Law And Technology

2012-01-29T19:09:00.009+08:00

THE PROPOSED PHILIPPINES DATA PRIVACY ACT

Professor Abu Bakar Munir

In June 2011, the Philippines House of Representatives passed the Data Privacy Bill. Subsequently, the proposed law was considered by the Senate in its second regular session and some changes were adopted. Understandably, the proposed law seeks to protect personal information. Like the data protection laws around the world, the suggested Act, in both versions, specify the privacy or data protection principles, rights of the data subjects, and penalties for the breach of the law.

Under the General Data Privacy Principles, the processing of personal information must be based on the principles of transparency, legitimate purpose and proportionality. Specifically, personal information must be collected for specified and legitimate purpose. The personal information must be relevant, accurate, adequate and not excessive for the purposes that it is collected. Personal information can be retained as long as necessary for the fulfilment of the purposes.

The House of Representatives’ draft law requires that personal information must be processed fairly and lawfully. The Senate dropped out the word “fairly”. So, the Senate’s version only requires the data controller to ensure that the processing is lawful. The Senate added the Principle of Accountability, which is non-existence under the House of Representatives’ version. Under this Principle, every data controller is accountable to comply with the proposed Act and also be accountable for the action or inaction of the data processor. Each data controller is required to designate an individual that will be responsible to ensure compliance.

Both versions of the proposed law provide for several rights to the individual. They are the right to be informed whether an individual’s data is being processed, to have access to personal data and to correct. Remarkably, the proposed law gives a right to the data subject to suspend, block, remove or destruct personal information from the data controller’s filing system if the information is incomplete, outdated, false, unlawfully obtained, used for unauthorized purposes or direct marketing. Another interesting point is that the proposed law gives a right to the data subject to be indemnified for any damages sustained due to such inaccurate, incomplete, outdated, false, unlawfully obtained or unauthorized use of personal information.

The proposed Act distinguishes personal information and sensitive personal information. The latter, is defined, in a very broad manner by the House of Representatives to include an individual’s race, ethnic origin, marital status, age, genetic or sexual life and education. The Senate, however, does not regard factors such as age, marital status and education as sensitive information.

The major difference relates to the enforcement body. The House of Representatives desires to use the existing organisation, the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT), to enforce the Act. In contrast, the Senate prefers a new entity called the National Privacy Commission to be established to do the job.

2012-01-27T12:35:00.018+08:00

THE PROPOSED SINGAPORE DATA PROTECTION ACT

Professor Abu Bakar Munir

The Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts of Singapore on 13 September 2011 issued a consultation paper on the proposed data protection regime for the Republic. Like other data protection laws around the world, the proposed law will have some rules concerning data processing. In many jurisdictions, the rules are called the data protection principles, which must be observed when organizations process personal data. The rules relate to transparency, collection, use, disclosure, protection, retention, accuracy, access and correction.

There will be two types of exemptions – total and partial. A total exemption means that the Data Protection law (DP law) does not apply at all. Three circumstances are mentioned in the consultation paper, to be exempted under this category. First, when personal data has been made available by a public agency to a specific organization or to the public generally. Secondly, processing of personal data in the course of a news activity and thirdly, processing of personal data in relation to an individual’s business contact information if it is solely for the purposes of enabling the individual to be contacted in relation to the individual’s employment, business or profession. Besides, the major exemption is on the public sector. The proposed DP law will govern only private sector organizations.

Unlike the data protection laws in other jurisdictions, the proposed DP law provides only two rights to an individual - the rights to have access and to correct the personal data. A Data Protection Commission (DPC) will be established to enforce the Act. The DPC will have powers to issue orders and to impose penalty up to $1 million for non-compliance or breach of the Act.

Interestingly, the approach to be adopted is “complaint-based”, which means that the DPC will investigate any case of non-compliance based on a complaint. Arguably, a complaint-driven enforcement may not be an effective way to enforce the DP law. The potential complainants may not be able to recognize breaches and are unwilling to complaint. These could be the obstacles to enforce the DP law effectively.

More interestingly, the proposed DP law covers only consumers’ data. The data protection law, however, is about privacy and individuals. An individual may or may not be a consumer. Restricting the application of the DP law only to consumers’ data may not be wise and judicious.

See my submission on the consultation paper at http://www.mica.gov.sg/DPconsultation/responses/Individuals%20%2810%29/Munir,%20Abu%20Bakar.pdf

2012-01-25T08:45:00.005+08:00

PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION ACT 2010: BUSINESS AS USUAL?

Professor Abu Bakar Munir

Malaysia is the first among the countries in ASEAN to have a law governing the processing of personal information. The Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) passed in June 2010 is expected to be in force soon, this year. The PDPA sets out principles as a good information handling practice that must be followed whenever personal data is processed for commercial purposes. The law applies only if the data or information processed is a ‘personal data’, which is data or information that relate directly or indirectly to an individual.

At the heart of the Act are the seven data protection principles which must be observed by companies when processing personal data of their customers, staff members, etc. Non-compliance with any of these principles is a criminal offence. One of the most important prohibitions is the processing of personal data without the consent of the individual. Besides, the information must only be used for the purposes it was collected and it should be adequate for the purpose and not excessive.

Companies are also required to have privacy policy statements and not allowed to disclose information for other purpose or disclose it to a third party without the consent of the individual. Companies must take practical steps to protect the personal data from any loss, misuse, modification, unauthorized or accidental access or disclosure, alteration or destruction. Personal data collected can only be processed for the specified purpose and once such purpose is achieved, the personal data shall not be kept any longer by the data user. It is the responsibility of the company to destroy or permanently delete the personal data. An obligation is also imposed on companies to take reasonable steps to ensure that the personal data are accurate, complete, not misleading and kept up to date. More importantly, the individuals are given the right to have access to their data kept by companies. The other rights are: to correct the personal data, withdraw consent, prevent processing likely to cause damage or distress and prevent processing for the purposes of direct marketing.

The PDPA has created several new criminal offences. These include offences for contravening the data protection principles, processing data without certificate of registration, selling of personal data, etc. It must be noted that the Act allows an officer of a company to be charged severally or jointly with the body corporate. If the body corporate is found to have committed the offence, the officer of the company shall be deemed to have committed the offence unless he can prove that the offence was committed without his knowledge, consent or connivance and he had taken all reasonable precautions and exercised due diligence to prevent the commission of the crime.

When the enforcement date of the Act is fixed, all organizations in Malaysia are required to comply with the Act within a grace period of three months. This is indisputably too short a time to work towards compliance. Failing to comply with the Act would render these organizations liable to criminal penalties. The Act, however, was passed more than eighteen months ago. How many are aware of the existence of the Act? How many have made efforts to comply with it? To ‘wait and see’ is not a wise approach. Time is running out. The enforcement date will be announced very soon. Would business be as usual?

2012-01-11T07:39:00.003+08:00

LAWMAKERS WANT MORE PRIVACY ANSWERS FROM FACEBOOK

Reps. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and Joe Barton, R-Tex., lashed out at Facebook for failing to clearly explain how — and why — the social networking giant systematically compiles tracking data on its 800 million members, and millions more non-members. Markey and Barton were left unsatisfied by a six-page explanation they recently received from Erin M. Egan, Facebook’s Chief Privacy Officer.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2012/01/09/lawmakers-want-more-privacy-answers-from-facebook/ (Source: USA Today)

SAUDI HACKERS POST PERSONAL INFO ON ISRAELIS

2012-01-05T06:56:00.001+08:00

A group of Saudi hackers dubbed Group-XP claimed to have posted the personal information of nearly half a million Israelis online, though credit card companies said the number of compromised records is actually much lower. The hackers said they broke into one of Israel’s top sports Web sites, One.co.il, and redirected visitors to a site where they could download a file containing the personal information of 400,000 Israelis.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2012/01/03/saudi-hackers-post-personal-info-on-israelis/ (Source: PCMag.com)

