Privacy News for September 17, 2021

September 17, 2021 By Eric Stroshane 1 Comment

Privacy and the Pandemic

How Walgreen’s sloppy Covid-19 test registration system exposed patient data | Recode
Privacy concerns remain over mandatory Covid record-keeping [New Zealand] | TVNZ
Ottawa Hospital apologizes for privacy breach among unvaccinated employees | CTV News
Australia’s two largest states trial facial recognition software to police pandemic rules | KFGO

Students’ and Minors’ Privacy

Students campaign to keep facial recognition out of schools | The Sun
Fingerprint scanning in SU [Syracuse University] dining halls raises privacy concerns among students | Daily Orange
MSU [Michigan State University] Museum presents exhibit on surveillance | FOX47

Government Surveillance

Utah librarians talk about 9/11, the Patriot Act, and how they became privacy warriors | Salt Lake Tribune
The Other 20-Year Anniversary: Freedom and Surveillance Post-9/11 | EFF
Spy in Disguise: An FBI Informant’s Unlikely Role in Upcoming Supreme Court Case on Surveillance of Muslims | The Intercept
Policing Via Facial Recognition Technology May Affect Vulnerable Groups, Says Report [India] | Bloomberg Quint
Geofence Warrants Threaten Civil Liberties and Free Speech Rights in Kenosha and Nationwide | EFF
Pa. GOP lawmakers seek access to 7 million voters’ personal information | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Law Enforcement’s Use of Commercial Phone Data Stirs Surveillance Fight | The Wall Street Journal

Surveillance Capitalism

Money, mimicry, and mind control: Big Tech slams ethics brakes on AI | Reuters
Hexagon Debuts Security and Surveillance for Rail | Railway Age

Biometric Privacy

How 9/11 sparked the rise of America’s biometrics security empire | Fast Company
Joe Biden to nominate facial recognition critic to FTC | The Verge
What the West’s Disorderly Withdrawal from Afghanistan Tells Us About Privacy and its Preservation | Privacy News Online
Brahmask launches face biometrics API tolerant of pandemic-related occlusions | BiometricUpdate.com

Laws, Regulations, and Legislation

Alabama drops lawsuit challenging Census privacy method | FOX5
Portland’s facial-recognition ban seen as model for U.S. | Argus Observer
Privacy concerns linger around new EU data sharing Protocol | BiometricUpdate.com

Encryption

WhatsApp will finally let users encrypt their chat backups in the cloud | TechCrunch
Critical encryption vulnerability found in secure communications platform Matrix | The Daily Swig
WhatsApp’s End-to-End Encryption Isn’t Actually Broken | ThreatPost
New Encryption Technique Better Protects Photographs in the Cloud | Scientific American

This Week in Data Breaches and Leaks

Stolen Credentials Led to Data Theft at United Nations | ThreatPost
MyRepublic Data Breach Raises Data-Protection Questions | ThreatPost
Fitbit, Apple user data exposed in breach impacting 61M fitness tracker records | Fierce Healthcare
Apple Issues Emergency Security Updates to Close a Spyware Flaw | The New York Times

