US – Iowa Chooses Biometrics Vendor for New Driver’s Licenses

Joining Alabama, Colorado, Kansas, Massachusetts, Oregon and Texas, Iowa’s transportation officials have awarded Digimarc Corp. with a contract for a biometric facial recognition system for its driver’s licenses. The system will compare a driver’s new picture against an old photograph in the database to prevent applicants from obtaining more than one license. It also checks new pictures against the full database each night to detect attempts by an applicant to obtain a driver’s license in several names. [Source] [DOT to use facial scanning to combat identity fraud]

US – Three California Elementary Schools to Fingerprint Students

The Hope Elementary School District has notified parents that beginning this month, students at several of its elementary schools will press an index finger to a scanner before buying cafeteria food. The scan will call up the student’s name and student ID, teacher’s name and how much the student owes, since some receive government assistance for food. School administrators said the idea is to speed up the cafeteria line. The same information is currently handled with old-fashioned paper and then transferred to computer so that reports can be compiled. [Source]

HK – Hong Kong Privacy Commissioner Halts School Fingerprinting

The Hong Kong privacy commissioner has ordered a school to stop fingerprinting children before it becomes a runaway trend that is too late to stop. The school, in the Kowloon District, installed the system last year but, under the order of the Hong Kong Privacy Commission, has ripped it out and destroyed all the fingerprint data it had taken from children. Roderick Woo, Justice of the Peace at the Hong Kong Office of the Privacy Commissioner, said he had decided to examine the issue immediately after the first school installed a fingerprint reader to take registers in his jurisdiction. And, he decided: “It was a contravention of our law which is that the function of the school is not to collect data in this manner, that it was excessive and that there was a less privacy-intrusive method to use.” [Source]

CA – OPC Issues Fact Sheet on Applications for Court Hearings Under PIPEDA

The office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada has published a document intended to provide helpful information to guide complainants through the process of applying to the Federal Court for a hearing under section 14 of PIPEDA. [Source]

WW – Privacy International: Canada #2 in Maintaining Personal Privacy

Germany and Canada are the best defenders of privacy, and Malaysia and China the worst, an international rights group said in a report released last week. Britain was rated as an endemic surveillance society, at No. 33, just above Russia and Singapore on a ranking of 37 countries’ privacy protections by London-based Privacy International. The U.S. did only slightly better, at No. 30, ranked between Israel and Thailand, with few safeguards and widespread surveillance, the group said. The study ranks countries on various privacy-related issues. These include whether they have a written constitution with specific mention of privacy, the use of identity cards and biometrics, electronic surveillance including closed-circuit TV cameras, interception of communication, access of law-enforcement agencies to private data, surveillance of travel and financial transactions, and global leadership in promoting privacy. [Source] [Source] [Britain is ‘surveillance society’] [PI site] [Source] [Malaysia rejects international rights group’s criticism of poor privacy protection]

CA – Ancestry.ca Releases First Indexed and Searchable 1851 Census of Canada Online

Ancestry.ca, an online website for Canadian family history records, announced it has released the first complete index of the 1851 Census of Canada. Ancestry.ca is the only source where all publicly available Canadian census collections from 1851, 1901, 1906 and 1911 are fully-indexed and searchable online. The launch of the 1851 Census of Canada collection allows virtually anyone with a computer and an Internet connection to access this information and view actual images of original census documents. The addition of the 1851 census to the Ancestry.ca historical records collection gives Canadians access to an additional 1.4 million Canadian names and more than 85,000 images and actual census documents. The site also offers the only online collection of vital records from Ontario and British Columbia as well as a plethora of digital content from the US, UK, Scotland and Wales, including the entire U.S. Federal Census Collection from 1790-1930. [Source]