FACEBOOK CHANGES PRIVACY RULES AFTER IRISH PROBE

2011-12-23T08:32:00.001+08:00

Facebook agreed to overhaul privacy protection for more than half a billion users outside North America, after a three-month investigation found that its privacy policies were overly complex and lacked transparency. The probe by the Irish Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) at the U.S. group’s international headquarters in Dublin said users were at risk of unknowingly publicizing personal details.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/12/21/facebook-changes-privacy-rules-after-irish-probe/ (Source: Reuters)

CHINESE HACKERS BREAK INTO U.S CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

2011-12-23T08:30:00.001+08:00

A group of hackers in China breached the computer defenses of America’s top business-lobbying group and gained access to everything stored on its systems, including information about its three million members, according to several people familiar with the matter. The break-in at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is one of the boldest known infiltrations in what has become a regular confrontation between U.S. companies and Chinese hackers.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/12/21/chinese-hackers-break-into-u-s-chamber-of-commerce/ (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

JUDGE SAYS BLOGGER DOESN'T QUALIFY AS JOURNALIST

2011-12-09T08:29:00.001+08:00

A U.S. District Court judge in Portland, Ore., ruled that a blogger who wrote about an investment firm that subsequently accused her of defamation must pay the company $2.5 million because she’s a blogger who doesn’t legally qualify as a journalist. Crystal Cox, whose blogs are a mixture of fact, opinion, and commentary, wrote several posts that were critical of Obsidian Finance Group and its co-founder, Kevin Padrick.

· Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/12/07/judge-says-blogger-doesnt-qualify-as-journalist/ (Source: CNET News)

FACEBOOK SETTLES PRIVACY CHARGES WITH FTC

2011-12-02T06:28:00.004+08:00

Facebook has settled charges with the Federal Trade Commission that it deceived users by telling them they could keep their information on Facebook private and then repeatedly making it public, according to the agency. The settlement of an eight-count complaint requires Facebook to warn users about privacy changes and to get their permission before sharing their information more broadly, according to the FTC. Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/11/29/facebook-settles-privacy-charges-with-ftc/ (Source: Los Angeles Times)

DATA PROTECTION LAW IS COMING TO ASIA

2011-11-24T10:05:00.003+08:00

By Abu Bakar Munir

Thirty one years after the adoption of the first international instrument, the data protection law is now coming to Asia. Singapore is expected to have the data protection law in 2012 and currently busy consulting the public. The Philippines Congress very recently wrapped up the debate and tabling of the Bill. Malaysia is the first country in ASEAN to do it in June 2010 and its Personal Data Protection Act is likely to be enforced in 2012. Two months earlier than Malaysia, the Taiwanese Parliament passed a comprehensive regulation called the Personal Information Protection Act. Korea follows suit and enacted a new Data Protection Act in March 2011. Who's next?

PORN COMPANY SUES ICANN OVER .XXX DOMAIN

2011-11-18T07:02:00.001+08:00

One of the largest purveyors of pornography on the Web has filed suit to block or overhaul the new dot-xxx suffix on Internet addresses, accusing organizations that assign online addresses of running a monopoly that creates unnecessary costs. The lawsuit was filed by Luxembourg-based Manwin Licensing International SARL, which owns a network of websites including YouPorn.com and manages Playboy Enterprises Inc.’s brand on the Web, along with adult filmmaker Digital Playground Inc.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/11/16/porn-company-sues-icann-over-xxx-domain/ (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

GERMANY SUSPECTS FACEBOOK OF ILLEGAL TRACKING

2011-11-16T07:01:00.000+08:00

Facebook may be tracking the Internet activity of users even after they cancel their accounts, the German data privacy watchdog said. After an investigation of the way cookies are installed after a user opens and then closes a Facebook account, the Hamburg Data Protection agency said on its Web site that it suspected the company was unlawfully tracking subscribers.

· Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/11/03/germany-suspects-facebook-of-illegal-tracking/ (Source: The New York Times)

PRIVACY LAW PROMPTS KIDS TO LIE, REPORT SAYS

2011-11-04T07:27:00.002+08:00

A federal law aimed at protecting the privacy of children under 13 has instead resulted in millions of kids lying about their age — often with their parents’ knowledge — in order to join Facebook, social media guru Danah Boyd says in a new report. Facebook officially bans kids under 13 — a move that Boyd attributes to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, which prohibits publishers from collecting personal information from users 12 and under without their parents’ permission.

· Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/11/02/privacy-law-prompts-kids-to-lie-report-says/ (Source: MediaPost)

U.K.,U.S. REJECTS CALLS FOR MORE INTERNET CONTROLS

2011-11-03T07:22:00.001+08:00

Britain and the United States rejected calls from China and Russia for greater Internet controls at the opening of a major cyberspace conference, but Western states faced accusations of double standards. Ministers, tech executives and Internet activists are meeting over two days in London to discuss how to tackle security threats and crime on the Internet without stifling economic opportunities or freedom of speech.

· Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/11/01/u-k-u-s-reject-calls-for-more-internet-controls/ (Source: Reuters)

Apple Sued for Location Privacy in South Korea

2011-08-24T06:51:00.000+08:00

Apple has been sued by a group of about 27,000 South Koreans in a class-action lawsuit over alleged privacy violations related to location services on iPhones, iPads and the iPod Touch. The suit, filed in Changwon, South Korea, seeks about 27 billion won, or about $26 million, in damages, which would work out to about $930 for each plaintiff, the Associated Press reports. Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/08/17/apple-sued-for-location-privacy-in-south-korea/ (Source: Los Angeles Times)

‘Anonymous’ Says It Plans to ‘Kill’ Facebook

2011-08-11T07:04:00.001+08:00

The Anonymous Internet hacking group is planning to “kill” Facebook and has announced the date it will attempt do so, in a statement gaining prominence. In a YouTube video, the hacking group warns, “Your medium of communication you all so dearly adore will be destroyed.” Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/08/09/anonymous-says-it-plans-to-kill-facebook/ (Source: Fox News)

Teen Problems Linked to Excessive Tech Use

2011-08-10T07:05:00.001+08:00

Facebook is great for reconnecting with old friends from high school and college. But for those still in school, the popular networking site could do more harm than good. That’s according to Larry Rosen, a psychologist at Cal State Dominguez Hills who’s been studying the effect of technology on people for more than 25 years.· Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/08/08/teen-problems-linked-to-excessive-tech-use/ (Source: Los Angeles Times)

European Study Finds Faults with Minors’ Privacy Online

2011-06-23T08:02:00.000+08:00

The European Commission, which is still finding its way in regulating the Internet, published a study on how social networking sites treat minors. The most compelling result it found: Only Bebo and Myspace (which is owned by News Corp., publisher of this blog) “have default settings to make minors’ profiles accessible only to their approved list of contacts.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/06/21/european-study-finds-faults-with-minors-privacy-online/ (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

PENTAGON SAYS COMPUTER SABOTAGE EQUALS ACT OF WAR

2011-06-03T07:22:00.002+08:00

The Pentagon has concluded that computer sabotage coming from another country can constitute an act of war, a finding that for the first time opens the door for the U.S. to respond using traditional military force. The Pentagon’s first formal cyber strategy, unclassified portions of which are expected to become public next month, represents an early attempt to grapple with a changing world in which a hacker could pose as significant a threat to U.S. nuclear reactors, subways or pipelines as a hostile country’s military.

2011-05-31T09:54:00.000+08:00

IS SONY SORRY?

By Abu Bakar Munir

Following the attack, Sony’s CEO apologized to millions of PlayStation Network and Qriocity users. In the letter posted on the PlayStation blog, Howard Stringer states, “I know this has been a frustrating time for all of you…..Let me assure you that the resources of this company have been focused on investigating the entire nature and impact of the cyber-attack we’ve all experienced and on fixing it. We are absolutely dedicated to restoring full and safe services as soon as possible and rewarding you for your patience. We will settle for nothing less…As a company we – and I - apologize for the inconvenience and concern caused by this attack.”

Criticisms of Sony was for several reasons, among others, (1) the delay between discovering the problem and notifying customers, (2) the lack of meaningful updates as to when service would be restored, and (3) the seeming confusion over exactly what information had or had not been stolen. On the first issue, Sony’s CEO responded by saying, “This was an unprecedented situation. Most of these breaches go unreported by companies. Forty – three percent notify victims within a month. We reported in a week. You’re telling me my week wasn’t fast enough?”

