Tag: privacy

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Beware The Coming Privacy Tsunami

Mark Cathcart

I’ve been meaning to write for a year or more about the downside of age verification and the other ways our data is being collected and shared during the verification processes. I failed – this stuff isn’t my job anymore, and to be honest, it’s hard to keep up as an individual. However, today I wanted to post a link on, of all places, “LinkedIn”. The post made it, but the link didn’t; the URL was removed from the post. So this is a brief post just to warn you that getting verified on social media sites, or age verification … Continue reading Beware The Coming Privacy Tsunami

Life, privacy, technologyLeave a comment

Microsoft TO-DO Privacy

Mark Cathcart

I have to admit I really like the new Microsoft To-DO app for Windows and Android. You can create lists of to-do’s, it has a My Day function and lots of useful detail. Once I’d created my first set of serious to-do’s I suddenly realized how much sensitive data there was in my to-do’s. While I’m ok with Microsoft collecting and analyzing usage data, how many times I use the app, what platforms, where was I when I used them etc. I’m totally against them reading, copying or sharing the to-do’s with anyone that I have not explicitly authorized. I … Continue reading Microsoft TO-DO Privacy

culture, Life, privacy, technology

Your infrequent reminder, Facebook is evil

Mark Cathcart

They figured out how do you tweak people’s vanities and their passions and their susceptibilities and their desires in order to keep them on the site. Source: The Central Question Behind Facebook: ‘What Does Mark Zuckerberg Believe In?’ : NPR If you have not heard it, the above NPR Fresh Air interview by Dave Davies with Evan Osnos, a New Yorker Staff writer is well worth the listen. Since that interview, we’ve had two more announcements of significance from Facebook. October 11th, the evil empire announced that they’d disabled some 66 accounts or what Facebook described as: dozens of accounts … Continue reading Your infrequent reminder, Facebook is evil

Life, privacy, technology

Delete your Google+ profile

Mark Cathcart

Google+ is what happens when you try to take on an incumbent, don’t communicate your vision, and then leave the rotting carcass to fester and be eaten by the maggots. In this case the maggots were a security vulnerability that exposed the private data of up to 500,000 users It turns out Google knew about the vulnerability back in March 2018, but decided not to disclose it as, as far they know, it hadn’t been exploited. If your data was upto date and complete, there was enough there to perform a rudimentary phishing attack. In my case, my phone number, … Continue reading Delete your Google+ profile

Life, privacy, technology

Why You Shouldn’t Use Facebook to Log In to Other Sites – The New York Times

Mark Cathcart

This is a good explanation of why it is way past time to stop using your Facebook ID to login to other sites. Personally while I still occasionally wish I could login to facebook to check on relatives, otherwise I don’t miss it at all. No matter what facebook do, there will continue to be security and privacy breaches like this. Facebook wanted to become “the web” and along with that aspiration, they also became a focal point for all the hackers, scammers, and those wishing to game the system. #deletefacebook   Source: Why You Shouldn’t Use Facebook to Log … Continue reading Why You Shouldn’t Use Facebook to Log In to Other Sites – The New York Times

health, healthcare, Life, technologyLeave a comment

Data Interchange and Interoperability in Healthcare

Mark Cathcart

I recently had to go for x-rays on my hip. The imaging company called saying they’d received the “order” from my chiropractor for a knee arthrogram without contrast. Apparently, this was both wrong and confusing. It’s wrong, because the “order” said hip, but they couldn’t read it; also it’s confusing because, well something to do with x-ray and contrast. After a short discussion, it turned out the imaging company received the order by fax. Yes, real actual paper fax. The US medical profession still seems to run on faxes. My prior cardiology hospital sent my medical records to my new cardiology … Continue reading Data Interchange and Interoperability in Healthcare

Life, Politics, politics, technologyLeave a comment

Legislating hacking/data exposure responses

Mark Cathcart

I don’t know enough about the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) but at least on basic reading it seems inadequate in meaningful individual action requirements and legislation that benefits the actual user/person whose information has been exposed. I’ve been signed up for haveibeenpwned an excellent website by Troy Hunt. You enter your email, and it tells you what breaches your personal information has been found in. I was going to say “if any”. But of course your data will be there, especially after breaches like the River City Media (RCM) “spammer gate” where 1.4 billion peoples’ email accounts, … Continue reading Legislating hacking/data exposure responses

Life, Politics, politics, privacyLeave a comment

Privacy: Europe vs the USA

Mark Cathcart

On a day when the likelihood is you’ve been bombarded with GDPR emails from companies you’ve done business with, or just whose websites you’ve registered with, there is no better comparison of the difference between how the European Commision and the USA are dealing with our privacy. While the new General Data Protection Regulation comes into force tomorrow (May 25th), which isn’t as many think, a reaction to the Facebook privacy scandal, the regulation which took seven years of negotiation, and will force changes in a braod range of industries, including, but not limited to technology, advertising, medicine and banking. … Continue reading Privacy: Europe vs the USA