surveillance
Featured Article
‘Reverse’ searches: The sneaky ways that police tap tech companies for your private data
Reverse searches cast a digital dragnet over a tech company’s store of user data to catch the information that police are looking for.
Spyware makers express concern after US sanctions spyware veteran
Earlier this week, the U.S. government announced sanctions against the founder of a controversial government spyware maker, Tal Dilian, and his business associate, Sara Aleksandra Fayssal Hamou. In announcing the…
US sanctions founder of spyware maker Intellexa for targeting Americans
The U.S. government announced Tuesday sanctions against the founder of the notorious spyware company Intellexa and one of his business partners. This is the first time the U.S. government has…
Featured Article
Spyware startup Variston is losing staff — some say it’s closing
In July 2022, someone sent Google a batch of malicious code that could be used to hack Chrome, Firefox, and PCs running Microsoft Defender. That code was part of an exploitation framework called Heliconia. And at the time, the exploits used to target those applications were zero-days, meaning the software makers were unaware of the…
Government hackers targeted iPhone owners with zero-days, Google says
Government hackers last year exploited three unknown vulnerabilities in Apple’s iPhone operating system to target victims with spyware developed by a European startup, according to Google. On Tuesday, Google’s Threat…
We all make mistakes. But sometimes we forget that technology does, too — especially when it comes to AI, which is still in its early days in many respects.
Featured Article
A geofence warrant typo cast a location dragnet spanning two miles over San Francisco
Civil liberties advocates have long argued that “geofence” search warrants are unconstitutional for their ability to ensnare entirely innocent people who were nearby at the time a crime was committed. But errors in the geofence warrant applications that go before a judge can violate the privacy of vastly more people — in one case almost…
Featured Article
It’s not all doom and gloom: When cybersecurity gave us hope in 2023
A funny — but true — joke at TechCrunch is that the security desk might as well be called the Department of Bad News, since, well, have you seen what we’ve covered of late? There is a never-ending supply of devastating breaches, pervasive surveillance and dodgy startups flogging the downright dangerous. Sometimes though — albeit…
Featured Article
Tech gifts you shouldn’t buy your family and friends for the holidays
It’s the season to go a little overboard on gift giving. But this year, give the gift of good security (and privacy) and eschew tech that can have untoward risks or repercussions. We’re not talking about things that go boom in the night or abruptly break, but rather the gifts that can have irreversible or…
Featured Article
Google moves to end geofence warrants, a surveillance problem it largely created
Google will soon allow users to store their location data on their devices rather than on Google’s servers, effectively ending a long-running surveillance practice that allowed police and law enforcement to tap Google’s vast banks of location data to identify potential criminals. The use of “geofence warrants” have exploded in recent years, in large part…
Apple will no longer give police users’ push notification data without a warrant
Apple said it will no longer give over records of users’ push notifications to law enforcement unless the company receives a valid judge’s order. In its law enforcement guidelines updated…
US senator warns governments are spying on Apple and Google users via push notifications
U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) has warned in a letter to the Justice Department that unidentified governments are spying on Apple and Google phone users through their push notifications. The…
Founder of spyware maker Hacking Team arrested for attempted murder: local media
The founder of the infamous and now-defunct spyware maker Hacking Team was arrested on Saturday after allegedly stabbing and attempting to murder a relative, according to multiple news reports. David Vincenzetti,…
A short-lived spyware operation called Oospy, which emerged earlier this year after its predecessor Spyhide was hacked, is no longer operational and has shut down. Oospy appeared online in late…
Polish Senate says use of government spyware is illegal in the country
A special commission within Poland’s Senate concluded that the government’s use of spyware, like the one made by NSO Group, is illegal. The commission announced on Thursday the conclusion of…
Featured Article
Cellebrite asks cops to keep its phone hacking tech ‘hush hush’
For years, cops and other government authorities all over the world have been using phone hacking technology provided by Cellebrite to unlock phones and obtain the data within. And the company has been keen on keeping the use of its technology “hush hush.” As part of the deal with government agencies, Cellebrite asks users to…
The pandemic brought with it a spike in work-from-home and hybrid work, which increased peoples’ dependence on personal devices — driving businesses to try and rein in their use. It’s…
Secret Service and ICE conducted warrantless stingray surveillance, says watchdog
A government watchdog has found that the Secret Service and ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) unit repeatedly failed to obtain the correct legal paperwork when carrying out invasive cell phone…
Featured Article
A hack at ODIN Intelligence exposes a huge trove of police raid files
The breach exposes the police tech firm’s own systems but also confidential law enforcement data uploaded by ODIN’s police customers.
Featured Article
Support King, banned by FTC, linked to new phone spying operation
A year after it was banned by the Federal Trade Commission, a notorious phone surveillance company is back in all but name, a TechCrunch investigation has found. A groundbreaking FTC order in 2021 banned the stalkerware app SpyFone, its parent company Support King, and its chief executive Scott Zuckerman from the surveillance industry. The order,…
TikTok claims it’s not collecting US users’ biometric data, despite what privacy policy says
Last year, TikTok quietly updated its privacy policy to allow the app to collect biometric data on U.S. users, including “faceprints and voiceprints” — a concerning change that the company…
Featured Article
A huge Chinese database of faces and vehicle license plates spilled online
A massive Chinese database storing millions of faces and vehicle license plates was left exposed on the internet for months before it quietly disappeared in August. While its contents might seem unremarkable for China, where facial recognition is routine and state surveillance is ubiquitous, the sheer size of the exposed database is staggering. At its…
TikTok’s in-app browser could be keylogging, privacy analysis warns
‘Beware in-app browsers’ is a good rule of thumb for any privacy conscious mobile app user — given the potential for an app to leverage its hold on user attention…
Nightfall raises cash for its AI that detects sensitive data across apps
Nightfall AI, a startup providing cloud data loss prevention services, today announced that it raised $40 million in Series B financing from investors including WestBridge Capital, Venrock, Bain Capital Ventures…
WeWork India has fixed a security lapse that exposed the personal information and selfies of tens of thousands of people who visited WeWork India’s coworking spaces. Security researcher Sandeep Hodkasia…
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…
Clearview AI banned from selling its facial recognition software to most US companies
A company that gained notoriety for selling access to billions of facial photos, many culled from social media without the knowledge of the individuals depicted, faces major new restrictions to…
Hikvision shares plummet after report that the Biden administration is considering more sanctions
Hikvision shares fell by 10% after a Financial Times report that the Biden administration is planning to impose more sanctions on the surveillance camera company, accusing it of enabling human…
TikTok has once again delayed the timeline for opening its first data center in the European Union, in Dublin, Ireland — saying the facility is now not expected to be…
The IRS won’t make you verify your identity with facial recognition after all
The IRS announced plans Monday to back away from a third-party facial recognition system that collects biometric data from U.S. taxpayers who want to log in to the agency’s online…