What are the reactions of the privacy advocate and security professionals? Senior technology consultant at Sophos said that the breach “certainly ranks as one of the biggest data losses ever to affect individuals”. The Australian Privacy Minister, Brendan O’Connor, said he was “very concerned” about the theft of personal information and expressed disappointment that Sony took “several days” to inform about the breach. He further stated that this meant a mandatory “data breach notification” system now “appears necessary”.

Similarly, the Canada Privacy Commissioner said, “I was very disappointed that Sony did not pro-actively notify my office of the breach”. The British Information Commissioner’s Office stated that Sony will be questioned, and that an investigation will take place to discover whether Sony had taken adequate precautions to protect customer details. US Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut demanded answers from Sony about the data breach. Sony had been asked to testify before a congressional hearing on May 2, 2011, but sent a letter instead.

FACEBOOK FLAW GAVE PERSONAL DATA TO ADVERTISERS

2011-05-12T07:30:00.000+08:00

A security vulnerability on Facebook Inc. for years gave advertisers and other third parties a way to access users’ accounts and personal information, according to security firm Symantec Corp. But Facebook said it had fixed the problem and found no evidence of the issue resulting in private information being leaked.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4RHnF (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

PRIVACY ADVOCATES APPLAUD DO-NOT TRACK BILL

2011-05-11T07:35:00.001+08:00

Several privacy and civil rights groups voiced support for an online do-not-track bill introduced in the U.S. Senate, saying the legislation would give Web users control over their personal data. Senator John “Jay” Rockefeller’s bill would create a national do-not-track mechanism, a “crucial civil liberties protection for the 21st century,” said Chris Calabrese, legislative counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4QPqW (Source: PCWorld)

SONY'S CEO APOLOGIZES

2011-05-07T07:20:00.001+08:00

Sony Chief Executive Officer Howard Stringer apologized to users of its PlayStation Network, breaking his silence on one of the biggest Internet security break-ins ever, but failing to provide a date when services would resume. Stringer’s comments come after he faced criticism of his leadership since Sony revealed hackers had compromised the data of more than 100 million accounts.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4OoPe (Source: Reuters)

SONY SHUTS DOWN ONLINE - GAMING AFTER SECOND ATTACK

2011-05-06T07:43:00.002+08:00

Less than a week after news of a security breach sparked an uproar, Sony Corp. has shut down its online-gaming unit after a hacker infiltrated the network in the second such attack on the company in the last month. Sony Online Entertainment, known for creating massive multi-player games such as EverQuest and The Matrix Online, suspended service, according to a statement.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4Lz3A (Source: Los Angeles Times)

SONY WAS ATTACKED AGAIN

2011-05-04T08:21:00.001+08:00

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4Lz3A (Source: Los Angeles Times)

SONY PLAYSTATION DATA DISCLOSURE

2011-05-02T06:37:00.001+08:00

Sony acknowledged that the personal information of its PlayStation Network customers has been compromised. The company posted an update on its blog warning its more than 70 million customers that their personal information, including customer names, addresses, e-mail addresses, birthdays, PlayStation Network and Qriocity passwords, and user names, as well as online user handles, was obtained illegally by an “unauthorized person.”

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4HzfK (Source: CNET News)

LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST SONY

2011-05-02T06:34:00.000+08:00

Gamers and government officials are irate over Sony’s admission that a massive security breach gave hackers access to large amounts of personal data from the company’s PlayStation Network and, surprise(!), one gamer has already filed a lawsuit. Meanwhile, analysts estimate the hammered game company could lose billions of dollars from the debacle.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4IAfA (Source: msnbc.com)

SWISS COURT SAYS GOOGLE STREET VIEW VIOLATES PRIVACY

2011-04-06T07:11:00.002+08:00

Switzerland’s top administrative court backed the Swiss privacy watchdog and ruled against Google Inc.’s Street View map service in Switzerland, saying the service infringes privacy in a ruling. Switzerland’s Federal Data Protection Commissioner Hanspeter Thuer and Google had been locked in a battle over the Web giant’s popular Street View application ever since the mapping service went live there in 2009.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4t8r6 (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

GOOGLE SETTLES PRIVACY CHARGES WITH FTC FOR BUZZ

2011-04-01T14:34:00.001+08:00

Google settled with the Federal Trade Commission over charges of deceptive privacy practices in its introduction last year of Buzz, the social networking tool in Gmail. Under the settlement, Google agreed to start a privacy program and undergo privacy audits for 20 years; it faces $16,000 fines for future privacy misrepresentations.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4pMES (Source: The New York Times)

GERMAN COURT CALLS GOOGLE STREET VIEW LEGAL

2011-03-31T07:45:00.000+08:00

A Berlin court has ruled, according to Deutsche Welle, that it’s legal for Google to take the street-level pictures, striking down a lawsuit brought on by a German woman who sued Google over Street View and cited privacy and property rights. The case is complicated, because the woman who sued did so out of the possibility that her privacy might be invaded — e.g. if Google Street View happened to take photos of the front of her house, and that the camera on top of the Google Street View vehicle would see over the hedge in front of it.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4jfzY (Source: CNET News)

CYBERCRIMINALS FOCUSING ON CORPORATE TRADE SECRETS

2011-03-31T07:41:00.001+08:00

Cybercriminals are increasingly moving from stealing just personal data to capturing trade secrets and other corporate intellectual capital that they can easily sell through the underground market, according to a new report from McAfee and the SAIC. In the release of a new study, “Underground Economies: Intellectual Capital and Sensitive Corporate Data Now the Latest CybercrimeScience Applications International Corporate find that the theft of trade secrets, marketing plans, R&D data, and even source code is on the rise, especially as such information is often unprotected. Currency”, McAfee and the

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4o1ez (Source: CNET News)

INDIA TO BLOCK NEW DOMAINS ENDING IN .XXX

2011-03-29T07:59:00.001+08:00

India will seek to block the internet’s newly-formed red-light district after a global agency governing the web approved .xxx suffix for pornography websites, a senior government official said. “India along with many other countries from the Middle East and Indonesia opposed the grant of the domain in the first place, and we would proceed to block the whole domain, as it goes against the IT Act and Indian laws,” said a senior official at the ministry of IT.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4niYY (Source: The Economic Times)

JUDGE REJECTS SETTLEMENT FOR GOOGLE BOOKS DEAL

2011-03-24T08:01:00.001+08:00

March 22, 2011

A U.S. judge rejected a $125 million settlement that would have allowed Google Inc. to create the world’s biggest digital-book library. Opponents of the deal said it violated international law.

Read the article: Bloomberg

ICANN APPROVES .XXX DOMAIN AS PROTESTS CONTINUE

2011-03-23T13:32:00.001+08:00

The agency governing Internet addresses approved the creation of a new red-light district on the Web, but the decision may not end years of fighting over the contentious plan. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers authorized the creation of an .xxx suffix for pornography Web sites.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4hYBa (Source: The New York Times)

EU OFFICIAL STRESSES PRIVACY RULES FOR WEBSITES

2011-03-21T09:43:00.002+08:00

Social-networking sites such as Facebook, or search engines such as Google, may face court action if they fail to obey planned EU data privacy rules, European Union justice chief Viviane Reding said. Reding will propose an overhaul of the EU’s 16-year-old laws on data protection in the coming months to enforce more safeguards on how personal information is used.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4goOK (Source: Reuters)

TWITTER SETTELES PRIVACY CHARGES WITH FTC

2011-03-15T08:39:00.000+08:00

The Federal Trade Commission accepted a settlement with Internet messaging service Twitter Inc. to resolve charges that Twitter deceived consumers and put their privacy at risk by not safeguarding personal information. The settlement bars Twitter from misleading consumers about the extent to which it protects the security, privacy and confidentiality of non-public consumer information for 20 years, according to a statement posted on the FTC website.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/4dwYi (Source: Bloomberg)

BRITISH MAN GOES TO JAIL AFTER BLOGGING ABOUT GIRLFRIEND

2011-03-14T08:02:00.001+08:00

When most people end a relationship, they don’t start creating websites to insult, embarrass and terrorize their exes. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what one British man did — and now he’s been jailed for it.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2011/03/10/british-man-goes-to-jail-after-blogging-about-girlfriend/ (Source: msnbc.com)

SINGAPORE TO HAVE DATA PROTECTION ACT IN 2012

2011-03-09T10:37:00.005+08:00

The Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, Lui Tuck Yew, told the Singapore Parliament in February that a data protection review had now been completed. The Government has concluded that it would be in Singapore’s overall interests to put in place a data protection regime, in order to protect individuals’ personal data against unauthorised use and disclosure for profit,The announcement came in response to a question from MP Lee Bee Wah, in view of what he said were “reports of offers to sell personal and contact information of key officers in various Government Ministries”. Minister Lui said that the proposed (data protection) law is intended to curb excessive and unnecessary collection of individuals’ personal data by businesses, and include requirements such as obtaining the consent of individuals to disclose their personal information. He further said, “It will also enhance Singapore’s overall competitiveness and strengthen our position as a trusted hub for businesses and a choice location for global data management and processing services.”

