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Tag Archives: privacy

The Myth of the ‘Transparent Society’

Thursday, March 6, 2008

When I write and speak about privacy, I am regularly confronted with the mutual disclosure argument. Explained in books like David Brin’s The Transparent Society, the argument goes something like this: In a world of ubiquitous surveillance, you’ll know all about me, but I will also know all about you. The government will be watching […]

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Google and Privacy

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Google and Privacy - So, there’s been a bunch of discussion on the internets about this Privacy International report naming Google as not-so-hot on the privacy tip. I think this post nicely articulates some of my ambivalence on the topic of everyone’s favorite non-evil teddy bear corporate giant.

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Police use Facebook to douse party plans

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Police use Facebook to douse party plans - file under “obvious and unintended consequences of living one’s life on the public internet”
Foster said, however, that Facebook has increasingly become a resource for police forces. It has been used to track down missing persons, find witnesses and even identify suspects.
“It seems to be turning out to […]

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Social-networking sites pose ethical concerns for Journalists

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Social-networking sites pose ethical concerns for Journalists - This is a topic of particular interest to me: the difference between the perception of the public/private nature of online information, and the reality of the availability of that information.

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Template for News Stories on Government Data Gathering

Thursday, June 29, 2006

Template for News Stories on Government Data Gathering
The [name of statute] regulates [type of record] and typically requires a [type of court order]. Although the [name of agency] did not obtain a [type of court order], the Bush Administration contends that the progam is “totally legal.” According to the Attorney General, “we can [do whatever […]

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Google Stops Storing Personal Data in China

Tuesday, March 7, 2006

Google Stops Storing Personal Data in China - Google is storing data gathered on Chinese visitors offshore (in the U.S.).  I’ve been critical of Google in the past (mostly offline) , and I remain suspicious of their “Do No Evil” claim, but it’s only fair that I give them props when they do something right.

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Wednesday, July 27, 2005

“The SWIPE Toolkit is a collection of web-based tools that sheds light on personal data collection and usage practices in the United States.”

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