U.S. Privacy And World Privacy News
Senate Committee Unanimously Advances Bill That Could End Private Messaging
https://reclaimthenet.org/senate-pushes-bill-that-could-end-private-messaging
STOP CSAM: Protecting Kids Shouldn’t Mean Breaking the Tools That Keep Us Safe
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/06/oppose-stop-csam-protecting-kids-shouldnt-mean-breaking-tools-keep-us-safe
https://www.hawley.senate.gov/senate-committee-unanimously-advances-hawley-durbin-bill-stopping-child-sex-abuse-materials/
Fox News Helping Israeli PM Netanyahu Spread The Lie That Iran Tried To Assassinate Trump Twice
Mainstream Media Panics About “Crime Waves” — But Downplays Crime Committed by Corporations
https://truthout.org/articles/media-panics-about-crime-waves-but-downplays-crime-committed-by-corporations/
The Weaponization of Media Access Did Not Suddenly Start with Trump
https://mises.org/mises-wire/weaponization-media-access-did-not-suddenly-start-trump
New Jersey's vaccine bill enrolls everyone who receives a vaccine into a statewide digital database
Here’s what’s happening: A bill called S3240 just passed the Senate Health Committee. If it becomes law, every single person in New Jersey who gets any kind of vaccine will be automatically entered into a government tracking system. It’s called the New Jersey Immunization Information System (NJIIS), and yes—it’s exactly as creepy as it sounds. The state says it’s about “consolidating immunization records” and helping track disease outbreaks. But think about what that actually means: a centralized, electronic registry that knows every shot you’ve ever had, and possibly every shot you haven’t.
https://nj1015.com/this-nj-vaccine-bill-is-terrifying-and-lawmakers-just-approved-it/
https://nj1015.com/nj-vaccine-registry-opt-out/
Appeals court keeps Trump tariffs in place
Republicans Move A Step Closer To Repealing Protections For Abortion Clinics
Congress Can Act Now to Protect Reproductive Health Data
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/06/congress-can-act-now-protect-reproductive-health-data
Nearly 11M Americans Will Lose Healthcare to Pay for Trump’s Billionaire Tax Cuts
Congressional Republicans Push for Additional Cuts to Americans’ Healthcare
Trump Family Business Admits That Crypto Bills Would Boost Their Bottom Line
Trump Media’s SEC Filing On Crypto.com Partnership Has Over 800 Consumer Complaints
Trump reports more than $600M in income from crypto, golf, licensing fees
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-reports-tens-millions-income-crypto-ventures-2025-06-14/
'Open Season for Wealthy Tax Cheats' as Republicans Confirm Trump IRS Pick Billy Long
https://www.commondreams.org/news/senate-confirms-billy-long
Billy Long confirmed as commissioner of the IRS, an agency he once sought to abolish
https://apnews.com/article/billy-long-confirmed-irs-commissioner-67cd8daaa53a53c4ebf1262de1ede5e6
Musk's foreign visitors were tracked by US agencies
Musk’s DOGE Goons Surreptitiously Transmitted Reams of White House Data
Trump to keep Starlink at White House despite break with Musk
Trump Administration ends IRS direct filing
DOGE just got a green light to access your Social Security data
https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/06/business/doge-greenlight-access-your-social-security-data
Judge Grants Preliminary Injunction in OPM/DOGE Lawsuit
Amazon Web Services launches second secret cloud region for defense, intelligence customers
Bruteforcing the phone number of any Google user
https://brutecat.com/articles/leaking-google-phones
Google fixes bug that could reveal users’ private phone numbers
https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/09/google-fixes-bug-that-could-reveal-users-private-phone-numbers/
Google Can Be Sued For Collecting Users Health Data
https://www.hipaajournal.com/google-tracking-technology-healthcare-class-action/
PRIVACY NIGHTMARE: Samsung’s fridges now recognize family members by their voices
https://www.theverge.com/news/685154/samsung-smart-fridges-bixby-voice-recognition-bespoke-ai
Smart devices collect and store data about you – here’s how to be aware of what you’re revealing
Dozens of states sue to block the sale of 23andMe
https://www.npr.org/2025/06/10/nx-s1-5429041/23andme-states-lawsuit-genetic-data
23andMe says only 15% of customers asked to delete their genetic data since bankruptcy
23andMe privacy ombudsman recommends company obtains consent for sale of customer data
https://news.bloomberglaw.com/business-and-practice/23andme-privacy-ombudsman-urges-users-consent-before-data-sale
Anne Wojcicki Wins Bid to Buy 23andMe for $305M
https://www.wsj.com/tech/biotech/anne-wojcicki-wins-bidding-for-23andme-92dcfd5b
Court Urged To Revisit TrillerTV Privacy Lawsuit For Selling Customers Viewing History to Meta