US – Consumer Reports: Consumers Rank Privacy, Security as Top Online Concerns

Speaking on a panel at the “Protecting Consumers in the Next Tech-Ade” hearings, Jeff Fox, technology editor at Consumer Reports, revealed the results of an online survey. The ConsumerReports.org study found that 72% of consumers are worried about the security of their personal and financial information online. The report also found that 64% said they always use the same credit card when making online purchases and about 70% use the sites’ privacy policies. [Source] [At FTC Hearing, Privacy Policies Bomb]

WW – Six International Groups Form Anti-Spam Alliance

Six international groups involved in spam-fighting have joined forces on gathering information and resources. The StopSpamAlliance, launched last week, is designed to encourage more global co-operation. The organizations involved are APEC, the European Union’s CNSA (contact network of spam-enforcement authorities), the ITU, the London Action Plan, the OECD and the Seoul-Melbourne Anti-Spam group. [Source]

US – HBO Documentary “Hacking Democracy” (RE: Voting Machines)

An HBO documentary on the risks of voting machines aired Thursday November 2. As the election approaches this is becoming a significant issue. In the 2000 presidential election, an electronic voting machine withheld over 16,000 votes for Al Gore. [Source] [Source] [Source] [Diebold’s rebuttal]

EU – Twelve Hundred Dutch Voting Machines Deemed Unusable

After tests demonstrated that certain electronic voting machines could allow data to be intercepted from 20 or 30 meters away, the Dutch General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD) has ruled that the 1,200 machines manufactured may not be used in next month’s elections. Certain municipalities will have to vote with pencil and paper, though others may choose to use other voting machines. Some people have claimed that some machines made, which account for 90% of voting machines used in the country, are vulnerable to hacking, but AIVD testing found no significant threat. [Source] [Background]

UK – UK Opts for Cryptomathic’s PKI Technology

The UK Identity and Passport service has selected Cryptomathic’s PKI technology for its national ePassport scheme. Cryptomathic’s module is responsible for generating all cryptographic data, then encrypting the data files in a Hardware Security Module (HSM) provided by nCipher and forwarding them to a production site where the data is securely loaded onto the passport chip. [Source]

EU – Dynamic Coalition on Privacy Launched at UN Internet Meeting in Athens

At the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), a diverse group of stakeholders has agreed to launch a Dynamic Coalition on Privacy, which will address emerging issues of internet privacy protection such as digital identities, the link between privacy and development, and the importance of privacy and anonymity for freedom of expression. It will initiate an open process to further develop and clarify the public policy aspects of privacy in internet governance. Participants in Athens in particular agreed that there is a need for greater public participation in technical and legal standardizations that have a global public policy impact on privacy. The French government has offered to host a follow-up meeting in Paris in early 2007. [Source] [Internet Bill of Rights]

EU – New Security Breach Notification Proposal Under Consideration

EU commissioners are considering breach notification rules that would require some companies to notify affected customers and regulators. Some experts believe that it is time for the EU to adopt U.S.-style breach notification laws. [Source] [EU proposes US-style data breach laws]

WW – US Leads the UK in Compliance Culture: Survey

A new survey, conducted simultaneously in New York and London, finds that New Yorkers are more aware of compliance breaches and monitored electronic communication - but are also more likely to try to dodge communication controls. A survey conducted simultaneously in the financial districts of New York and London in October 2006 has discovered a key difference in regulatory compliance culture: while Wall Street employees broadly support a firm’s right to monitor their communication, they are also more likely to circumvent communication controls. [Source]

WW – 13 Nations Denounced For Web Censorship

Thirteen countries were singled out by Reporters Without Borders as the worst culprits for systematic online censorship and were targeted in the group’s 24-hour online protest. The 13 countries were Belarus, China, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam. [Source] [China Calls Internet Censorship Label “Groundless”]

US – Banks Tap Databases for Consumer Information to Replace SS Numbers

In an effort to reduce identity theft, banks are no longer using Social Security numbers, names and addresses to verify their consumers. Instead, some financial institutions are using details such as the color of a consumer’s car, father-in-law’s name and other personal details gleaned from public and private databases. Some privacy advocates say the new practice could violate consumer privacy. One specific concern voiced by the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse is the consumer’s lack of control over how the information about them is used. [Source]

