One in five healthcare files is open to all employees
A new report from Varonis reveals some startling statistics about healthcare data, with almost 20 percent of files open to all employees in an organization.
In addition the average healthcare organization has over 31,000 files -- including those that include HIPAA-protected information, financial data, and proprietary research -- open to everyone.
Digital first census raises security concerns
This year for the first time the UK's ten yearly census -- used to collect information to determine future government policy and spending -- is 'digital first' with people encouraged to fill in their returns online rather than use a paper form.
But research conducted by YouGov for security analytics and automation company Exabeam finds that many people are worried about how the data will be stored and used.
Slack rolls back controversial messaging feature within hours of its introduction
Messaging platform Slack yesterday rolled out a new feature called Connect DM that made it possible to send direct messages to anyone using the service -- regardless of whether they are part of the same company or workspace.
We say "made it possible" in the past tense because Slack was very quickly forced into something of an embarrassing partial u-turn. The company somehow failed to notice the potential for such a feature to be abused, and it was down to users and media outlets to point this out. Within hours, a key change was introduced to Connect DM to help eliminate spam and abuse.
Security and privacy knowledge is good but bad habits persist
New research from NordVPN finds that people around the world generally have good security and privacy knowledge, but still indulge in bad habits.
NordVPN ranked 21 countries by their performance, placing Germans at the top and -- perhaps surprisingly -- the Japanese at the bottom.
How changes to tracking will affect the online world [Q&A]
The Identifier for Advertisers (IDFA) is a random device identifier assigned to a user's device which advertisers use to track data so they can deliver customized advertising.
But Apple is about to replace the iOS IDFA tracking system in iOS 14 with a new App Tracking Transparency (ATT) feature which will allow iPhone users to opt-out of tracking on third-party apps and sites. This, plus Google's crack down on third-party cookies, means privacy is a hot topic currently -- and all signs point to even more shifts in the coming year.
Microsoft is experimenting with sharing browsing data from Edge with Windows 10
Over the years there has been an increasing awareness of -- and backlash against -- the telemetry and data collection Microsoft has crowbarred into Windows 10. A new experiment with its Edge browser shows that the company is keen to make greater use of the information it gathers about its customers.
In the latest Canary build of Microsoft Edge, there is a new setting called "share browsing data with other Windows features". While optional, it is a feature that is likely to be eyed with skepticism.
Excess permissions put Android app users' data at risk
Over a third of the 1,020 most-downloaded Android apps on the Google Play store request access to a user's camera -- despite no obvious benefit for user experience and potentially placing sensitive data at risk.
Research from CyberNews also shows one in three apps request access to track a user's precise, or approximate, location. Excluding those that require such access to function, such as weather or navigation, applications attempting invasive access included gaming and even wallpaper, which appear to have no legitimate reason to track location data.
76 percent of US employees have inappropriate access to sensitive files
A new report from vArmour shows that 76 percent of employees have inappropriate access to a sensitive file, and 76 percent were granted inappropriate access to sensitive files within the past year.
IT leaders surveyed also expressed concern about inappropriate or malicious access to applications and data, with 47 percent concerned about malicious actors impersonating employees and 41 percent concerned about inappropriate access to sensitive information.
A third of enterprises suffer unauthorized cloud access
Last month we reported on public sector organizations suffering from cloud leakage. A new report out today shows that this is an issue in the private sector too.
The report from cloud governance platform CloudSphere reveals that 32 percent of enterprises have experienced unauthorized access to their cloud resources.
Never send the wrong email attachment again
Many of us will at some point have attached the wrong file to an email or sent an attachment to the wrong person.
This is more than an inconvenience as it could end up exposing sensitive data. But thanks to a new feature from Tessian you may never make an attachment error again.
Expert tips for Safer Internet Day
Today is Safer Internet Day, held annually to promote making the internet a safer and better place for all and particularly for children and younger users.
Industry experts have been keen to offer their their views and advice and we've put together a round up of some of the best.
The challenges of navigating breach notification rules [Q&A]
New and updated privacy legislation is being launched around the world and a key component of these acts is breach notification requirements, which mean a business is required to notify individuals when their information falls into the hands of an attacker.
We spoke to Ralph Nickl, founder and CEO of Canopy Software to find out what what enterprises and consumers need to know about these laws and the challenges that compliance brings.
Ashampoo AntiSpy Pro will protect you against all sorts of telemetry
If you are using a computer, the companies that make the software you use every day are probably gathering data about you. While some of this is obvious -- there is a reason you see the ads you do online, after all -- some of it is more covert.
Software from the likes of Google, Microsoft and other big names include telemetry components that can invade privacy by collecting personal data. Instead of manually working through settings, or tinkering with the registry, you can turn to the newly released Ashampoo AntiSpy Pro to help protect your privacy.
Consumers worry about privacy but don't want to change their habits
A survey released to coincide with Data Privacy Day reveals that although 80 percent of consumers are concerned about their data privacy, few are willing to change their habits.
The study from Entrust, based on responses from 500 adults in the US and 500 in the UK, shows 64 percent of consumers are willing to some degree to share personal information with an app in exchange for more relevant, personalized and/or convenient services.
Industry expert views for Data Privacy Day
Depending on who you talk to today is either Data Privacy Day or Data Protection Day. But whatever you want to call it the idea is to focus attention on the importance of best practices for looking after sensitive information.
In the current environment with distributed workforces and more transactions taking place online, this is more important than ever. We've rounded up opinions from some leading industry figures on the current state of data privacy and what can still be improved.
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