https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca2/23-7597/23-7597-2025-05-01.html
I Joined Every Class Action Lawsuit I Could Find, and So Can You
https://www.wired.com/story/i-am-hunting-online-for-free-class-action-money-and-so-can-you/
The FTC Risks Chilling Speech With Its Advertising Boycott Investigation
Conservative activists have waited decades to defund PBS and NPR. They’re finally getting their chance
https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/12/media/pbs-npr-defund-rescissions-trump-conservative-media
Apple fixes new iPhone zero-day bug used in Paragon spyware hacks
https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/12/apple-fixes-new-iphone-zero-day-bug-used-in-paragon-spyware-hacks/
The Meta AI app is a privacy disaster
https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/12/the-meta-ai-app-is-a-privacy-disaster/
Trump Administration Is Launching an AI Chatbot in July
https://www.404media.co/github-is-leaking-trumps-plans-to-accelerate-ai-across-government/
AI can now stalk you with just a single vacation photo
Sam Altman calls for ‘AI privilege’ as OpenAI clarifies court order to retain temporary and deleted ChatGPT sessions
Sam Altman’s Lies About ChatGPT Are Growing Bolder
https://gizmodo.com/sam-altmans-lies-about-chatgpt-are-growing-bolder-2000614431
Digital insurer Lemonade sued for data breach that affected 200K people
https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/east/2025/06/12/827280.htm
Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services data breach affected 1K people
The American Hospital Association Warns Hospitals of Ransomware Attacks
https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/2025-06/aa23-352a-stopransomware-play-ransomware_2.pdf
State & Local Privacy News
Multiple States Enact Genetic Privacy Legislation to Start 2025
Supreme Court rejects case over ‘Two genders’ shirt ban, threatening student speech across New England
MA- Politicians question Hegseth about using military in civil society
https://www.masslive.com/politics/2025/06/troops-in-the-streets-questions-in-congress-mass-reckons-with-role-of-military-in-civil-society.html
MA- Bar advocates still refuse to take new cases, defense attorneys say
MA- Students Weigh in on Boston Police Department Budget
Critics of the Shannon grant argue that the funding arrangement discourages groups from criticizing police. “It essentially makes it so that the groups are beholden to law enforcement and can’t speak out publicly,” said Fatema Ahmad, executive director of the Muslim Justice League. By casting youth work as anti-gang violence work, the grants also feed into a public perception of Boston-area teens as gang members. The Community Academy teens said they’re often unfairly targeted by the Youth Violence Strike Force, a police unit that has a reputation for harassing teens. “We don’t want to live in neighborhoods where police are always checking us, always questioning us just because we’re Black,” said Bah, the ninth grader. “Even when you’re not in a gang, they say you are.”
https://baystatebanner.com/2025/06/11/students-weigh-in-on-bpd-budget/
MA- A Boston cop was decertified. Can he keep his $78,000-per-year pension?
https://www.masslive.com/police-fire/2025/06/a-police-officer-was-decertified-can-he-keep-his-78000-per-year-pension.html
MA- Reproductive rights bill inches closer to Senate floor
RI- ACLU Sues Brown University Police for Refusing to Provide Arrest Records to Journalists
LA- New Orleans Mayor Not Entitled to Restraining Order Against Woman Who Took Photos of Her Dining With a Cop
On the afternoon of Sunday, April 7, 2024, from the balcony of her residence at the Upper Pontalba Apartments, Ms. Breaud took photographs of Mayor Latoya Cantrell and NOPD Officer Jeffrey Vappie, a member of the mayor's security detail, while the two were seated at a table on the Chartres Street side balcony of the Tableau Restaurant, located in the French Quarter.
https://www.fox8live.com/2025/06/11/appeals-court-denies-mayor-cantrells-request-bring-back-restraining-order-orders-her-pay-attorneys-fees/
https://reason.com/volokh/2025/06/11/new-orleans-mayor-wasnt-entitled-to-restraining-order-against-woman-who-took-photos-of-her-in-a-public-place/
FL- Orlando police ask the city for permission to buy license plate readers
OH- Eugene police use 57 Flock Safety license plate readers, Springfield police use 25 Flock Safety license plate readers
OH- Dayton police use 27 Flock Safety gunshot detectors, 16 Flock Safety drones, 72 Flock Safety license plate readers
MI- BS WARNING: University of Michigan dumping undercover security guards for 'unethical' behavior
They dumped them after getting caught hiring them to spy on Anti-Israeli protests.