UK – Trade Group: Online Fraud Costs Increase 55% in First Half of 2006

The Association for Payment Clearing Services said that U.K. banks reported a 55% increase in losses from online fraud in the first half of 2006, mostly from phishing scams. The losses totaled 22.5 million pounds, or $42.8 million, the group said. [Source]

UK – Three in Four Young Black Men on The DNA Database

Race watchdogs are to investigate the national DNA database over revelations that up to three quarters of young black men will soon have their profiles stored. The chairman of the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE), vowed to examine whether the database breached race relations laws following the findings by The Sunday Telegraph. “This is tantamount to criminalising a generation of young black men,” he said. An estimated 135,000 black males aged 15 to 34 will be entered in the crime-fighting- database by April, equivalent to as many as 77% ofthe young black male population in England and Wales. By contrast, only 22% of young white males, and six per cent of the general population, will be on the database. [Source] [DNA pioneer voices concern over database] [DNA pioneer accuses the police of being overzealous]

UK – UK Healthcare IT System Will Hold Citizens’ Medical Records

According to a report in The Guardian, the medical records of as many as 50 million UK citizens will be placed in the new NHS IT system. The program is forging ahead with the assumption of “implicit consent.” Patients may opt out of the system, although deciding to disclose medical information only with explicit consent each time could jeopardize one’s health in the event of an accident. Opting out will not remove the information from the national database. An NHS spokesperson said “external access to its patient records [is not permitted] unless ... explicitly required by law.” The system was designed with the aim of helping healthcare professionals share information and provide better care for patients. [Source] [Source] [Patients can’t stop medical records upload]

AU – Australian Pharmacies to Track Cold and Flu Med Buyers

Tasmanian pharmacies have had a breakthrough in their push for a software program to track people who are buying cold and flu tablets to make illegal drugs. The program, called Project Stop, has been rolled out in Queensland but was held up in other jurisdictions by the Federal Privacy Commissioner. Project Stop alerts pharmacists when a person buys drugs containing the stimulant pseudoephedrine. The commissioner raised concerns that Project Stop requires taking a customer’s driver’s licence details if they buy drugs containing pseudoephedrine. Now the Justice Department has confirmed the privacy issues have been resolved and the Pharmacy Guild can continue rolling out the program. [Source]

US – Spear Phishers Target Medical Center Employees

Spear phishers targeted employees at Dekalb Medical Center in Decatur, GA, sending them emails with the sender’s domain spoofed to appear to come from their employer. The emails told them they were being laid off and offered a link to what was purported to be a career counseling web site. People who clicked on the link had a keystroke logger downloaded to their computers. In spear phishing, messages typically manipulated to appear to come from within the recipient’s organization to evade filters. The messages are also sent to a small, targeted group of individuals. [Source] [Source]

US – Lost Computer Roundup (6 Stories)

Starbucks Announces Missing Laptops Contain PI on Employees: Four laptops that contained personal information on 60,000 employees in the U.S. and Canada were discovered missing on Sept. 6. The company announced the theft Nov. 4, and added that there were no reports of identity theft related to the data stored on the stolen computers. The data included names and SSNs. Starbucks is notifying the affected individuals and has offered free credit monitoring and a toll-free hotline to answer questions. [Source]

US – Scrubbed Laptop Still Held Sensitive Data: A laptop computer that used to belong to Intermountain Healthcare in Utah was scrubbed before it was donated to Deseret Industries. However, the man who bought the laptop discovered a file on the computer that contained personally identifiable information, including names and SSNs, of more than 6,000 people who worked for Intermountain Healthcare in 1999-2000. The affected employees have been notified. Intermountain stopped using SSNs as unique employee identifiers several years ago. Intermountain now has hard drives demolished when they are no longer in use. [Source]