Filed Under: News and Updates

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Guidelines for Private Online Searching & Browsing Julie Oborny
There are few options for searching without being tracked. To search anonymously from home requires tech-savvy and money. This is something many people do not have. Libraries should help any user access information anonymously. Guidelines A group of library privacy experts created the following guidelines. Use them to bolster your efforts. Starting a Computer or Wi-Fi Session Offer Guest User Options: Allow users to log in to public computers and Wi-Fi without using their personal library card. This can be facilitated through the use of guest passes. Do not require identification or keep logs of users who check out a guest pass or sign in as a guest. Avoid Paper Sign-up Sheets: Do NOT have paper sign-up sheets for the computers. If there is no other option, practice the following: Staff should always be in control of these paper sign-up sheets Only require the minimum amount of data needed for reserving a computer. Shred paper sheets at the end of the day. Filtering Software No Logging: Filtering software should not log user activity. Ensure and verify that this is not happening on filtered computers. Guest Passes: If disabling logging is not possible, offer a guest pass at no charge. Age Data: Do not capture proof of age when removing filters. Just verify. Erasing Computer Sessions Public Computers: Set public computers to load a fresh computer image after each user session. Software example: Deep Freeze. End sessions automatically if the user forgets to log out at the end of a session. Circulated/Loaned Devices: Reset or reimage borrowed devices at point of check-in. Examples of devices: laptops, tablets, and other mobile devices. Session Logs: Do not store logs of users’ computer or Wi-Fi sessions for longer than 24 hours. Delete computer reservation and Wi-Fi session logs that contain personal information. Include this practice as a closing activity. Do not collect information about user activity during a public computer or Wi-Fi session. Activity examples: applications used and web browser activity. Printers: Clear the print queue for the print management system daily. Physical Protections Physical Space: Arrange the physical library space for privacy. People should be able to use personal technology without observation. If security cameras are required inside the buildings, optimize for privacy. Check to make sure they are not pointed toward screens or other places where they may record library use. Privacy Screens: Provide easily accessible privacy screens. These screens should be available for any user who needs one. If possible, install privacy screens on all public computers. Shredding: Shred print-outs left at the printer. Provide access to shredders for users. Browsers & Search Tools Default Search: Set DuckDuckGo as the default search for all browsers. Default Browsers: Set the default browser on computers to Brave or Firefox. Anonymous Search with Tor: Install the Tor browser on all public access computers. Provide guides for users about how to use Tor for anonymous searching. Training For Users Guides: Provide guides to users who wish to remain anonymous online. Examples: Personal Accounts: Do not log in to any personal accounts during the entire session. Examples: Google Amazon Facebook Learning Management Systems Private vs. Public: Treat school or work cloud-document services as public record. Don’t use these services to keep track of sensitive information. Search Tools: Use a privacy-focused search engine, such as DuckDuckGo. Mobile Browsers: Download privacy-focused browsers on mobile devices. Examples: Firefox Focus Brave Tor DuckDuckGo Tech Help: Assist users in installing encrypted messaging apps, such as Signal. Programs: Device Settings: Teach users how to turn off the following on their devices: Personalized advertising or ad tracking (iOS and Android) Location sharing Unused and unnecessary app permissions VPNs: Teach users about virtual private networks (VPNs): How to pick one. Refer to https://ssd.eff.org/en/module/choosing-vpn-thats-right-you How to install one. This depends on the VPN. How to use one. This depends on the VPN. Attendance: Allow people to attend these training programs anonymously. Alternatives: Provide digital and physical resources for those who are unable or unwilling to attend in person. Example: https://sec.eff.org/ For Staff New Hires: Include privacy training as part of new-hire onboarding. Ongoing: Have regular privacy training for library workers. State Laws: Review state laws on confidentiality of library use data. Do this with all library workers. Communication: Share updates on changes in privacy issues. Do this especially for state and national laws.
Data Privacy Week – January 24-28, 2022 Stacy Tomaszewski
This year, the National Cybersecurity Alliance (NCSA) has expanded its Data Privacy Day to a week! Data Privacy Day started in 2008 as a North American complement to Data Protection Day in Europe. The purpose of Data Privacy Week is to help “spread awareness about online privacy and [educate] citizens on how to manage their personal information and keep it secure” and to “ [encourage] businesses to respect data and be more transparent about how they collect and use customer data.”
Book review of ‘Cyber Privacy: Who Has Your Data and Why You Should Care’ Virginia Dressler
“Data, I’ve found, is becoming like the weather; it’s something that almost anyone can talk about.” Cyber Privacy by April Falcon Doss is a timely title on so many key issues around data privacy in the online world– And Doss is well-positioned to write on this topic, with her thirteen years working at the NSA and later working in a private sector practice focusing on cyber-security and privacy issues. I found this title to be a thoughtful and well-written perspective, primarily centered on the U.S.