Category: searches

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People-Search Site Removal Services Largely Ineffective

Posted on By infossl
privacy, reports, searches, Security technology, Uncategorized

Consumer Reports has a new study of people-search site removal services, concluding that they don’t really work: As a whole, people-search removal services are largely ineffective. Private information about each participant on the people-search sites decreased after using the people-search removal services. And, not surprisingly, the removal services did save time compared with manually opting … Read More “People-Search Site Removal Services Largely Ineffective” »

Large-Scale Collection of Cell Phone Data at US Borders

Posted on By infossl
borders, cell phones, privacy, searches, Security technology, surveillance, Uncategorized

The Washington Post is reporting that the US Customs and Border Protection agency is seizing and copying cell phone, tablet, and computer data from “as many as” 10,000 phones per year, including an unspecified number of American citizens. This is done without a warrant, because “…courts have long granted an exception to border authorities, allowing … Read More “Large-Scale Collection of Cell Phone Data at US Borders” »

US Journalist Detained When Returning to US

Posted on By infossl
borders, email, lawenforcement, privacy, searches, Security technology, surveillance

Pretty horrible story of a US journalist who had his computer and phone searched at the border when returning to the US from Mexico. After I gave him the password to my iPhone, Moncivias spent three hours reviewing hundreds of photos and videos and emails and calls and texts, including encrypted messages on WhatsApp, Signal, … Read More “US Journalist Detained When Returning to US” »

Former Mozilla CTO Harassed at the US Border

Posted on By infossl
aclu, borders, nationalsecuritypolicy, searches, Security technology

This is a pretty awful story of how Andreas Gal, former Mozilla CTO and US citizen, was detained and threatened at the US border. CBP agents demanded that he unlock his phone and computer. Know your rights when you enter the US. The EFF publishes a handy guide. And if you want to encrypt your … Read More “Former Mozilla CTO Harassed at the US Border” »

Accessing Cell Phone Location Information

Posted on By infossl
cellphones, lawenforcement, privacy, searches, Security technology, surveillance, tracking

The New York Times is reporting about a company called Securus Technologies that gives police the ability to track cell phone locations without a warrant: The service can find the whereabouts of almost any cellphone in the country within seconds. It does this by going through a system typically used by marketers and other companies … Read More “Accessing Cell Phone Location Information” »

Facebook and Cambridge Analytica

Posted on By infossl
breaches, datacollection, facebook, privacy, searches, Security technology, surveillance

In the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, news articles and commentators have focused on what Facebook knows about us. A lot, it turns out. It collects data from our posts, our likes, our photos, things we type and delete without posting, and things we do while not on Facebook and even when we’re offline. … Read More “Facebook and Cambridge Analytica” »

Warrant Protections against Police Searches of Our Data

Posted on By infossl
cellphones, courts, police, privacy, searches, Security technology

The cell phones we carry with us constantly are the most perfect surveillance device ever invented, and our laws haven’t caught up to that reality. That might change soon. This week, the Supreme Court will hear a case with profound implications on your security and privacy in the coming years. The Fourth Amendment’s prohibition of … Read More “Warrant Protections against Police Searches of Our Data” »

Inmates Secretly Build and Network Computers while in Prison

Posted on By infossl
concealment, networksecurity, prisons, searches, Security technology

This is kind of amazing: Inmates at a medium-security Ohio prison secretly assembled two functioning computers, hid them in the ceiling, and connected them to the Marion Correctional Institution’s network. The hard drives were loaded with pornography, a Windows proxy server, VPN, VOIP and anti-virus software, the Tor browser, password hacking and e-mail spamming tools, … Read More “Inmates Secretly Build and Network Computers while in Prison” »

NSA Abandons “About” Searches

Posted on By infossl
fisa, nationalsecuritypolicy, nsa, patriotact, privacy, searches, Security technology, surveillance

Earlier this month, the NSA said that it would no longer conduct “about” searches of bulk communications data. This was the practice of collecting the communications of Americans based on keywords and phrases in the contents of the messages, not based on who they were from or to. The NSA’s own words: After considerable evaluation … Read More “NSA Abandons “About” Searches” »