US – Stolen Laptop Holds Info on 1,243 Villanova University Students and Staff: A laptop computer stolen from an insurance firm in Pennsylvania contains names, birthdates and driver’s license numbers of 1,243 Villanova University students and staff who are insured to drive school vehicles. The computer was stolen in September; Villanova sent notification letters to the drivers on October 26. [Source]

US – Missing Manhattan Health Center Computer Contains Veterans’ Data: A computer with 1,600 military veterans’ sensitive data, including Social Security numbers and possible medical diagnoses, has been stolen from a health care facility. The computer, used to store the results from a pulmonary testing device, was reported stolen on Sept. 6 from the Veterans Affairs New York Harbor Healthcare System in Manhattan. The U.S. inspector general’s office was investigating. The veterans were notified in an Oct. 20 letter from the Department of Veterans Affairs that the computer was stolen and that their names and other private information may have been compromised. [Source]

US – Army Command Laptop Missing: The Army’s Accessions Command in Ft. Monroe, Va., reported a laptop computer with personal information on 4,600 scholarship applicants for the Reserve Officer Training Corps went missing Oct. 23. The command just yesterday let the House Government Reform Committee know that the notebook went missing. The committee asked all agencies to report all data breaches since Jan. 1, 2003. Agencies had until July 24 to report their information, but the committee still is receiving reports of data breaches. [Source]

CA – Stolen Calgary Laptop Held Mental Health Data: Alberta’s privacy watchdog is fast-tracking a probe into the theft of a CHR laptop holding mental health data on hundreds of child patients. On Oct. 22, the computer was taken in a break-in at the northwest home of a Calgary Health Region Collaborative Mental Health staffer. The laptop was carrying contact, mental health and parental data on 1,000 Calgary-area children up to six- years-old. [Source]

US – Colorado Reward Offered in Theft of 1.4 Million ID Files: The company that processes Colorado child-support payments is offering $10,000 for information leading to the recovery of a stolen computer that has put tens of thousands of residents at risk of ID theft. State investigators said they are questioning a number of Affiliated Computer Service employees in connection with the missing desktop computer but have made no arrests. The computer contains names and personal information on about 1.4 million child-support recipients, payers and new hires within the state. [Source]

AU – Legislation Will Prevent Government Smart Cards to Serve as National ID

In an effort to give citizens as much control over new smart cards the government will introduce in 2008, Human Services Minister Joe Hockey announced this week that legislation will be introduced next year that would ensure that the cardholders have legal ownership of them. The legislation would prevent the card from serving as a form of identification. The new high-tech cards, which will contain a microchip, will replace 17 health and social services cards, including the Medicare card, healthcare cards and veterans’ cards. The cards will have the person’s name and digital photo, but not their address and birth date. [Source] [Smartcards to get privacy ID protection] [Access card to be owned by user]

US – PC Reseller Charged Over ID Theft of Employee Data

The owner of Compulinx Managed Services and his nephew have been indicted on fraud and conspiracy charges. The pair allegedly used Compulinx employees’ and customers’ personal information to falsify information on applications for loans, credit cards, and credit lines. [Source]

CA – Nova Scotia Driver’s Licence Gets a New Look

Nova Scotia is introducing a new driver’s licence and identification card that has enhanced security features and is easier to read. The new cards begin circulation today, Nov. 1. “The new driver’s licence and identification card better meets the security and safety needs of Nova Scotians,” said the Minister of Service Nova Scotia and Municipal Relations. “Signatures are now on the front of the card and bar codes, containing all of the card’s information, are on the back and have replaced the magnetic strips. This makes attempting to breach the document’s security much more difficult.” [Source] [Source]

