Hundreds of Android and iOS apps use your mic to check what TV shows you are watching
Advertisers are keen for their ads to be seen, that goes without saying. But it's more important to be seen by the right people, hence the explosion in targeted advertising. Social media is a great way to gather massive amounts of data about people and deliver ads accordingly, but some mobile games take things further.
There are a large number of games for both iOS and Android which include Alphonso software. This uses smartphones' microphones to record audio which is then used to determine which TV shows and commercials you're watching -- and then deliver targeted ads accordingly. Is this being done in secret? Not really. Details of the activities are included in Alphonso software's privacy policy.
Privacy: Kodi's remote access could be used to spy on you
There's no denying the massive popularity of Kodi, and the streaming media center has become infamous as well as famous. While the negative press concerning the software tends to focus on the potential for piracy, there's also the question of privacy and security.
Kodi includes -- as does the likes of Plex -- a remote access feature. While wonderfully useful for when you're away from home, it also poses a security risk and represents a serious privacy concern if not correctly configured.
Facebook to use facial recognition to notify users when photos of them are uploaded
A new feature touted as a privacy tool sees Facebook automatically identifying users in photographs that are uploaded. It uses the same technology already employed to make image tagging suggestions.
The social networking giant is using facial recognition to alert people when someone uploads a photo of them, regardless of whether they have been tagged in the image. For the feature to work, Facebook users will have to agree to the company keeping a record of them in a facial database.
Privacy: WhatsApp told to stop sharing user data with Facebook
A French privacy watchdog has ordered WhatsApp to stop sharing user data with Facebook. The CNIL (National Data Protection Commission) issued the Facebook-owned company with formal notice to cease violations of the French Data Protection Act, suggesting that user consent was not properly obtained.
A change to WhatsApp's privacy policy last year saw the app transferring data to its parent company for the purposes of "business intelligence" and security purposes. It is the business intelligence side of things -- which analyses user behaviour -- that France considers illegal.
Consumers lack data breach awareness
New research from cyber exposure company Tenable reveals a widespread lack of consumer awareness surrounding the impact of data breaches.
The results based on an online Harris Poll of more than 2000 US adults show that only 12 percent think their data has been stolen over the past year. But given the Equifax breach exposed up to 143 million Americans, that number is statistically impossible.
Your HP laptop may be harboring a secret keylogger in Synaptics touchpad drivers
If you have an HP laptop, there's a reasonable chance that you have an keylogger installed. The tool is embedded in Synaptics touchpad drivers.
Before you start panicking too much, it's worth noting that the keylogging capabilities of the tool are disabled by default, but that's not to say there's no cause for alarm. This may all sound slightly familiar; back in May, HP hit the headlines for a keylogger that was buried in an audio driver. If you want to check if you are affected by the latest privacy violation -- and what you can do about it -- read on...
70 percent of UK consumers have not heard of GDPR
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is set to extensively change data privacy rules in the EU in May, yet a new survey from compliance solution PORT.im shows 70 percent of consumers are completely unaware of their new rights and haven't even heard of the legislation.
The study also finds that 78 percent of consumers have recently had unsolicited contact from UK-based businesses.
Privacy: Popular ai.type keyboard leaks personal details of 31 million users
Third-party Android and iOS keyboard ai-type is at the center of something of a privacy nightmare after a misconfigured database leaked the personal details of more than 31 million of its users.
Researchers at Kromtech Security Center discovered an unprotected database had been exposed by developers, revealing incredibly detailed information about its users. The database was found to be freely available for anyone to download, with no password required to access a treasure trove of information.
60 percent of organizations aren't ready for GDPR
With the deadline of May 2018 looming closer, a new survey shows 60 percent of respondents in the EU and 50 percent in the US say they face some serious challenges in being GDPR compliant.
The study by data protection specialist Varonis polled 500 cyber security professionals in organizations with over 1000 employees in the UK, Germany, France and the US and finds more than half (57 percent) of professionals are concerned about compliance with the standard.
Privacy: Google updates Safe Browsing rules so apps must warn when they collect personal data
Google is introducing changes to its Safe Browsing policies, requiring Android apps to display their own privacy warning if they collect users' personal data. The company says that if app developers refuse to comply, Google will display a warning of its own.
Developers have been given 60 days to comply with what is described as an expansion of Google's existing Unwanted Software Policy. Interestingly, it does not matter whether apps are featured in Google Play or they come via other marketplaces.
Privacy: UK government to tweak Snooper's Charter after conceding it is illegal in its current form
The highly controversial Snooper's Charter -- also known as the Investigatory Powers Act -- is, the government has been forced to admit, illegal under European law in its current form.
The Brexit process may well be underway, but at the moment, the UK is still subject to EU law. As such, the government is making changes to the law. While the tweaks will not change the level of surveillance people are subjected to, they will restrict who has automatic access to that information.
Google faces class action lawsuit for gathering personal data from millions of iPhone users
A group going by the name Google You Owe Us is taking Google to court in the UK, complaining that the company harvested personal data from 5.4 million iPhone users.
The group is led by Richard Lloyd, director of consumer group Which?, and it alleges that Google bypassed privacy settings on iPhones between June 2011 and February 2012. The lawsuit seeks compensation for those affected by what is described as a "violation of trust."
Facebook may start using selfies to verify logins
Some Facebook users have reported that the social network is asking them to upload a selfie as a means of verifying their identity.
It seems that the company is testing out a new form of captcha as it asks that you "upload a photo of yourself that clearly shows your face." Just like Facebook's recent idea that users could protect themselves against revenge porn by uploading naked images of themselves, the test is likely to raise concerns about privacy.
Privacy: a huge proportion of Android apps are secretly tracking you
A joint research project between Yale University's Privacy Lab and French non-profit Exodus Privacy has uncovered widescale tracking in a large number of Android apps. The likes of Tinder, Spotify, Uber, Twitter and Snapchat -- as well as masses of lesser-known apps -- were found to be riddled with snooping components relating to no less than 25 well-known trackers.
In all, around three quarters of apps were found to gather personal information about users via a variety of third-party tracking techniques. Researchers have published their findings online so Android users can check if their favorite apps are snooping on them.
Privacy: Google caught tracking Android users' whereabouts even if location services are disabled
For those concerned about their privacy, location services is just one more setting to disable on their phone. But Google has now revealed that it is not only able to, but actually does track the location of Android users even if location services are disabled.
More than this, Google records the addresses of nearby cell towers -- thereby giving a very good idea of location -- even when there is no SIM card in a phone and no apps are used. This data has been collected since the beginning of the year.
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