PRIVACY
15
What kind of personal data does Amazon Alexa collect? Read this.
Amazon wants your data to build a shopping and advertisement profile, not sell it to the highest bidder.
privacy
Giving away the farm
111
Facebook never earned your trust and now we're all paying the price
No laws were broken when Cambridge Analytica collected the data of 50 million Facebook users and used it to influence the election for president of the United States. There was no leak and no breach; just gross negligence — and that's terrifying.
Privacy Tweaks
Microsoft testing new Windows 10 privacy settings setup experience
Microsoft is testing out a new setup experience for privacy settings in the latest Windows 10 Insider build on the Fast ring.
Protect your privacy
Protect your Privacy with IPVanish — save 25 percent on a year subscription
In celebration of Data Privacy Day, IPVanish is offering 25% off of 1 year of data protection — now through January 29, 2018
Tinfoil hat time
Should you worry about privacy if you use an Android phone?
You may well be headed to Android for your next smartphone, but does privacy worry you when using a Google product? We want your thoughts on the subject.
cybersecurity
9
Equifax says personal data of 143 million customers exposed in cyber attack
Equifax says a cyber attack leveraged against the company has exposed the personal data of approximately 143 million U.S. consumers.
Tale of the eternal tweet
22
How to tell if you're sharing too much online
Whether you're a social media superstar or not, you still might be sharing too much online.
Heavy shreddin'
8
The right way to 'shred' files and ensure data is gone for good
When it comes to data, recycling leaves traces of information on storage drives that can be retrieved using special software. However, this scenario can be avoided by "shredding" data rather than simply emptying your recycle bin. Here's how.
privacy first
38
US Court upholds Microsoft's right to protect consumer email
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld Microsoft's right to protect a customer's email stored outside US LEA jurisdiction.
Privacy is key
7
Microsoft's new privacy dashboard helps you keep track of personal data
Microsoft has launched a new privacy dashboard on the web to help you more easily sort through the bits of data collected by Microsoft services and associated with your account.
Quick and easy tweaks
How to preserve your privacy in Windows 10
As Windows 10 continues to be refined from user feedback and telemetry, how much of that data is necessary to be shared? Learn what privacy settings can be customized in Windows 10 and where to find them.
Tinfoil hat time
183
Torrent trackers banning Windows 10 is naïve and premature
Evidently some low-level torrent trackers are banning Windows 10 due to paranoia over the new OS. When it comes to the world of bittorrent, you cannot sidestep the big red flag that the majority of its usage is for sharing copyrighted material. Sure, torrents have legitimate uses, but let's not kid ourselves that most users are trading music, movies, games, and comics. Putting that...
Better defense
64
Microsoft, Google, more urge support for strong encryption
Microsoft, Apple, and Google are among the technology companies and security experts calling for President Obama to reject proposals that would compromise security and encryption on smartphones.
Breaking in
72
BitLocker's security keys targeted by CIA program
More information has come to light on government surveillance, with new information revealing a campaign by the CIA to break through security on devices from Apple and Microsoft. Researchers working with the agency would apparently present their latest efforts at a yearly meeting called the "Jamboree". In 2010, a group of attendees announced that they were able to extract BitLocker...
Fight for Privacy
220
David Cameron wants to ban encrypted messaging apps
In the wake of the recent terrorist attacks in France, UK Prime Minister David Cameron has come out in support of banning encrypted messaging apps. According to a new report, Cameron alluded that he would be for banning encrypted communication apps, which could include WhatsApp, Snapchat, and Apple's iMessage. From The Independent: The Prime Minister said today that he would stop...
Teaming up
61
Major tech companies support Microsoft email privacy stance
Microsoft is getting a ton of support for its stance on not disclosing emails stored on one of its servers in Ireland to the US government. A number of major tech companies, including some of Microsoft's direct rivals such as Apple and Amazon, have submitted "friend of the court" briefs today, in support of the company's decision to keep the content of those emails private. US...
Rally that Lobby
85
Tech giants lobby Senate to curb NSA spying
A number of big-name tech companies are teaming up to lobby the Senate to pass legislation that would limit the reach of the NSA's spying activities, Bloomberg reported today. The coalition of tech giants includes the likes of Apple, Google, and Microsoft, among others. The goal of the lobbying is to encourage the Senate to act on issues of NSA spying in advance of the Republican...
Privacy Redux
63
Congress discusses privacy in wake of nude leaks
A congressional advisory committee will be taking the initial step Thursday to discuss the legal ramifications of protecting Internet privacy. Prompted by the recent hacks resulting in the leak of nude photos of celebrities like the high profile case involving actress Jennifer Lawrence, the Congressional Internet Caucus Advisory Committee will be discussing the topic of privacy and the...
Browse better
166
Here is how to block ads in IE 11 for Windows 8.1
No one likes ads, even if they are what powers our web economy. The debate over ad blockers is always a tough one, even more so since it even affects our site too. Without the revenue, we do not get money, which means we cannot pay our writers, which means we do not have employees. Still, there are selective uses of ad blocking that is useful, and we will show you how to do that in IE11...
UK government set to rush through emergency surveillance legislation
The UK government is looking to reinforce powers of security services to require internet and phone providers to maintain records of customer email and calls. Emergency laws are to be introduced into the Commons next Monday, following private talks and gaining support of both Labour and the Liberal Democrats on the basis that there will be new board to oversee the functioning of new...