OBAMA ADMINISTRATION SPEAKING OUT AGAINST ICANN

2011-03-02T07:53:00.001+08:00

The California nonprofit organization that operates the Internet’s levers has always been a target for global heavies like Russia and China that prefer the United Nations in charge of the Web. But these days, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is fending off attacks from a seemingly unlikely opposition: the Obama administration.

Read the article: http://ow.ly/458Sl (Source: The Washington Post)

U.S GOVERNMENT SEEKS VETO POWER OVER NEW DOMAINS

2011-02-10T08:24:00.000+08:00

The Obama administration is quietly seeking the power for it and other governments to veto future top-level domain names, a move that raises questions about free expression, national sovereignty, and the role of states in shaping the future of the Internet. At stake is who will have authority over the next wave of suffixes to supplement the venerable .com, .org, and .net. At least 115 proposals are expected this year, including .car, .health, .nyc, .movie, and .web, and the application process could be finalized at a meeting in San Francisco next month.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/htxmp (Source: CNET News)

FACEBOOK AGREES TO PRIVACY CHANGES IN GERMANY

2011-01-26T08:15:00.000+08:00

Facebook, facing potential fines for violating strict privacy laws in Germany, agreed to let users in the country better shield their e-mail contacts from unwanted advertisements and solicitations it sends. Facebook, which has more than 10 million users in Germany, agreed to modify its Friend Finder service to let Germans better block its ability to contact people, including non-Facebook users culled from a user’s e-mail address books.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/52O4f (Source: The New York Times)

GOOGLE DELETES DATA COLLECTED BY STREET VIEW CARS

2010-12-22T07:17:00.001+08:00

Personal data collected by Google’s UK Street View cars has been deleted. The UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which has been criticised for not taking a more hardline stance against Google, confirmed the deletion.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/WpjSL (Source: BBC News)

WOMAN SUES GOOGLE FOR SHOWING UNDERWEAR

2010-12-21T08:12:00.001+08:00

A Japanese woman is suing Google for displaying images of underwear hanging on her washing line on its Street View function. The woman, who has not been named, is suing the Internet giant for 600,000 Yen, claiming the images caused her psychological distress, according to Japan’s Mainichi newspaper.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/n46qk (Source: The Telegraph)

SMARTPHONES SHARING PERSONAL DATA, PROBE FINDS

2010-12-21T08:10:00.001+08:00

Few devices know more personal details about people than the smartphones in their pockets: phone numbers, current location, often the owner’s real name — even a unique ID number that can never be changed or turned off. These phones don’t keep secrets. They are sharing this personal data widely and regularly, a Wall Street Journal investigation has found.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/hI0z6 (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

DATA BREACH EXPOSES McDONALD'S CUSTOMERS' INFO

2010-12-15T06:09:00.001+08:00

McDonald’s Corp. says some of its customers’ private information was exposed during a data breach. The company said Monday that a third party was able to get past security measures and see into a database of its customer information that included e-mail, phone numbers, addresses, birthdates and other specifics that they provided when signing up for online promotions or other subscriptions to its websites.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/XZ6JX (Source: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

FTC ENDORSES "DO NOT TRACK" PRIVACY PLAN ONLINE

2010-12-03T19:08:00.001+08:00

The Federal Trade Commission advocated a plan that lets consumers on the Internet choose whether they want information about their browsing habits to be collected, an option known as “do not track.” The FTC’s proposal, a framework for commercial use of consumer data, would make consumer privacy the default position and would let Web users decide whether Internet sites and advertisers can build profiles of their browsing and buying habits as well as collect other personal information.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/AqS0J (Source: The New York Times)

HACKER CLAIMS ATTACK ON WIKILEAKS WEBSITE

2010-12-02T07:38:00.000+08:00

A computer hacker who calls himself “The Jester” claimed responsibility for the cyber attack which took down the WikiLeaks site, shortly before it started posting hundreds of thousands of classified U.S. diplomatic cables. The Jester, who describes himself as a “hacktivist for good,” said he took the controversial site down “for attempting to endanger the lives of our troops, ‘other assets’ & foreign relations.”

Read the article: http://goo.gl/mfMlA (Source: CNN)

U.K ENDS GOOGLE STREET VIEW PROBE AS DATA DELETED

2010-11-24T07:28:00.001+08:00

The UK’s information commissioner has said that wi-fi data accidentally collected by Google’s Street View cars will be deleted “as soon as possible.” Deputy information commissioner David Smith told the BBC that there would be no further enquiries into the matter.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/o7VHb (Source: BBC News)

EU LAW ON INTERNET TRACKING FACES OBSTACLES

2010-11-24T07:26:00.001+08:00

Europe’s effort to regulate online “cookies” is crumbling, exposing how tough it is to curb the practice of tracking Internet users’ movements on the Web. Seeking to be a leader in protecting online privacy, the European Union last year passed a law requiring companies to obtain consent from Web users when tracking files such as cookies are placed on users’ computers, but Internet companies, advertisers, lawmakers, privacy advocates and EU member nations can’t agree on the law’s meaning.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/9icvA (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

CHINESE WOMAN GETS 1- YEAR SENTENCE FOR TWEET

2010-11-20T07:22:00.001+08:00

A Chinese woman was sentenced to one year in a labor camp after she forwarded a satirical microblog message that urged recipients to attack the Japanese pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo, human rights groupsTwitter said. The woman, Cheng Jianping, 46, was accused of “disturbing social order” for resending a message from her fiancé that mocked young nationalists who held anti-Japanese rallies in several cities last month.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/1lsXD (Source: The New York Times)

DEFENSE SECRETARY WARNS OF "HUGE" CYBER THREAT

2010-11-19T08:06:00.000+08:00

The United States faces a major threat in the future from cyber technologies that will require civil-military coordination to shield networks from attack, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said. “I think there is a huge future threat. And there is a considerable current threat,” Gates told The Wall Street Journal CEO Council.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/jV1J8 (Source: Reuters)

PRIVACY QUESTIONS RAISED ABOUT FACEBOOK MESSAGING

2010-11-19T08:03:00.000+08:00

After Facebook’s struggle with one privacy issue after another this year, some in the industry are raising privacy questions about Facebook’s new messaging system. As Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg explained the new system at a press conference, he never touched on how the company plans on keeping users’ messages private and secure.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/3s6SZ (Source: Computerworld)

POPE BENEDICT'S VIEW OF THE INTERNET RISK

2010-11-15T19:51:00.002+08:00

Pope Benedict XVI on Saturday warned that the Internet does not make people more humane but instead risks increasing a "sense of solitude and disorientation" among "numbed" young people.

"A large number of young people... establish forms of communication that to do not increase humaneness but instead risk increasing a sense of solitude and disorientation," Benedict told a Vatican conference on culture.

