privacy

'Virtual' fence along U.S.-Mexico border delayed

The Bush administration's plan to outfit the U.S.-Mexico border with a "virtual" fence consisting of sensors, cameras, and drone aircraft is running into technical snags.

Federal officials told a congressional committee on Wednesday that the first phase of the project--consisting of about 100 miles near Yuma and Tuscon, Ariz., and El Paso, Texas--won't likely be completed until 2011, about three years later than expected, according to The Washington Post. The task is being overseen by the Department of Homeland Security and has been contracted out to Boeing.

For years, the Bush administration has been heralding … Read more

EFF sues Justice Department over Google privacy hire

Update at 8:50 a.m. to clarify judge ruling in subpoena case, and at 2:55 p.m. to add further comment from the EFF.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice seeking information about communications between a former top privacy official and Google, which eventually hired the official.

At the time Jane Horvath was named as the Justice Department's chief privacy and civil-liberties officer in February 2006, Google was challenging a subpoena by the department for Web searches. A federal judge granted part of a Justice Department request for … Read more

Another mouse to help keep you employed

Even after seeing all the crazy functions that have been incorporated into the once-lowly mouse, we never anticipated that privacy would be one of them. Yet that was the stated goal of a combo Skype phone-mouse we saw recently, and now it's been cited for another one as well.

There are many different types of privacy, however, and the purpose of the "USB Smart Privacy Mouse" isn't to protect confidential conversations and such--instead, it's intended to keep prying eyes from snooping on your computer monitor. That makes it quite similar to the "Phantom Mouse&… Read more

Google scrambles to avoid EU privacy regulators

Google could soon be forced to delete identifying user information from its search logs, statements by the European Union data regulators suggest. The search engine's lawyers have long argued that network addresses don't really count as personal information, and even if they did, the company's policy of masking the last few digits of an IP address after 18 months is more than sufficient. European regulators don't appear to be buying Google's claims.

According to an Associated Press report, European data privacy regulators confirmed this past Thursday that Internet search engines based outside Europe must also … Read more

Don't like targeted ads? Opt out, says online ad group

Update 3:45 pm PT with comment from EPIC.

PHOENIX--The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has proposed new privacy guidelines related to online advertising that offer weaker consumer notice and choice requirements than the U.S. Federal Trade Commission wants.

The guidelines were released ahead of Ecosystem 2.0, the IAB's annual meeting here, which starts Sunday night. They will be submitted to the FTC before March 1, the IAB said. (CNET News.com is a member of the organization.)

It's likely that the FTC won't be thrilled with the IAB proposals, though.

In proposed privacy principles unveiled in December, … Read more

Searching through the looking glass

If this concept Internet search device by designer Mac Funamizu takes off, the privacy advocates will be out in force to protest.

It's like having Wikipedia wherever you go, but way cooler and far more advanced. The artist's idea is for this portable device to have a touch screen, built-in camera, scanner, Wi-Fi connectivity, Google Maps, and Google Search capabilities, among other features.

The screen would probably double as the camera viewfinder, so it would be like looking through a piece of transparent glass. And when you point it at an object, the screen would show more details … Read more

Google to kick-start medical records program with Cleveland Clinic

Update at 12:19 PM PT: This story was updated to reflect the World Privacy Forum's position on PHRs in general.

Google is set to announce on Thursday that it will be using the Cleveland Clinic hospital in Cleveland, Ohio as the pilot site for its new personal health records initiative.

Between 1,500 and 10,000 patients at the Cleveland, Ohio, facility will participate in the project's test run, volunteering to have their medical records transferred to their Google accounts. The hospital already keeps electronic records for over 100,000 patients in an internal system called MyChart, … Read more

Google says ISP glitch exposes Gmail data in Kuwait

Updated February 21 with further comments from the Gmail customer in Kuwait, plus comments from eBay and a reader from Sri Lanka.

A glitch with an Internet service provider in Kuwait has enabled at least one Gmail user to access others' Gmail accounts, Google said Wednesday.

A Gmail user in Kuwait reported to CNET News.com over the weekend that he had been having trouble for most of the day logging into his account. More troubling, though, was the fact that he was able to see other people's private information, including scores of personal e-mail messages, "keycodes for … Read more

Parents, protect your kids from identity theft

Adults are increasingly aware of the risks of identity theft, but how many of us think about protecting our children's identities? This is an issue that we should be thinking about from birth, when baby registries, online birth announcements, and even the "Stork News" sign in the front yard expose kids' personal information--name gender, date of birth, and home address--to the wider world.

Children who get their identities stolen may not know for years, until they grow up and go to apply for a job, student loan, or credit card themselves. You can imagine what a mess … Read more