://expose-news.com/2024/12/29/digital-surveillance-agenda-marches-on/
Taliban leader bans windows overlooking places 'usually used by women'
https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20241229-taliban-leader-bans-windows-overlooking-women-s-areas
Palestinians released from Israeli jails bear mental, physical scars Released from Israeli jails, but mentally and physically scarred
"All were held for months, accused of affiliating with an illegal organization, and released without being formally charged or convicted of any crime."
'We Are Being Attacked in Plain Sight': Israeli Forces Besiege Three Gaza Hospitals
https://www.commondreams.org/news/israel-gaza-hospitals
US Doctor Warns of 'End of Humanity' in Northern Gaza as Israel Assails Hospital
https://www.commondreams.org/news/kamal-adwan-hospital-israel
Israeli Raid Puts Last Hospital in Besieged Northern Gaza Out of Service
https://www.commondreams.org/news/gaza-hospital-director
A Doctor Vowed To Stand Against Israel’s War On Hospitals. Its Military Just Arrested Him
Israeli Forces Bomb Press Van in Gaza, Killing 5 Palestinian Journalists
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-kills-five-journalists-press-vehicle-gaza
https://www.commondreams.org/news/israelis-calling-for-genocide
World Health Organization chief caught in Israeli bombing of Yemen
Far-Right Israeli Lawmakers Demand 'Complete Cleansing' of Northern Gaza
https://www.commondreams.org/news/israel-strikes-yemen
EU Officials Will Claim Ignorance of Israel’s War Crimes. This Leaked Document Shows What They Knew
https://theintercept.com/2024/12/23/eu-report-israel-war-crimes-complicity/
Nazi Ties to Credit Suisse Ran Deeper Than Was Known
Taiwan wants to build the West’s army of drones
https://www.politico.eu/article/taiwan-eyes-war-drones-to-counter-china/
Volkswagen Exposed Personal Data Of 800K Electric Vehicle Owners
Russia- Sberbank says a quarter of all transactions will be made without cards by year-end
https://tass.com/economy/1856861
Netherlands- EPIC urges Data Protection Authority to Protect Students and Employees from the Harms of Emotion Recognition
Germany- Federal Interior Minister uses the Christmas Market attack to justify using facial recognition CCTV cameras in public
UK- ‘Authoritarian and heavy-handed’: call for investigation into vetting of experts by civil servants
"Speakers banned after criticizing government in social media posts."
UK- ‘Insulting’: Government’s new digital ID ad sparks backlash
https://www.skynews.com.au/opinion/insulting-uk-governments-new-digital-id-ad-sparks-backlash/video/cffb4b2f123ea040533779f0d26b3636
The Propaganda Push for Digital ID Kicks Into Gear
UK- Government Forcing Social Media Giants to Use Facial Recognition to Ban Under-Age Users
UK- Government forcing clubs, pubs and retail stores to use digital IDs to prove customers age
UK- ICO criticizes Google for ‘irresponsible’ ad tracking change
UK- ICO: 14M people don’t know how to erase their data from an old device
UK- Corrections officer arrested after she was ‘filmed having sex with inmate’
https://metro.co.uk/2024/12/27/female-prison-officer-caught-being-filmed-sex-inmate-22256010
SCT- Government publishes guidance for school facial recognition
https://www.gov.scot/publications/guidance-biometric-technology-systems-schools/pages/3/
Vietnam- Police to enforce strict social media regulations in 'draconian' new decree
"Decree 147, as it is known, builds on a 2018 cybersecurity law that was sharply criticized by the United States, European Union and internet freedom advocates who said it mimics China's repressive censorship of the internet."
China- Facial recognition company Dahau tries to save reputation by cancelling 5 government surveillance contracts in the Xinjiang region
https://www.reuters.com/technology/chinas-dahua-technology-exit-projects-xinjiang-2024-12-23/
Taiwan- HYBE to use Facial Recognition to ID fans at K-pop Concerts
Thailand- The Bank of Thailand to use facial recognition to ID customers
South Korea- Government to trial national digital ID program
https://world.kbs.co.kr/service/news_view.htm
India- Police Expand Public Facial Recognition CCTV System, Arrest 70 Suspects in Delhi
India- The All India Institute of Medical Sciences uses AI facial recognition CCTV cameras to ID students
https://hassteveclarkresignedyet.ca/135811/2024/12/30/Md59in.html
India- 9M airline passengers use government's facial recognition Digi Yatra
India- Chennai Airport to use facial recognition to ID passengers
India- Government creates mandatory ID verification system for visitors attending the upcoming Mahakumbh Mela 2025
India- Home Minister wants to use facial recognition to ID dead people
India- Government to use national digital ID program to ID taxpayers
https://blog.saginfotech.com/andhra-pradesh-gst-dept-biometric-face-authentication-app
India- Delhi’s Community Library Project Counters Caste Discrimination and Authoritarianism
Pakistan- The National Database and Registration Authority to force children over 10 to submit a photo and their fingerprints
https://minutemirror.com.pk/new-b-form-for-children-over-10-to-include-fingerprints-photo-332483/
Saudi Arabia- Government has issued national digital IDs to 28M people
Israel- 'We Created A Pretend World': Mossad Agents Boast About Mass Pager Attack In Lebanon
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/israeli-mossad-pager-walkie-talkie-hezbollah-plot-60-minutes/
Israel- Government keeps emergency facial recognition measures in place, more than a year into Gaza war
https://www.calcalist.co.il/calcalistech/article/hyiw4fvnyl
Ethiopia- Addis Ababa require new bank account users to use national digital IDs
Kenya- 16M people forced to use government's national digital ID program