MI- University of Michigan has ended private surveillance contracts but the chill on free speech remains
"One student, Josiah Walker, said he counted 30 people following him at different times on and off-campus. (As a precaution, he started parking his car off-campus.) On one occasion, Walker believed a man at a campus protest was following him. The man seemed to have a speech impairment, so Walker felt bad about that assumption. However, he later saw the same man speaking in a completely normal manner. When Walker confronted him, the man pretended Walker was trying to rob him."
https://www.thefire.org/news/university-michigan-has-ended-private-surveillance-contracts-chill-free-speech-remains
Detroit's City-Shield Security Services is a woman-owned surveillance company.
https://cityshieldsecurity.com/
MI- House bill targets loopholes that let car insurance companies charge more in Black neighborhoods
IL- Under Bill, Flock Safety Highway License Plate Readers Could Be Used to ALLEGEDLY Investigate Human Trafficking
IL- Forest Park police use six license plate readers to spy on the public
https://www.forestparkreview.com/2025/06/10/license-plate/
MO- Town of Brentwood Wants To Seize Local Businesses Over Chipped Paint and Cracked Sidewalks
ND- Ethics Commission Has No Authority to Punish Officials Violating Ethics Laws, State Leaders Argue
https://www.propublica.org/article/north-dakota-ethics-commission-enforcement-authority
IN- Senate Passes First Eyewitness Identification Reform Bill
TX- Court Rules That Administrative Inspection Warrants Cannot Be Used for Immigration Raids of Businesses
https://www.arnoldporter.com/en/perspectives/blogs/enforcement-edge/2025/06/people-are-not-documents
TX- Round Rock City police want 40 Flock Safety license plate readers
TX- Dept. of Transportation breached, 300k crash records stolen
UT- The state doesn’t issue identities anymore — it ‘endorses’ them
https://statescoop.com/utah-doesnt-issue-identities-anymore-it-endorses-them/
CA- Secrecy Surrounds $1.1 Billion Capitol Annex
https://www.kcra.com/article/california-capitol-annex-cost-nfl-stadium/64544962
CA- Oceanside police to expand license plate readers to spy on the public
https://thecoastnews.com/oceanside-oks-3-2m-purchase-of-police-body-vehicle-cameras/
CA- Senate Approves Bill To limit CIPA Privacy Suits
OR- Bill would make Big Tech pay for local news
https://www.courthousenews.com/oregon-bill-would-make-big-tech-pay-for-local-news/
World Privacy News
UK, Other Nations Sanction 2 Israeli ministers for ‘inciting extremist violence’ against Palestinians
https://www.politico.eu/article/uk-lammy-sanction-israel-ministers-gaza-comments-ben-gvir-smotrich/
https://www.commondreams.org/news/smotrich-ben-gvir-sanctions
Sky News Smears Greta Thunberg As A Nazi To Justify IDF Attack
"Sky News host Jonathan Samuels strongly implied that the ship deserved to be attacked because it is full of antisemites and Hamas supporters."
Israeli Military Admits To Murdering 27 Palestinians Near Gaza Aid Site
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr7zplv35l1o
Facial recognition company Corsight AI, claims many threats to public safety involve people who weren't ID'ed as violent extremists
https://www.biometricupdate.com/202506/no-watchlist-needed-to-secure-public-spaces-corsight-execs
EU researchers confirm two journalists were hacked with Paragon spyware
How digital ID's challenge traditional espionage
"Generating believable false social media profiles, posts and digital devices is only a small part of the capability requirements. Spooks also need to trace all aspects of the digital profile they already have, including biometrics such as voice print, gait and face descriptors, and have them consistent across multiple devices and platforms. They will need to be able to track where that digital identity already exists and how exposed they are to adversaries. Operational officers will want assurance that profiles have not been contaminated through data breaches or tradecraft errors (such as a recent cyberattack that exposed face descriptors and biographical data). They will need to be able to delete or modify aspects of these profiles that are already in the world (their digital shadow). They may want to operate online with an only slightly modified profile (a digital twin), rather than operating online under a completely different persona. Spooks will need online profile management tools to track and trace where digital profiles have been used and exposed online."
https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/how-digital-identities-challenge-traditional-espionage/
World ID Native USDC and CCTP V2 to Expand Iris Scanning (World ID has Iris scans of 27M people)
https://news.bitcoin.com/biometric-crypto-id-project-world-adds-native-support-for-usdc-stablecoin/
Russia- Saint Petersburg to fine people for “encouraging abortions"
https://www.rt.com/russia/618636-russia-abortions-promotion-ban/
Russia- Putin follows China's WeChat and creates national digital ID Duma chat
https://interfax.com/newsroom/top-stories/111970/
Norway- Data Protection Authority’s findings on tracking pixels: 6 cases
Lithuania- Supermarket chain IKI uses Yoti facial recognition to ID customers
Denmark- Government considering social media ban for children over ‘data harvesting’ fears
France- Government considers requiring Musk’s X to verify users’ age
https://www.politico.eu/article/france-considers-requiring-musks-x-to-verify-users-age/
France- President Macron Wants Social Media Ban for Minors, Suggests Facial Recognition for Enforcement
Italy- Paragon canceled contracts with government over its refusal to investigate spyware attack on journalist
Italy- Law criminalizing peaceful protest while expanding police powers must be rejected
UK- Government Threatened To Withdraw From ICC Over Israel War Crimes Investigation
UK- Illegal police raid on my home won’t stop me covering Gaza: Declassified UK journalist
https://www.declassifieduk.org/illegal-police-raid-on-my-home-wont-stop-me-covering-gaza/
UK- Why is the government sheltering Israel’s genocide-inciting ambassador?
