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“Home Office request data of 2,500 children” – The Home Office’s request for schools consensus data may be a breach of data protection rights

The Home Office’s demands for schools’ census data may be a breach of human rights and data protection rights. They have requested information for some 2,500 children in relation to immigration enforcement over the past 15 months.

This in itself is a pretty sensitive subject off the back of the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union. But equally as important is the fact that this request may actually be a breach of people’s rights.
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“Facebook and WhatsApp data sharing” – Is the data sharing an infringement on EU data protection principles?

It has been quite a busy time for the European’s Article 29 Data Protection Working Party (WP29). After writing an open letter to Yahoo addressing the data breach which caused over 500 million users personal details to be stolen, the WP29 has also written to WhatsApp.

The concern surrounds the change in WhatsApp’s privacy settings, where it allowed Facebook to access their users’ data.

Is this an infringement?
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“The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Pact” – The new Atlantic agreement is being challenged by data privacy groups

A recent privacy agreement struck between the U.S. and EU has not gone down very well with privacy groups who are challenging the decision in the Luxembourg-based General Court.

The EU-U.S. pact – dubbed the ‘Privacy Shield’ – was designed by the U.S. Department of Commerce and European Commission to provide companies on both sides of the Atlantic the right to transfer personal data from the EU to the U.S.
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“More control over our data” – The Privacy Commission calls for greater control over personal data in Australia

Australia are reportedly lagging behind many countries in terms of their data protection; as evidenced in the recent Red Cross Blood Service data breach, which was dubbed the “largest data breach in Australian history“.

Now, the Privacy Commission, along with many other organisations, are calling for an independent agency to act as a watchdog of the use of their citizens’ data.

Of course, we welcome such moves.
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“Has Facebook really got our best interests at heart?” – Facebook may have ulterior motives for rejecting Admiral’s cheaper car insurance plan

Following on from Admiral’s seemingly crazy suggestion of providing cheaper car insurance to new or young drivers if they grant access to their Facebook profiles, I admired Facebook’s response and its mission to uphold our privacy.

However, the Guardian reports that Facebook might have declined Admiral’s suggestion as the social media giants want to be the only ones with exclusive access to our data.

Could there be some truth to this?
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“Cheaper car insurance if you give us access to your Facebook profile” – Admiral wants to create a new service which could potentially breach data privacy rights

In the digital age, where technology is growing faster than we can imagine, it serves as an important reminder that data protection and security must be at the forefront of all our minds.

Recently, car insurance company Admiral suggested using Facebook profiles as a way of assessing who should have cheaper car insurance. Facebook has blocked Admiral’s seemingly absurd claims; and rightly so!
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Companies must not drop their security ‘A-Game’ – The rise in data breaches and cybercrime year on year

Businesses and organisations need to keep their ‘A-Game’ as reports show that data breach costs are sharply increasing.

If they do not want to be facing fines and costs for not providing adequate security to their customers, they must step-up.

In the growing digital era, it’s important that companies and organisations are equipped to fend off cyber hackers/attackers, as malicious techniques are used to gain unauthorised access to personal data.
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“iOS and Android are Leaking Data” – The mobile device software providers are leaking all types of data, including metadata, personal data, and location data

In the midst of increasing data protection woes, new reports suggest that the biggest mobile device software services – Android and iOS – are both leaking huge amounts of data.

Not that it matters more, as both are perpetrators of the leaking data, but iOS applications are said to be leaking considerably more when compared with Android.

But both systems leaking data is bad enough!
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“Medical records are the new hot commodity” – The scale of healthcare hacks are massive, with some 10 million medical records reportedly for sale on the ‘dark web’

10 million medical records for sale on the so-called ‘dark web’ – that is frightening!!!

The scale of healthcare hacks seems to be on the rise, and it does not show any signs of slowing down at the moment.

This is a massive threat to data protection and privacy. Earlier this year, there was a record of 10 million medical records apparently for sale on the ‘dark web’ that were reportedly stolen from a big U.S. insurance company.
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“Big Brother Style Surveillance” – Yahoo allegedly handing over emails to U.S. Intelligence Officials

In the midst of ongoing cyber hacks that have seen information from millions of accounts from all sorts of services leaked online, Yahoo are alleged to have conceded to U.S. Intelligence Agency’s demands to search through customers’ email accounts for information.

This claim comes from the scandal that erupted last year, when Yahoo was found to be in breach of data protection rights when 500 million user accounts were illegally accessed. If found to be true, it is argued that Yahoo could be in serious breach of data protection rights, and may consequently face big penalties.
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