WW – TRUSTe Launches Program to Certify Consumer Software is not Spyware

TRUSTe and sponsors representing content and search providers, anti-spyware vendors and online advertisers announced that software publishers may begin submitting requests to join the Trusted Download Program, a program to certify consumer downloadable software programs. The Trusted Download Program aims to provide market incentives for adware and trackware companies to clearly and unavoidably communicate key functionalities and obtain informed consumer consent prior to download. “Consumers want control and transparency over the collection and use of their personal information,” said Peter Cullen, chief privacy strategist, Microsoft Corp. “TRUSTe’s Trusted Download Beta Program will help software developers empower consumers with this kind of control.” [Source] [Trusted Download website] [Microsoft to combat internet fraudsters]

WW – Report: U.S. Leads the World in Phishing Sites

PhishTank, a group that monitors phishing sites, released its October statistics, which found that the U.S. is hosting 24% of all phishing sites, followed by South Korea at 14%. The report also found that PayPal and eBay topped the list of targets, followed by banks. [Source]

US – Researchers: Phishing Ensnares More Victims

A recent study by researchers at the Indiana University School of informatics found that phishers may lure responses from as much as 14% of the targets per attack. Previous research by the Gartner Group has indicated that about 3% of adult Americans fall prey to the phishing scams. The researchers said Internet users should be aware of more targeted, personalized attacks that use personal information obtained from the Web to tailor emails that appear legitimate. [Source] [Source]

UK – New Project Invites Users to Help Fight Malware

The volunteers behind the Phishing Incident Reporting and Termination Squad have started a new project to crack down on malware. It is called the Malware Incident Reporting and Termination Squad, according to Paul Laudanski, owner of Computer Cops LLC and the leader of the project. [Source]

WW – FBI Cracks Down on Global ID Theft Operation

The FBI is cracking down on an international identity theft operation that involves the trading of social security numbers, the sale of stolen credit card account information, and phishing. Called Operation Cardkeeper, the investigation has brought about the arrests of more than a dozen people in the United States and other countries who are members of online communities that specialize in “carding,” the trafficking of stolen identities and credit card and bank account information. [Source] [Source]

EU – German Court Rules ISP Must Delete IP Logs

The highest appeal court in Germany has decided that T-Online, one of the largest German ISPs has to delete all IP logs to guarantee the privacy of their customers. The decision does not mean that T-Online is now obliged to delete all their IP-logs, the customers first need to complain. But, if they ask T-Online to delete their IP-logs, the ISP has no other choice than to comply. [German language decision] [Coverage] [Source]

WW – Company to Help Get Damaging Info Deleted from Web

A new startup, ReputationDefender, will act on your behalf by contacting data hosting services and requesting the removal of any materials that threaten your good social standing. Any web citizen willing to pay ReputationDefender’s service fees can ask the company to seek and destroy embarrassing office party photos, blog posts detailing casual drug use or saucy comments on social networking profiles. [Source]

US – Adware Firm Fined $3 Million by the FTC

In a settlement with the FTC, Zango Inc. has agreed to pay a $3 million fine to the FTC. It has also agreed to clearly notify consumers and seek their consent before installing its software, which critics call “adware,” onto Web surfers’ computers. The company said it would also make it easier for consumers to remove the software. [Source] [FTC to Pressure Adware Advertisers] [FTC Decision]

US – Yesmail Agrees to Settle Charges With FTC

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) this week announced an agreement with Yesmail for alleged violations of the CAN-SPAM Act that involved failure to honor consumers’ unsubscribe requests. The company has agreed to pay $50,717 civil penalty. The FTC’s complaint alleged that Yesmail’s spam filtering software treated some recipients’ “reply to” unsubscribe requests as spam. As a result, Yesmail allegedly failed to process unsubscribe requests. The company sent thousands of commercial emails to recipients more than 10 business days after their unsubscribe requests. The CAN-SPAM Act requires commercial emailers to offer recipients a way to opt-out and to process those unsubscribes within 10 business days. [Source] [FTC Hits Telemarketers With $500K Fines]