Read the article

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2010-11-13T16:02:00.006+08:00

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WHITE HOUSE TO PUSH FOR INTERNET PRIVACY LAWS

2010-11-13T07:15:00.001+08:00

The Obama Administration is preparing a stepped-up approach to policing Internet privacy that calls for new laws and the creation of a new position to oversee the effort, according to people familiar with the situation. The strategy is expected to be unveiled in a report being issued by the U.S. Commerce Department in coming weeks, these people said.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/rTQQw (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

COMPANY ACCUSED OF ILLEGAL FIRING FOR FACEBOOK POST

2010-11-12T07:02:00.001+08:00

In what labor officials and lawyers view as a ground-breaking case involving workers and social media, the National Labor Relations Board has accused a company of illegally firing an employee after she criticized her supervisor on her Facebook page. This is the first case in which the labor board has stepped in to argue that workers’ criticisms of their bosses or companies on a social networking site are generally a protected activity and that employers would be violating the law by punishing workers for such statements.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/hyPXK (Source: The New York Times)

BRITISH OFFICIALS SAY GOOGLE BREACHED PRIVACY LAWS

2010-11-05T05:33:00.001+08:00

British data protection officials said that Google had committed a “significant breach” of privacy laws when its Street View mapping service gathered e-mail messages, computer passwords and other personal information without the owners’ knowledge. Yet Google managed to avoid a fine, with the Information Commissioner’s Office accepting a promise from the company that it would take steps to avoid repeating what it has described as an inadvertent error.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/DrCao (Source: The New York Times)

JUDGE APPROVES $8.5 MILLION GOOGLE BUZZ PRIVACY SETTLEMENT

2010-11-04T10:29:00.001+08:00

Google said that a settlement for a class action suit by Gmail users over privacy violations related to Google Buzz has been granted preliminary approval by a federal district court judge. The settlement, proposed in September, calls for Google to pay $8.5 million toward a fund for organizations focusing on Internet privacy policy or education.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/1PinD (Source: ZDNet)

BRITISH OFFICIALS REOPEN PROBE OF GOOGLE STREET VIEW

2010-11-03T07:59:00.001+08:00

British officials said that they would re-open an investigation into Wi-Fi data collected by Google’s Street View cars after the search engine giant admitted that it captured entire e-mails, URLs, and passwords. “We will be making enquires to see whether this information relates to the data inadvertently captured in the U.K., before deciding on the necessary course of action, including a consideration of the need to use our enforcement powers,” the Information Commissioner’s Office said in a statement.

Read the article: http://goo.gl/YFKwW (Source: PC Magazine)

PENTAGON CONSIDERS PREEMPTIVE CYBERSECURITY STRIKES

2010-09-01T08:27:00.001+08:00

The Pentagon is contemplating an aggressive approach to defending its computer systems that includes preemptive actions such as knocking out parts of an adversary’s computer network overseas — but it is still wrestling with how to pursue the strategy legally.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/08/30/pentagon-considers-preemptive-cybersecurity-strikes/ (Source: The Washington Post)

DIFFERING VIEWS ON STREET VIEW

2010-08-04T07:00:00.002+08:00

BY ABU BAKAR MUNIR

After an investigation that has spanned almost two months, the Australian Privacy Commissioner, last month, concluded that the collection and storing of unsecured WiFi payload data using Street View vehicles in Australia by Google has breached the Privacy Act. The Privacy Commissioner said, "On the information available I am satisfied that any collection of personal information would have breach the Australian Privacy Act. Collecting personal information in these circumstances is a very serious matter. Australians should reasonably expect that private communications remain private".

In response to the investigation, Google has provided the Privacy Commissioner with several written undertaking and published an apology. The undertakings are:

1. Undertake to conduct a Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) on any Street View data collection activities in Australia that include personal information.
2. Provide a copy of these PIAs to the Commissioner Office.
3. Regularly consult with the Australian Privacy Commissioner about personal data collection activities arising from significant product launches in Australia.

Google's apology states, "In May, we announced that we had also mistakenly collecting publicly broadcast payload data. To be clear, we did not want and have never used any payload data in our products or services - and as soon as we discovered our error , we announced that we would stop collecting all WiFi data via our Street View vehicles...We want to reiterate to Australians that this was a mistake for which we are sincerely sorry. Maintaining people's trust is crucial to everything we do and we have earn that trust every single day. We are acutely aware that we failed badly here."

In the U.K, however, Google was cleared. The Information Commissioner Office (ICO) on 29 July 2010 stated, "The ICO has visited Google's premises to assess samples of the payload data it inadvertently collected. ..The information we saw does not include meaningful personal details that could linked to an identifiable person."

The ICO qualifies this statement by saying that "As we have only seen samples of the records collected in the U.K we recognise that other data protection authorities conducting a detailed analysis of all payload data collected in their jurisdictions may nevertheless find samples of information which can be linked to identifiable individuals." The ICO concludes that, "on the basis of the samples we saw we are satisfied that so far that it is unlikely that Google will have captured significant amounts of personal data."

2010-08-03T11:58:00.002+08:00

U.K SAYS GOOGLE DIDN'T COLLECT "SIGNIFICANT" DATA

2010-07-31T07:59:00.001+08:00

Google did not grab “significant” personal details when collecting data from wi-fi networks, according to the UK’s Information Commissioner Office. The finding came after the body reviewed some of the data Google scooped up from unsecured networks.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/07/30/u-k-says-google-didnt-collect-significant-data/ (Source: BBC News)

DATA ON 100 MILLION FACEBOOK USERS EXPOSED

2010-07-30T08:06:00.002+08:00

A security researcher released a file containing the names, profile addresses and unique identification numbers of more than 100 million Facebook users. The information was corralled via a public directory Facebook makes available that lists users who are sharing at least some of their profile information with everyone on the Internet.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/07/28/data-on-100-million-facebook-users-exposed/ (Source: The New York Times)

SENATORS PRESS GOOGLE, APPLE, FACEBOOK ON PRIVACY

2010-07-29T21:21:00.002+08:00

After a string of online privacy problems this year, legislators grilled Google Inc., Apple Inc., Facebook and AT&T Inc., seeking assurance that user information will be protected in the future. Senators questioned whether new legislation is needed to protect people’s personal information online during a hearing held by the Senate Commerce Committee.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/07/28/senators-press-google-apple-facebook-on-privacy/ (Source: Los Angeles Times)

FTC OFFICIAL CITES "CHALLENGES" IN PROTECTING TEENS ONLINE

2010-07-20T14:04:00.001+08:00

The agency responsible for protecting consumers in the U.S. says defending the interests of teenagers in the online world presents “unique challenges.” The deputy director of consumer protection at the Federal Trade Commission laid out some of those challenges in testimony before a U.S. Congress subcommittee on consumer protection.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/07/18/ftc-official-cites-challenges-in-protecting-teens-online/ (Source: CBC News)

GOOGLE "STREET VIEW" ILLEGAL, AUSTRALIAN OFFICIAL SAYS

2010-07-15T07:50:00.001+08:00

Google broke Australia’s privacy law when it collected private information from wireless networks, the country’s privacy commissioner said, following an investigation into the Internet giant’s “Street View” mapping service. Several other countries are investigating Google over the data collection, and there are growing concerns from regulators and consumer watchdogs worldwide that Google isn’t serious enough about people’s privacy — a charge the company denies.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/07/13/google-street-view-illegal-australian-official-says/ (Source: MyBroadband)

LAW FIRM WORKING ON CLASS-ACTION FACEBOOK PRIVACY CASE

2010-07-10T08:41:00.006+08:00

A Toronto-based law firm with a history of targeting litigation at corporations as varied as chocolate companies and silicone breast implant manufacturers has a new company in the crosshairs: Facebook. Merchant Law Group, which has offices in 10 Canadian cities, launched litigation seeking class action status against the massive social-networking site, alleging the mishandling of sensitive user data — the latest development in a resurgence of action against the social network’s privacy policies, after it looked for a while as if all the fuss had calmed down.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/07/08/law-firm-working-on-class-action-facebook-privacy-case/ (Source: CNET News)

GERMANY OPENS FORMAL PROBE OF FACEBOOK'S PRIVACY

2010-07-09T07:40:00.001+08:00

Data protection officials in Germany announced the launch of a formal investigation into Facebook, saying they believe some of its much-maligned privacy policies are illegal. It’s given Facebook until August 11 to respond formally.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/07/07/germany-opens-formal-probe-of-facebooks-privacy/ (Source: CNET News)

