privacy

The implicit promise of password management and single sign-on services like OneLogin is that they keep your credentials safe and private so you won't have to worry about remembering them or writing them down somewhere insecure. As such, it isn't uncommon for these services themselves to be become the target of malicious attacks in order to pilfer their customers' data. It is somewhat rare, however, for such services fall victim to a very serious breach of security, like just what happened to OneLogin at the end of last month.

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Late last month, restaurant franchise Chipotle Mexican Grill revealed that it had suffered a security breach affecting its POS system. The company has released an update on that revelation, saying that 'most' of its stores in the US were affected by the malware. Chipotle says the investigation into the breach, which involved both law enforcement and security firms, has been completed.

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Vine may be dead, but it's still managing to cause headaches for some former users, with warnings that some registered email addresses were inadvertently exposed. Twitter, Vine's owner, announced it was pulling the plug on the six-second video clip social network back in October 2016, though it still maintains an online archive of all the publicly shared footage. It's that Vine Archive that is causing headaches now.

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You may be the product when you're using Twitter, but the social network is adding new privacy and advertising settings to help those tweeting adjust who gets their data. Launched today, and joined by an updated Privacy Policy, the suite of new tools will roll out to Twitter users over the next few days. It also allows some insight into what Twitter has decided your interests are.

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Facebook has been accused of tracking emotionally-vulnerable teenagers and opening up that data to advertisers hoping to cash in on insecure kids. The social network has been pushing its advertising platform in recent years, chasing ad revenue that might once have gone straight into Google's pockets. However, while it has access to a whole host of personal information, Facebook has found itself in hot water for how it apparently uses that data.

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Those who know John McAfee before his brush with the long arm of the law will remember him for his eponymous security suite. Back then, McAfee competed with the likes of Norton for supremacy in the anti-virus market. These days, however, McAfee has involved himself in more than just software security. In fact, his latest endeavor is less about software. It is, however, still focused on security. The man whose name has become synonymous with that industry has just revealed his plans to introduce the world to the most secure and most private smartphone. One that uses hardware switches instead of software to implement that security.

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The folks at Unroll.Me are in hot water for selling user data to Uber this week - but as they are, I'm reminded to do a check. "Check yourself before your data gets sold to Uber" - that's as good credo for the modern digital person. While it does not appear that Unroll.Me really sold any personal data to Uber, the angry mob has spoken. If you're going to sell user data to 3rd-party companies, you need to make that clear in the user agreement nobody reads anyway!

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Once considered a darling and pioneer of the still nascent ride-hailing industry, Uber has quickly become the villain of a still ongoing drarma. It's the typical story of a successful company willing to do anything and everything to stay that the top, even when that means breaking the rules. And break the rules Uber did, according to this new report. Uber has allegedly been "fingerprinting" iPhones, identifying them even after they have been fully erased. It was a gross violation of Apple's privacy policies and a practice that went on for almost a year until Apple CEO Tim Cook put a stop to it.

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It looks like Bose is heading to court, as a new class action lawsuit has been filed against it. The suit centers around a companion app Bose offers for its wireless headphones, called Bose Connect. That app is used to connect Bose wireless products to smart devices, and it can also be used to remotely control those devices.

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A new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine reveals that many hospitals aren't adequately protecting their patients' data, leaving many vulnerable to identity theft and more. Researchers found almost 1,800 'large data breaches' involving patient information spread over a time frame of seven years. The medical facilities where the data breaches were discovered span many states ranging from Michigan's Henry Ford Hospital to California's UC Davis Medical Center.

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Warrantless laptop and phone searches at the border are a problem, and a new bill aims to stop them. The bipartisan bill is designed to protect the devices of Americans who are passing through the US border, and would require border patrol agents to get a proper warrant before searching the devices. The bill was introduced earlier today by a handful of Republican and Democrat politicians from the House and the Senate.

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As you've likely heard by now, Congress voted earlier this week to reverse FCC rules that prevented internet service providers from selling personal customer data like browsing history. Understandably, many Americans are upset by this. Now several ISPs like Comcast, AT&T, and Verizon are getting proactive in reassuring customers that their privacy matters, releasing statements that say they will not be selling users' internet browsing data.

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