Out-Law.com reports: The watchdog fined Home Energy & Lifestyle Management Ltd (HELM) £200,000 after finding it had “recklessly” breached the UK’s Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR). “An ICO investigation discovered that HELM made over six million calls as part of a massive automated call marketing campaign offering ‘free’ solar panels,” the ICO said in…
Month: September 2015
Your personal cloud of microbes could one day be used to profile you
John Zorabedian writes: There’s a revolution happening right now in biometrics. But the technology for identifying people based on biology is outpacing our ability to understand the consequences for privacy. Passwords – which have proven time and again to be inadequate for security purposes – are steadily being replaced by fingerprints, irises, voices and faces. The patterns of our veins, heartbeats, and even our thoughts and the way we smell, have…
Apple throws down the gauntlet with overhauled privacy policy
Caitlin McGarry writes: Apple is making it very clear how it uses your data with a revamp of its privacy policy, posted in full on the company’s website. In the process, Cupertino is also making it plain just how different it is from other tech companies. Apple affirmed its commitment to customer privacy a year ago, and…
Massachusetts Court Rules Cell Tracking Requires a Warrant[*]
Andrew Crocker writes: When it comes to the highest court in Massachusetts, it sometimes seems like entire battles are won and lost in the footnotes. In a seemingly straightforward new case, the Supreme Judicial Court has managed to add a wrinkle on top of the already complicated patchwork of law surrounding cell phone location tracking. The court’s opinion today…