US – Lawsuit Filed Against Hospital Group for Mishandling of Patient Data

A lawsuit has been filed against the Sisters of St. Francis Health Services Inc. for allegedly violating HIPAA regulations and failing to promptly notify individuals whose data were compromised in a security breach last summer. The lawsuit was filed by one man on behalf of all those whose data were exposed. The suit seeks damages for each individual affected in the amount of no less than US$5,000. The breach occurred in July 2006 when a contractor working for the hospital left CDs containing personally identifiable information of 260,000 patients and other people associated with the hospitals in a laptop case that was returned to a store. Those affected were not notified of the breach until October. [Source] [Source]

CA – IBM Selects Canadian Company to Manufacture New Clipped Tag

Marnlen RFID, based in Markham, Ontario, is manufacturing IBM’s new Clipped Tag. Ontario’s Information and Privacy Commissioner, Dr. Ann Cavoukian, has expressed concerns about attaching RFID tags to goods in stores. A few months ago, Cavoukian’s office released a set of RFID guidelines that called on businesses considering the use of RFID to take several factors into account, including the appointment of an employee to ensure that the company has privacy measures in place. Cavoukian also recommended that companies seek consent from consumers before they collect personal information via the technology. Cavoukian said IBM’s new tag “eliminates all those privacy concerns of surreptitious surveillance” while giving consumers post-sale benefits, such as easier returns and conveniences involving product recalls and warrantees. IBM’s Clipped Tag is designed to allow consumers to remove the RFID antennas from goods they buy. IBM says the Clipped Tag solves the privacy concerns associated with tracking consumers after they have purchased items with an RFID tag. The tags are scheduled for shipping this week. The tags allow consumers to reduce the range from feet to inches by snapping off part of the tag’s radio antenna. RFID tags typically have a range of 30 feet, which technically makes it possible for the product to be read without the consumer’s knowledge. Tearing off part of the antenna requires that the device – to be read – must be held up to a reader. [Source] [Source] [Source]

CA – McMaster RFID Lab Launched

McMaster University’ has officially launch its new radio frequency identification lab, a $750,000 venture into asking not only “can we” about new technology, but “should we?” Pankaj Sood conceived the centre while finishing Mac’s graduate degree in engineering entrepreneurship and innovation. “This is a way of knowing where your assets are at all times, but we also want to take a holistic view,” he said. “Rather than just looking at the technology itself, we’ll cross disciplines here and look at public policy issues as well.” Some of those issues can be especially thorny – RFID technology is used in the transponders that track vehicles on Highway 407 – raising questions in some minds about “Big Brother” tracking our smallest movements. Florence Nguyen, spokesman for the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, said the privacy czar will “shortly” publish national guidelines for dealing with RFID privacy questions. “This lab is going to be a hub for RFID research and development,” said Rafik Loutfy, director of the Centre for Engineering Entrepreneurship and Innovation. “I think this is a field with a huge potential for growth. Some of those uses are being explored in one of the lab’s first projects, an effort to show Hamilton Health Sciences Corporation how RFID can be used to track assets around its hospitals. The McMaster RFID Applications Lab will be at Mac’s technology incubator for now, moving eventually to the Longwood Road innovation park. It will have two full-time staff, Sood and a technical manager to be hired. Five graduate engineering students per term will be assigned to work on projects in the lab. Sponsors, including EPCglobal Canada, Hewlett-Packard, IPICO, RF Code, Deloitte, Sun Microsystems and LRNI, have all provided cash and in kind support for the lab. They will also pay to participate in its research projects. [Source]

WW – Defending Data Will Be IT Managers’ 2007 Focus

Regulatory requirements and increasing consumer concerns about information security breaches are making data-level security controls a top priority for 2007, according to IT managers at the Computer Security Institute trade show held this week. After years of implementing technologies such as firewalls and intrusion-detection systems to keep network perimeters safe, companies now must move similar controls down to the data level, they said. “The data now matters above everything else.” [Source]