SENATORS URGE OBAMA TO SUPPORT CYBERSECURITY BILL

2010-07-08T07:33:00.001+08:00

Seven Senate leaders urged President Obama to support planned legislation designed to protect critical information technology systems from attacks. In a letter to Obama, the senators said they plan to produce a comprehensive cybersecurity bill, although they did not specify a timeframe.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/07/05/senators-urge-obama-to-support-cybersecurity-bill/ (Source: National Journal)

LEADER OF .XXX DOMAIN SAYS IT WILL BE "VERY SUCCESSFUL"

2010-07-08T07:31:00.001+08:00

The Internet has made Stuart Lawley a wealthy man. Now he’s poised to make his next fortune selling Internet addresses to pornographers.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/07/03/leader-of-xxx-domain-says-it-will-be-very-successful/ (Source: Bloomberg Businessweek)

ICANN EXPECTED TO APPROVE .XXX DOMAIN

2010-06-28T07:11:00.002+08:00

The company that oversees Web addresses is expected to give the go-ahead for the creation of a .xxx suffix for websites with pornographic content, company officials indicated. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), which oversees the Internet on behalf of the U.S. government, has in the past resisted creating a .xxx generic domain name system akin to those for .com and .net.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/06/24/icann-expected-to-approve-xxx-domain/ (Source: Reuters)

GOOGLE ACCUSED OF CRIMINAL INTENT OVER STREET VIEW DATA

2010-06-11T09:11:00.003+08:00

Source: BBC NEWS

Google is "almost certain" to face prosecution for collecting data from unsecured wi-fi networks, according to Privacy International (PI). The search giant has been under scrutiny for collecting wi-fi data as part of its StreetView project. Google has released an independent audit of the rogue code, which it has claimed was included in the StreetView software by mistake. But PI is convinced the audit proves "criminal intent". "The independent audit of the Google system shows that the system used for the wi-fi collection intentionally separated out unencrypted content (payload data) of communications and systematically wrote this data to hard drives. This is equivalent to placing a hard tap and a digital recorder onto a phone wire without consent or authorisation," said PI in a statement. This would put Google at odds with the interception laws of the 30 countries that the system was used in, it added.

Scotland Yard

"The Germans are almost certain to prosecute. Because there was intent, they have no choice but to prosecute," said Simon Davies, head of PI. In the UK the ICO has said it is reviewing the audit but that for the time being it had no plans to pursue the matter. PI however does intend to take the case to the police. "I don't see any alternative but for us to go to Scotland Yard," said Mr Davies.

The revelation that Google had collected such data led the German Information Commissioner to demand it handed over a hard-disk so it could examine exactly what it had collected. It has not yet received the data and has extended the original deadline for it to be handed over. The Australian police have also been ordered to investigate Google for possible breach of privacy.

'Systematic failure'

According to Google, the code which allowed data to be collected was part of an experimental wi-fi project undertaken by an unnamed engineer to improve location-based services and was never intended to be incorporated in the software for StreetView.

"As we have said before, this was a mistake. The report today confirms that Google did indeed collect and store payload data from unencrypted wi-fi networks, but not from networks that were encrypted. We are continuing to work with the relevant authorities to respond to their questions and concerns," said a Google spokesman.

"This was a failure of communication between and within teams," he added. But PI disputes this explanation. "The idea that this was a work of a lone engineer doesn't add up. This is complex code and it must have been given a budget and been overseen. Google has asserted that all its projects are rigorously checked," said Mr Davies.

"It goes to the heart of a systematic failure of management and of duty of care," he added.

MOST INTERNET USERS WORRIED ABOUT PRIVACY

2010-06-10T12:29:00.001+08:00

A new poll shows that a large majority of consumers are concerned about being tracked on the Internet and favor a proposal from privacy groups to create a “do not track list.” The survey, commissioned by the tech and telecom industry research group Precursor LLC, found that 81 percent of those polled said they were “somewhat” or “very” concerned about companies tracking their Web surfing habits and using that information for advertising, while 88 percent said it is “unfair” for companies to do such tracking without an Internet user’s permission.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/06/08/most-internet-users-worried-about-privacy-poll-shows/ (Source: National Journal)

CHINA SAYS IT WON'T REDUCE INTERNET RESTRICTIONS

2010-06-10T12:26:00.001+08:00

China will not ease state control over what can be said online and will brook no foreign criticism of its rules, according to a government white paper released after months of wrangling about freedoms for Web users. The 31-page white paper, which called the Internet “a crystallization of human wisdom,” said its usage in the most populous nation on earth was “transforming the pattern of economic development.”

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/06/08/china-says-it-wont-reduce-internet-restrictions/ (Source: Reuters)

SOCIAL NETWORKING EXPOSES EMPLOYERS TO RISKS, STUDY SAYS

2010-06-10T12:24:00.001+08:00

Employees who dabble in social networking both on and off the job could expose their companies to a variety of risks, according to a study released by the ISACA. Malware, brand hijacking, lack of content control, noncompliance with rules over recordkeeping, and unrealistic expectations of Internet performance were the top five social-media risks to businesses identified by the ISACA in its study “Social Media: Business Benefits With Security, Governance and Assurance Perspectives.”

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/06/08/social-networking-exposes-employers-to-risks-study-says/ (Source: CNET News)

CONN. AG SEEKS ANSWERS FROM GOOGLE WIFI PRIVACY

2010-06-09T17:14:00.001+08:00

Connecticut’s attorney general is asking Google Inc. whether it collected personal information sent over wireless networks in the state, as a growing privacy controversy involving the Internet giant continues to ripple around the world. Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said his office would determine whether the company violated state privacy laws when Google gathered private data transmitted over unsecured networks used by residents and businesses.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/06/07/conn-ag-seeks-answers-from-google-on-wi-fi-privacy/ (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

U.K PLAN WOULD REQUIRE ISPs TO IDENTIFY INFRINGERS

2010-06-09T17:10:00.001+08:00

Lists of Britons who infringe copyright are to be drawn up by the UK’s biggest ISPs, under proposals from the regulator Ofcom. The plan is contained in a draft code of practice it hopes will curb copyright infringement.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/05/30/u-k-plan-would-require-isps-to-identify-infringers/ (Source: BBC News)

FTC HOLDING WORKSHOP ON CHILDREN'S PRIVACY PROTECTION ACT

2010-06-09T17:04:00.000+08:00

The FTC is set to host its first workshop on whether to update the rule implementing a law aimed at protecting children’s privacy online. The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, which went into effect in 2000, requires Web sites to obtain parental consent before collecting personal information from children under the age of 13.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/06/01/ftc-holding-workshop-on-childrens-privacy-protection-act/ (Source: National Journal)

LAWMAKERS INDICATES FACEBOOK PRIVACY HEARINGS LIKELY

2010-06-09T17:02:00.001+08:00

A House of Representatives committee responsible for writing some electronic privacy laws sent a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg asking for details on when the company shared user data “without the knowledge of the account holders.” The letter, written by Democratic chairman John Conyers of Michigan, suggests that the committee will eventually hold hearings on whether the Internet’s second most popular site has — at least in the minds of a handful of politicians — acted responsibly in disclosing its data-sharing practices to its users.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/06/01/lawmaker-indicates-facebook-privacy-hearings-likely/ (Source: CNET News)

AUSTRALIAN POLICE ASKED TO PROBE GOOGLE ON PRIVACY

2010-06-09T16:47:00.002+08:00

Australian police have been asked to investigate Internet giant Google over possible breaches of telecommunications privacy laws, the attorney general said. The investigation follows complaints from members of the public about activities of Google employees while taking photographs for Google Maps, the search engine’s maps page.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/06/06/australian-police-asked-to-probe-google-on-privacy/ (Source: Reuters)

EU COURT SAYS COUNTRIES CAN BAN INTERNET GAMBLING

2010-06-09T14:32:00.003+08:00

EU countries can ban online gambling if their aim is to combat fraud, Europe’s highest court said, dealing a blow to the multi-billion euro online betting industry seeking to break domestic monopolies. The European Union Court of Justice issued rulings on two separate challenges involving online gambling in the Netherlands.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/06/03/eu-court-says-countries-can-ban-internet-gambling

