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Privacy

Fence representing safety and privacy of Utah bill

Utah law would strike a balance between public safety and digital privacy

  • 4 min read

Utah is set to become the first state in the nation to regulate law enforcement’s use of geofence searches — a “reverse search” technique that allows law enforcement to identify criminal suspects by requesting caches of anonymized data from technology companies.

A puzzle showing the structure of DNA

Who Owns Your DNA?

  • 4 min read

How secure is your DNA? Even if you have never purchased an ancestry kit, your identity can easily be traced through the DNA samples of your relatives. 

Apps on screen showing twitter related to privacy

Choose Privacy

  • 6 min read

Technology and privacy have always had a contentious relationship. At the turn of the 19th Century the invention of the photograph gave birth to the first privacy advocates.

Tracking app representing one used in Massachusetts

Massachusetts Violates Consumer Consent

  • 4 min read

A recent lawsuit reveals the problems that arise from the unholy union between technology firms and government actors. The most recent kerfuffle involves an unconstitutional scheme between Google and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to automatically download a COVID-19 tracking app onto Android users’ phones without their consent.

Semi-truck belonging to a trucker on side of road

Tracking Truckers

  • 4 min read

Yet again, the public is being asked to trade privacy for safety. This time, truckers are in the midst of the controversy, sparked by a proposed rule creating a digital tracking system for commercial truckers that may further stress the nation’s already weak supply chains. 

Digital contract agreement

Privacy in the Digital Era: Who Controls Private Data?

  • 5 min read

The boundaries between physical and digital spheres are collapsing. The digital sharing of personal information is now embedded into the economic and relational activities of daily life.

Ballot box representing win in Montana

Montana Protects Privacy

  • 4 min read

Privacy won at the ballot box on Tuesday when Montana’s C-48 passed. This ballot measure was a legislatively recommended amendment to the state’s constitution that would require a search warrant to access an individual’s data or electronic communications.

Cookies in browser in relation to consumer privacy

Consumer Privacy Laws Aren’t About the Public

  • 7 min read

You may have noticed consent pop-ups on most websites, particularly for the collection of your cookies (not the type you eat). Most of these messages are a result of the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) that went into effect on Jan. 1, 2020 with the supposed intent of “giving Californians more control over their personal information.”

Capital building representing self-governance

Can Self-Governance Survive Surveillance?

  • 4 min read

Surveillance and self-governance are like oil and water. They do no not mix well. Increasingly, US cities are turning to surveillance systems in an effort to undercut the rise of violent crime.