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All Tech Considered
Net Giants Try To Quell Users' Jitters About Their Data
June 12, 2013 Tech companies that field National Security Agency data requests are currently barred from sharing those requests publicly. But Google, Microsoft and Facebook all have a financial interest in showing their users that the NSA does not enjoy unfettered access to their data.
13.7: Cosmos And Culture
A Brave New World: Big Data's Big Dangers
June 11, 2013 Big Data raises concerns about more than just privacy. The debate opening up before us is an essential one for a culture dominated by science and technology. Who determines if a technology is adopted? Who determines when and how it will be deployed? Who owns our data? What are our rights in this new world?
Monkey See
When Your Data Is Currency, What Does Your Privacy Cost?
June 9, 2013 Revelations about government surveillance have motivated a lot of reactions, some of which take into account that we gain something for some of the data we give up in our day-to-day lives. But the transaction is different when the government is involved.
The Two-Way
'Profound Questions About Privacy' Follow Latest Revelations
June 7, 2013 The news that the nation's spy agencies have been collecting phone records has been followed by word that they're also gathering up reams of information from the servers of major Internet and tech companies.
The Two-Way
NSA Reportedly Mines Servers Of U.S. Internet Firms For Data
June 6, 2013 The National Security Agency is able to pluck data — including e-mails, videos, pictures, and connection logs — from the main servers of Microsoft, Google, Apple, and other leading U.S. tech companies, according to reports by The Washington Post and The Guardian. The newly disclosed U.S. government program, they say, is named PRISM.
All Tech Considered
Facebook Users Question $20 Million Settlement Over Ads
May 13, 2013 Facebook is expected to pay out $20 million in a settlement over its "Sponsored Stories" advertising service, after placing user images in personalized ads. But the settlement doesn't stop the service, and a legal expert says Facebook's option to let users opt out creates more problems.
Shots - Health News
Sequencing Of HeLa Genome Revives Genetic Privacy Concerns
March 26, 2013 Henrietta Lacks' family was never consulted before her genetic information was made public. Author Rebecca Skloot, who chronicled the story of her cells, says current regulations aren't covering the privacy questions that come up for people like the Lacks family.
All Tech Considered
Want To Keep Your Messages Private? There's An App For That
February 17, 2013 For a fee, Silent Circle erases messages from both the receiver and the sender's phones. The app's creators got the idea after hearing an all-too-familiar story: A friend of theirs inadvertently read a text meant for someone else.
Shots - Health News
Anonymity In Genetic Research Can Be Fleeting
January 17, 2013 Researchers were able to identify 50 people whose DNA had been posted anonymously on the Internet for genetics studies. The results highlight a trade-off in making genetic data widely available for researchers and protecting personal privacy.
13.7: Cosmos And Culture
Check It Out: 'The Human Face Of Big Data'
January 8, 2013 As I venture into new fields (like thinking about physics and cities) I become more astonished at Big Data's capacity for revolutionizing the way human beings organize themselves for better or for worse.
The Two-Way
Many Apps For Children Still Raise Privacy Concerns, FTC Says
December 10, 2012 The agency says that among its most troubling findings is that many apps for kids share such information as geolocations with third parties. Developers need to do more to improve privacy protections and to tell parents what they're doing, the agency reports.
All Tech Considered
European Union Protests Google's New Privacy Policy
October 22, 2012 The EU says a recent change in Google's privacy policy that allows it to combine and share data collected from all of its different services is a breach of European privacy law. Regulators say Google needs to be transparent about how it's using that data, and give users the choice to opt out.
13.7: Cosmos And Culture
What, Me Worry? The Privacy Question
June 22, 2012 Why do Americans do so little to ensure the privacy of their communications? Is this a new kind of liberation? Or the symptom of a real psychic, as well as political, breakdown?
All Tech Considered
To Read All Those Web Privacy Policies, Just Take A Month Off Work
April 19, 2012 It would take most people about 30 full working days to read the privacy policies of all the websites they visit in a year, according to a study. Most of us agree to the policies without actually reading them — or knowing how much personal information is being captured.
It's All Politics
Supreme Court Limits Damage Payments To Whistle-Blowers
March 28, 2012 By a 5-3 majority, the court ruled that people who sue the government for invading their privacy can only recover out-of-pocket damages. And whistle-blowers' lawyers say that leaves victims who suffer emotional trouble and smeared reputations with few if any options.