FACEBOOK, MYSPACE SENT USER DATA TO ADVERTISING FIRMS

2010-05-25T10:58:00.003+08:00

Facebook, MySpace and several other social-networking sites have been sending data to advertising companies that could be used to find consumers’ names and other personal details, despite promises they don’t share such information without consent. The practice, which most of the companies defended, sent user names or ID numbers tied to personal profiles being viewed when users clicked on ads. Read the article: tp://gigalaw.com/2010/05/20/facebook-myspace-sent-user-data-to-advertising-firms/ (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

LAWMAKERS SEEK LEGAL OPINION ON GOOGLE WIFI ERROR

2010-05-21T19:57:00.006+08:00

Two lawmakers who co-chair the House Privacy Caucus asked the Federal Trade Commission if Google broke the law in collecting WiFi and other Internet data while taking photographs for its Street View product. Reps. Joe Barton, a Republican, and Edward Markey, a Democrat, wrote to the FTC chairman to ask if the agency was looking into the data collection, which Google has said was “a mistake.”
Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/05/19/lawmakers-seek-legal-opinion-on-google-wifi-error/ (Source: Reuters)

GERMANY THREATENS LEGAL ACTION OVER GOOGLE STREET VIEW

2010-05-20T16:17:00.002+08:00

Google came under increased pressure in Europe over its collection of private data from unsecured home wireless networks, as a German regulator threatened legal action if the company did not surrender a hard drive for inspection. The German demand underscored the seriousness of the quandary Google now faced following its admission that it had stored the snippets of Web sites and personal e-mail messages from people around the world while compiling its Street View photo archive.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/05/18/germany-threatens-legal-action-over-google-street-view/ (Source: The New York Times)

GERMANY SCOLDS GOOGLE FOR "STREET VIEW" PRIVACY BREACH

2010-05-18T11:55:00.000+08:00

May 15, 2010

Germany’s consumer protection minister strongly criticized Google for a widespread privacy breach and insisted the U.S. Internet giant must cooperate better with data protection authorities. Google Inc. issued an apology, acknowledging it has been vacuuming up fragments of people’s online activities broadcast over public Wi-Fi networks for the past four years while expanding a mapping feature called “Street View.”

Read the article: ABC News

EUROPEAN GROUP CALLS FACEBOOK PRIVACY "UNACCEPTABLE"

2010-05-17T07:16:00.001+08:00

May 13, 2010

A European data protection group penned a letter to Facebook in which it told the social networking site that its recent privacy changes are “unacceptable”. That Article 29 Working Party, a collection of European data groups, sent letters to 20 social networking sites overall, but singled out Facebook for “fundamentally chang[ing] the default settings on its social-networking platform to the detriment of a user.”

Read the article: PC Magazine

GOOGLE ANSWERS PRIVACY QUESTIONS POSED BY COMMISSIONERS

2010-05-14T07:35:00.002+08:00

Source - BBC NEWS

Google has defended its privacy practices following a letter of complaint from data protection commissioners around the world. The original letter expressed concerns on privacy issues surrounding Google's social networking tool Buzz and its Street View service. In response Google said it was "committed to ensuring privacy is designed into our products".

But it admitted that mistakes were made with the launch of Buzz. "We do not get everything 100% right - that is why we acted so quickly on Google Buzz," said the letter, signed by Jane Horvath and Peter Fleischer, global privacy counsel for Google. A spokesman for Google said the letter represented Google's "full response" to the concerns raised by ten privacy commissioners from around the world, including the UK, Canada and France. Google insisted that it had a "core commitment" to privacy.

"We are keenly aware of the trust that our users place in our services, and of our responsibility to protect their privacy. As part of this responsibility, we are committed to being transparent with our users about the information that we collect," the letter read.

"Respecting privacy is a part of every Googler's job," it added.

Privacy default

This respect was not apparent to all users at the launch of its social networking service Buzz. The search giant found itself with a flurry of complaints from users unhappy that their Gmail accounts had automatically been connected to the service without their consent. As the row escalated, Google moved quickly to enable Buzz users to set their own privacy controls. In a subsequent letter from Canada's privacy commissioner Jennifer Stoddart, this prompt response was praised. But the letter also raised concerns about the way Google handled users' privacy.

It was co-signed by Ms Stoddart's counterparts in France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain and the UK. It called on Google to collect and process the minimum amount of personal information required for a service, to be clear about how it would be used and to ensure that privacy settings were default and easy to use. It also expressed unease about Street View, Google's street level, 360-degree photographs of areas taken by specially equipped Google vehicles.

In Germany there has been criticism of the Street View service because it has recorded the details of private wi-fi networks. Germany's Federal Commissioner for Data Protection Peter Schaar has complained to Google. A legal claim in February 2009 by a Pittsburgh couple who said that Street View violated their privacy was thrown out by a federal judge.

COALITION SAYS GOOGLE BOOK SETTLEMENT VIOLATES TREATY

2010-05-12T10:21:00.004+08:00

A coalition that includes firms that compete with Google says a proposed settlement aimed at allowing Google to create an online digital library violates U.S. treaty obligations aimed at protecting intellectual property. The Open Book Alliance, which includes Google rivals Amazon.com, Microsoft and Yahoo as well as some smaller publishers and writers groups, released an analysis of the proposed settlement between Google and the Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers that claims the deal violates the Berne Convention’s Protection of Literary and Artistic Works as well as the nondiscrimination provision of the World Trade Organization’s agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS).

Read the article: National Journal

UNIVERSITY DROPS GMAIL , CITES PRIVACY CONCERNS

2010-05-11T09:26:00.001+08:00

In a potential blow to Google’s efforts to establish itself as a major player in enterprise software, a leading public university has ended its evaluation of Gmail as the official e-mail program for its 30,000 faculty and staff members — and it’s got some harsh words for the search giant. In a joint letter to employees, University of California-Davis CIO Peter Siegel, Academic Senate IT chair Niels Jensen, and Campus Council IT chair Joe Kiskis said the school decided to end its Gmail pilot, which could have led to campus-wide deployment, because faculty members doubted Google’s ability to keep their correspondences private.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/05/05/university-drops-gmail-cites-privacy-concerns/ (Source: InformationWeek)

LAWMAKER RELEASES DRAFT OF INTERNET PRIVACY BILL

2010-05-07T11:59:00.001+08:00

House Energy and Commerce Communications Subcommittee Chairman Rick Boucher, D-Va., released draft privacy legislation that would require Web sites to provide enhanced notice about how they use consumer information and obtain a user’s consent before collecting sensitive information or sharing data about a consumer with some third parties. In an interview, Boucher said he will use the feedback from the draft to make some possible modifications to the measure.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/05/04/lawmaker-releases-draft-of-internet-privacy-bill/ (Source: National Journal)

LAWMAKERS DRAFT WEB - AD PRIVACY SAFEGUARDS

2010-05-05T07:16:00.013+08:00

By Emily Steel (The Wall Street Journal)

Advertisers and Internet companies have been scrambling to head off regulation they say will hamper growth of online advertising. The pressure is expected to build Tuesday as lawmakers prepare to announce proposed privacy legislation.

More than a year in the making, the draft legislation proposes regulating Internet companies' tactics for collecting information about Web visitors and the use of that data for ad targeting. It also could apply to the practices for collecting consumers' information in the offline world.

The proposed legislation comes as the furor over privacy issues related to the Internet grows. Lawmakers and regulators say that most consumers experience a great deal of confusion about what information is collected about them and how it is used. Privacy advocates say such tracking has reached alarming levels.

Meanwhile, Internet and advertising companies say that they are capable of regulating themselves and privacy legislation threatens to stifle the $23 billion Internet-ad market.

Rep. Rick Boucher (D., Va.), along with Rep. Cliff Stearns (R., Fla.), plan to post a draft of the bill on their websites on Tuesday, then solicit feedback for a two-month period. Legislators will then revise the bill for introduction during a House subcommittee hearing. To be sure, the proposal doesn't mean that Congress will pass a law.

Mr. Boucher revealed details of the much-anticipated legislation on Monday during a conference for American Business Media, a trade group of business-to-business publications, said Mark Sableman, a partner at the law firm Thompson Coburn and counsel to American Business Media.