UK- Police spent thousands protecting Israeli arms firm
UK- Greater Manchester Police's chief: no apology for force's past persecution of gays
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2e3941d38zo
UK- Northamptonshire Police to use facial recognition to ID fans of the 2025 British Grand Prix
UK- Police CCTV camera facial recognition roll-out exists in ‘legal grey area’ due to inadequate governance
UK- Woman put on facial ID watchlist after dispute over 39p of paracetamol at Home Bargains
Facewatch is a facial recognition system used by retailers to identify and deter shoplifters by analyzing CCTV footage and comparing faces against a private database of known offenders. It triggers an alert to staff when a match is made by the software. Stores including Asda, Budgens, Sports Direct and Costcutter have used the technology, despite privacy campaigners arguing that the surveillance infringes the rights of shoppers. “The watchlist entry was created and acted upon in order to apprehend someone supposedly guilty of (on one occasion) stealing goods valued at less than £1. It is scarcely possible to imagine a less serious ‘offender’.”
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/jun/06/shopper-facewatch-watchlist-39p-paracetamol-london
UK- Bristol residents vandalize “liveable neighborhood” enforcement cameras
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bus-gate-cameras-east-bristol-10232694
UK- World launches iris collection around London, plans to expand to other cities
https://world.org/blog/announcements/world-launches-in-the-uk
UK- Government decides that worrying about immigration or caring about culture might make you a terrorist
UK- Miscarriages of justice more likely due to forensic science crisis
UK- Thousands of cases collapse due to lost or mishandled police evidence
UK- Lawyers could face ‘severe’ penalties for fake AI-generated citations
UK- WhatsApp joins Apple’s encryption fight with government
https://therecord.media/whatsapp-uk-encryption-fight-apple
UK- Public health bodies urged to launch period tracking apps to protect data
UK- SmartSearch and Daon to Add Facial Recognition to ID Platform
SCT- Police survey shows public split on facial recognition
SCT- BS WARNING: Scottish Biometrics Commissioner claims police facial recognition helps police arrest child sex offenders
https://www.biometricscommissioner.scot/media/ducgjgbw/lfr-article-june-2025.pdf
IRL- The Department of Social Protection fined €550k over facial recognition data processing
IRL- Northern Irish police say people in fear of lives after second night of rioting
https://www.reuters.com/world/northern-irish-rioters-attack-police-second-night-2025-06-10/
China- 4 billion records left in a database without a password
https://cybernews.com/security/chinese-data-leak-billiones-records-exposed/
Macau- Government to scan Hong Kong residents Irises
Philippines- Government spends PHP1.347 billion ($24.1m) to install facial recognition e-gates in airports
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1251792
Afghanistan- BS WARNING: Taliban official promises amnesty for returning citizens who fled the country in 2021
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2603746/world
Kenya- Amnesty condemns Albert Ojwang’s death in police custody demands investigation
https://www.amnestykenya.org/statement-on-the-death-of-albert-ojwang-in-police-custody-in-kenya/
Kenya- Protesters upset over death of man held by police
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy3eqpqqnzo
Namibia- Government to launch national digital ID system in July
https://www.observer24.com.na/first-e-id-cards-to-launch-in-july-next-year/
Mozambique- Government caught using Predator spyware
https://www.recordedfuture.com/research/predator-still-active-new-links-identified
AU- How did you get my number? Inside the shadowy world of data brokers
NZ- Retailers sign up to use facial recognition to ID customers
NZ- Privacy commissioner criticized over facial recognition use
Canada- The C-4 Bill Wants To Make Privacy Rules Optional for Politicians
Canada- MyCreds and MesCertif launch facial recognition digital ID for tradespeople
https://mycreds.ca/mycreds-launches-mobile-trades-credential-solution-to-support-interprovincial-labour-mobility/
Canada- Vancouver police propaganda: Metro Vancouver Transit Police introduces youth liaison cop
https://voiceonline.com/transit-police-youth-liaison-officer-to-increase-youth-engagement/
Peru- Congress approves amnesty for police and military accused of human rights violations