Category Archives: data privacy

What is the hubbub about the EU- US Data Security Ruling this week?

Why don’t Europeans want their data routed to the US by google or facebook? Europe has high data security protocols than the US.

Can’t the companies protect the European information?  Sure, Tim Cook Apple has said it will lead in data privacy, but the Patriot Act and other laws allow US to snoop on data. So, that European data gets siphoned up by the U.S. government.

So, what? Americans have learned to live with it? Remember the international kerfuffle that occured when it was learned…

3 Points from an Education Tech Expert on Student Data Security

Who is the expert? James Steyer

  •  Founder and CEO of Common Sense Media, a San Francisco-based not-for-profit that, among other things, studies and advocates for children’s online privacy.
  • He is a a former civil rights attorney
  • Common Sense Media helped push 2014 California legislation, the Student Online Personal Information Protection Act, that bars operators of educational websites aimed at kids from amassing data profiles on their users

What are his points to protect student…

Trend: Cyber Insurance $20 Billion in insurance premiums.

Insurer Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty offers caluclated predictions about cyber security and insurance policies:

  • Cyber security costs the US $108 billion/year
  • By 2025, cyber security insurance will be a $20 billion in annual premiums globally
    • In 2015, annual cyber insurance premiums are $2 Billion globally
  • 70% of breaches occur in restaurants
  • To recoup losses after a hack, companies should count on  $200 per record that gets compromised.
     

North Bay Business Journal: As…

Lege Trend: State Data Security Laws Apply to Insurers. 8 states and counting.

8 states have specifically applied thier data breach notificagtion requirements to insurers. 

  • California
  • Connecticut
  • Maine
  • New Hampshire
  • Ohio
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont
  • Washington
  • Wisconsin

The laws vary on these points, but all specifically apply to insurers:

  • who has to be notified
  • when notification has be given
  • what information triggers a notification
  • what powers an Attorney General has
  • which entities have to provide the notification

JD Supra | Baker Hostetler | State Data Breach…

Data Security Coming to Presidential Campaigns Near You

A a security and privacy group of tech savvy types reviewed presidential candidate websites, and the results are not good if you like security and privacy.

17 of 23 candidates failed according to the The Online Trust Alliance, a nonprofit backed by businesses in the tech industry.

Why such a poor showing for data security this campaign season?

  • nonexistent or inadequate privacy policy disclosures
  • they reserve the right to liberally share or sell their donors and site visitors’…

7 Cyber Security Polls

  • 64% of registered U.S. voters believe it is likely that a 2016 presidential campaign will be hacked
  • Who is most qualified to protect the US against a cyber attack?
    • 42%  of registered voters surveyed think Hillary Clinton
    • Donald Trump 24%
    • Scott Walker 18%
    • Jeb Bush 15%
  • Which party is better at protecting personal information? 38% say Democrats. 36% say Republicans. But, Millinials give Deomcrats 56%.
  • 56% of of registered voters would allow government searching their personal…

8 Reasons WHY the Software & Information Industry Association Opposes Student Data Security Reforms

The Software & Information Industry Association writing to U.S. Senators support protecting student data, but oppose proposed reforms. Here’s why:

  • Software & Information Industry Association members are “engaged in a continuous process to enhance student privacy and data security. “
  • They developed the Student Privacy Pledge 
  • We have strong protection framework of federal and state law
  • We have enforceable privacy policies
  • Binding contracts keep us honest
  •  S.1788 would…

Lege Trend: Peach Blossom State Passes Package of Data Security Bills: Internet Providers. Education. Employers. Healthcare.

Delaware this year enacted a package of data security bills, including:

LegalTrend: How Secure Are Your Biometrics on Facebook?

Privacy class action lawsuits in Illinois assert that Facebook violates a 2008 Illinois law protecting a peron’s biometric information with its facial recognition tagging software. 

The nuts and bolts of the Illinois law:

  • Biometric Information Privacy Act makes it illegal for a company to:
  • collect or access customers’ biometric identifiers
    • without first informing them in writing about what’s being collected,
    • how the biometrics are being used,and
    • how long biometrics are being…

Techies Tell Us- DropBox and the like are Open Doors for Hackers

Computer Weekly’s Security Editor has a more succinct explanation replete with tech jargon: 

 “common file synchronisation services such as GoogleDrive and Dropbox for command and control, data exfiltration and remote access, security firm Imperva has revealed.”

At the 2015 Blackhat Security conference, businesses were urged to  begin utilizing “perimeter security to data monitoring and data security.” For more advice, including their recommended security protocols for cloud…