Under the current draft, websites collecting information about their visitors would need to disclose to consumers how that information is collected and used, with whom it is shared and the circumstances under which that sharing takes place, Mr. Sableman said. If consumers decide they don't want their information to be collected or used for those stated purposes, they should be able to opt out directly on the site.

The regulation also lays out a separate set of regulations for outside companies that collect information about consumers on websites and target ads to those consumers on other, unrelated sites.

Consumers would need to grant these third-party companies special permission for their data to be collected. The draft legislation provides some exceptions. The ad company wouldn't need to solicit permission to collect information about consumers if the targeted ad includes a link that explains which company was involved in making the ad appear, shows consumers what information is collected about them and gives them the chance to opt out.

The draft also includes special restrictions for the collection of sensitive information, including financial information, medical history, government identifiers such as drivers' license and Social Security cards and information about children or adolescents.

The legislation would grant authority to the Federal Trade Commission to endorse the provisions of the bill.

"We haven't seen the bill, but protecting privacy is a priority for the FTC, as it is to Congressman Boucher, and we're eager to work with Congress as it crafts legislation to address privacy concerns," FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz said in a statement.

"Although I do not support all of the provisions in the draft, I look forward to getting back comments to improve the bill and then hopefully advance it through the committee process," Rep. Stearns said in a statement, noting that it was premature for him to comment on the legislation as it has yet to be made public. He said that the bill is based on earlier privacy legislation that he developed in 2005.

RISK OF CYBERATTACKS SEEN AS SERIOUS THREAT

2010-05-05T07:14:00.001+08:00

A new survey finds that while more than 90 percent of private and public sector security experts say cyber attacks pose a serious threat, they differ on whether each side is doing enough to protect their networks. The poll, released before the start of a worldwide cybersecurity summit in Dallas, found that 70 percent of government officials surveyed said private-sector networks were not secure enough, while only 39 percent of private sector security officials surveyed believed government networks were not secure enough.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/05/03/risk-of-cyberattacks-seen-as-serious-threat/ (Source: National Journal)

DATA PROTECTION LEADERS FOCUS ON SOCIAL- NETWORKING PRIVACY

2010-04-26T04:23:00.001+08:00

Data protection authorities from a range of countries held a teleconference to discuss how they can work together to protect what they see as a steady erosion of privacy by social networking services, and the European Union too is studying what role it can play. They may not be able to hold the social networking wave back, but policymakers are looking at what they can do to limit what they see as the “Big Brother”-like role of some sites.
Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/04/22/data-protection-leaders-focus-on-social-networking-privacy/ (Source: Reuters)

SEC WORKERS VIEWED PORN ONLINE

2010-04-26T04:17:00.001+08:00

As the country was sinking into its worst financial crisis in more than 70 years, Security and Exchange Commission employees and contractors cruised porn sites and viewed sexually explicit pictures using government computers, according to an agency report obtained by CNN. “During the past five years, the SEC OIG (Office of Inspector General) substantiated that 33 SEC employees and or contractors violated Commission rules and policies, as well as the government-wide Standards of Ethical Conduct, by viewing pornographic, sexually explicit or sexually suggestive images using government computer resources and official time,” said a summary of the investigation by the inspector general’s office.
Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/04/23/sec-workers-viewed-porn-online-report-says/ (Source: CNN.com)

TEN COUNTRIES TELL GOOGLE TO STRENGTHEN PRIVACY

2010-04-21T04:32:00.001+08:00

Privacy officials from ten countries sent Google Inc. a letter demanding that the Internet giant build more privacy protections into its services, the latest sign of increasingly international anxiety over Google’s power. The letter, reviewed by the Wall Street Journal, was signed by officials in Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain and the United Kingdom.
Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/04/19/ten-countries-tell-google-to-strengthen-privacy/ (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

SUPREME COURT HEARS CASE ON E-MAIL PRIVACY AT WORK

2010-04-21T04:30:00.001+08:00

An Obama administration lawyer urged the Supreme Court to rule that employees usually have no right to privacy when they send personal messages on computers, cellphones or other devices supplied by their employer. Nationwide, most employers have adopted policies telling workers they have no right to privacy when they use computers and cellphones supplied by an employer, said Deputy Solicitor Gen. Neal Katyal.
Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/04/19/supreme-court-hears-case-on-e-mail-privacy-at-work/ (Source: Los Angeles Times)

FACEBOOK TO DISCUSS CHILD PROTECTION ISSUES

2010-04-14T09:33:00.002+08:00

Facebook executives are due to meet the head of a British child protection agency in Washington to discuss safety measures on the social networking site. It has been criticized by the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) center for not installing “panic buttons” on every page.

Read the article: http://gigalaw.com/2010/04/12/facebook-to-discuss-child-protection-issues/ (Source: BBC News)

FINALLY, THE LAW IS HERE

2010-04-08T08:45:00.008+08:00

By Abu Bakar Munir

The long wait is over. On Monday 5 April 2010, the Dewan Rakyat at about 7.30 p.m, after quite an exciting and interesting debate, passed the Malaysian Personal Data Protection Bill. It was a special privilege to be able to assist the Minister in responding to the questions from the Members of Parliament (MPs). All of them, from BN and opposition parties, acknowledged and supported the Bill. They differ, however, in term of what should be in it. It is a special thrill to see the passage of this crucial law.

The first in ASEAN, the law provides rules and regulations as to how data users should manage and process personal data of their workers, customers, suppliers, etc. The law also gives certain rights to the data subjects. Some new criminal offences have been created in relation to processing of personal data.

For the existing data users, they are required to comply with the law within three months from the date of coming into operation of the Act. Companies and organizations are required to be registered as data users to enable them to process personal data.

Data subjects, under the law, among others, would have the right to prevent processing likely to cause damage or distress. More importantly, the law empowers data subjects the right to prevent processing of personal data for purposes of direct marketing.

Data protection is not rocket science. It is about respect and common sense. Good data protection is good business.

LAWMAKERS WANT FTC PROBE OF GOOGLE BUZZ

2010-03-30T13:21:00.002+08:00

By Grant Gross

DG News Service - Eleven U.S. lawmakers have asked the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to investigate Google's launch of its Buzz social-networking product for breaches of consumer privacy. The representatives -- six Democrats and five Republicans from the House Energy and Commerce Committee -- noted in their letter that Google's roll-out of Buzz exposed private information of users to Google's Gmail service to outsiders. In one case, a 9-year-old girl accidentally shared her contact list in Gmail with a person who has a "sexually charged" username, the lawmakers said in the letter, sent to the FTC Friday and released Monday.

"Due to the high number of individuals whose online privacy is affected by tools like this -- either directly or indirectly --- we feel that these claims warrant the commission's review of Google's public disclosure of personal information of consumers through Google Buzz," said the letter, organized by Representative John Barrow, a Georgia Democrat.

In the original public version of Buzz, launched in February, the program compiled a list of the Gmail contacts the users most frequently e-mailed or chatted with and automatically started following those people. Those lists were made public, giving strangers access to the contacts of Buzz users.

There were a flurry of complaints from Gmail users, and Google made changes to Buzz within a couple of days. Asked for a response to the letter, a Google spokeswoman said user transparency and control are important to the company. "When we realized that we'd unintentionally made many of our users unhappy, we moved quickly to make significant product improvements to address their concerns," she said, repeating Google's past statements on Buzz. "Our door is always open to discuss additional ways to improve our products and services moving forward. "

The lawmakers asked the FTC to get answers to four questions from Google, including whether the company will revise its Gmail privacy policy to obtain consent from consumers for sharing their information. The lawmakers also want to know if Google was using the personal information collected through Buzz to deliver targeted advertising. The representatives also questioned how Google's planned acquisition of mobile advertising vendor AdMob will affect consumer privacy. In mid-March, outgoing FTC member Pamela Jones Harbour ripped into Google for its handling of Buzz, calling the product's launch "irresponsible conduct."

In February, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed a complaint with the FTC, saying that Google Buzz engaged in unfair and deceptive practices that violated Google's privacy policy and federal wiretap laws.