Privacy
Twitter fixes security bug that exposed at least 5.4 million accounts
Twitter says it has fixed a security vulnerability that allowed threat actors to compile information of 5.4 million Twitter accounts, which were listed for sale on a known cybercrime forum. The vulner
DuckDuckGo removes carve-out for Microsoft tracking scripts after securing policy change
A few months on from a tracking controversy hitting privacy-centric search veteran, DuckDuckGo, the company has announced it’s been able to amend terms with Microsoft, its search syndication par
Tutanota cries antitrust foul over Microsoft Teams blocking sign-ups for its email users
Microsoft is being called out for blocking users of the end-to-end encrypted email service Tutanota from registering an account with its cloud-based collaboration platform, Teams, if they try to do th
Sensitive data of Indian pension fund holders exposed online
A huge cache of data containing the full name, bank account number and nominee information of pension fund holders in India has surfaced online. Security researcher Bob Diachenko found two separate IP
Sensitive data ruling by Europe’s top court could force broad privacy reboot
A ruling put out yesterday by the European Union’s top court could have major implications for online platforms that use background tracking and profiling to target users with behavioral ads or
Google delays move away from cookies in Chrome to 2024
Google is again delaying plans to phase out Chrome’s use of third-party cookies — the files websites use to remember preferences and track online activity. In a blog post, Anthony Chavez,
Google really doesn’t want its Glass successor to piss you off
From Project Ara to Wave, Google has a rich history of bailing on neat ideas when the going gets tough. Yet unlike those forgone experiments, augmented-reality glasses apparently aren’t doomed t
This niche cryptographic technique could transform privacy in web3
Privacy is a core concern in crypto. Once you know a crypto wallet address corresponds to a certain individual, you can track all the transactions that individual has made through their wallet on any
Europe’s health data reuse plan needs some surgery, say privacy supervisors
A proposal put forward by European Union lawmakers in May, to establish a legal framework to make it easier to share electronic health records and other medical data — across borders and care in
Selfie scraping Clearview AI hit with another €20M ban order in Europe
Clearview AI has been hit with another sanction for breaching European privacy rules. The Athens-based Hellenic data protection authority has fined the controversial facial recognition firm €20 mill
TikTok ‘pauses’ privacy policy switch in Europe after regulatory scrutiny
TikTok has agreed to pause a controversial privacy policy update in Europe, which had been due to happen tomorrow, and would have meant the platform stopped asking users for their consent to be tracke
Children’s rights groups call out TikTok’s ‘design discrimination’
Research examining default settings and terms & conditions offered to minors by social media giants TikTok, WhatsApp and Instagram across 14 different countries — including the U.S., Brazil,
Italy warns TikTok over privacy policy switch
TikTok’s attempt to switch legal basis for targeting advertising at users in Europe looks to be in trouble after Italy’s data protection watchdog stepped in and issued a warning of legal inadequac
Biden order fortifies data privacy ahead of state-by-state legal battle over abortion
An executive order signed by President Biden places the White House’s weight firmly behind states where access to abortion is guaranteed, urging the FTC and other executive entities to examine a
TechCrunch+ roundup: Abortion ban’s hiring impact, 3 e-commerce trends, how to pivot a startup
The Bay Area long ago lost its monopoly on launching disruptive technology, but startups based in states that ban abortion are at a disadvantage when it comes to attracting talent.
A huge data leak of 1 billion records exposes China’s vast surveillance state
A massive store of data containing information on about one billion Chinese residents could be one of the biggest breaches of personal information in history. Portions of the leaked data appeared last
Summer decision looms for Facebook’s EU-US data transfers
The wheels of privacy enforcement are slowly turning against Facebook in Europe — where its lead data protection regulator, Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC), has taken a key proc
UK could force E2E encrypted platforms to do CSAM-scanning
The U.K. government has tabled an amendment to the Online Safety Bill that could put it on a collision course with end-to-end encryption. It’s proposing to give the incoming internet regulator,
Google’s ‘deceptive’ account sign-up process targeted with GDPR complaints
Consumer rights groups in Europe have filed a new series of privacy complaints against Google — accusing the advertising giant of deceptive design around the account creation process that they say s
UK urgently needs new laws on use of biometrics, warns review
An independent review of UK legislation has concluded the country urgently needs new laws to govern the use of biometric technologies and called for the government to come forward with primary legisla