AU – Australian Tax Records Illegally Accessed By ATO Staff

The tax records of hundreds of Australians have been illegally accessed by Australian Taxation Office staff over the past two years. Breaches include spying on clients’ records and unauthorized access of data systems. 917 taxpayers have had their records inappropriately accessed by ATO staff since October 2004 and high-profile celebrities and sports stars may have been affected. Assistant Treasurer Peter Dutton, who tabled the figures in Parliament this week, said the ATO took its responsibilities of protecting taxpayer information very seriously. “The ATO’s systems have comprehensive audit trails and … investigations are conducted to identify unauthorized access or modification of taxpayer records,” he said. [Source]

UK – Blair Defends National ID, CCTV, DNA Database

Blair says ID cards will be used to fight crime: Tony Blair revealed a secret plan to check the fingerprints of every adult in the country to see if they have been involved in a crime. Police will be allowed to trawl through fingerprints given by anybody signing-up for a controversial ID card. The Prime Minister said that up to 900,000 unsolved crimes could be solved by comparing fingerprints left at the scene by entries on the new database. But the revelation outraged civil liberties groups who said Mr Blair was effectively turning every person in the country into a suspected criminal. In the future, they warned, people would be ‘all presumed guilty until proven otherwise. [Source] [Blair defends national ID, CCTV, DNA database] [Blair dismisses civil rights argument against ID cards] [British Prime Minister Speaks About Biometric ID Cards]

WW – Privacy Chiefs Vow To fight Surveillance Together

Last week during the annual Conference of Data Protection and Information Commissioners in London, international commissioners adopted common objectives to counter the growing trend of citizen surveillance. Last week, the UK’s Information Commissioner Richard Thomas made headlines after he commented on the increase in surveillance of people’s comings and goings. The commissioners agreed to support an international convention on data protection and called on data protection officials to address the “need for global solutions respecting privacy and data protection.” [Source] [Document] [Coverage]

UK – Information Commissioner’s Report Raises Concerns About Social Profiling

More databases means more profiling - at least that’s one concern raised in a report commissioned by Information Commissioner Richard Thomas. The report analyzes surveillance in the UK today as well as predictions for the future of government and private sector monitoring of individuals. As profiles are built on individuals, the report raises concern about the potential for sorting people based on social and economic status. It also warns about “mission creep,” or the expanded collection of data beyond the initial scope of the collection. [Source]

CA – BC Auto Insurer Shelves Black Box Plan

ICBC has quietly ditched its plan to install black box data recorders in the cars of some volunteers to monitor their driving habits. It would have signaled a potential move toward broad use of electronic data recorders, following in the footsteps of an Ontario insurer that gives discounts of up to 25% to motorists who agree to plug in a black box and record proof of how safely they drive. “We decided we’re not going to move forward with that pilot project at this point,” said an ICBC spokesman. “We found there were just too many challenges moving forward.” The project was going to be far too costly, he said, and discussions with focus groups revealed the young volunteers ICBC wanted would be hard to recruit. “A large portion of them were unwilling to participate in something like this and the program would have to be voluntary,” he said. [Source]

WW – IBM Touts Smart Surveillance System

IBM Corp. hopes to capitalize on the enormous growth in video surveillance by selling technology from its research labs that performs real-time analysis on footage captured by security cameras in stores and sensitive locales. Several companies already offer systems that can alert security guards if something unusual appears to be going on – such as someone entering an off-limits room or a jewelry store employee leaving a key in a display case. But IBM contends that it is the first to add advanced search functions that make use of computers’ improving ability to recognize video content. For example, the IBM system would let a user search for all instances of a green car passing by a store on a certain day. [Source] [Source] [IBM’s digital video surveillance services]

WW – Tor Network Privacy Could Be Cracked

Tor, a peer-to-peer network of routers that lets users keep their IP addresses private as they connect to Web servers, isn’t as ironclad as some might think, according to a recent report from Danish research firm FortConsult. For legitimate users, the findings mean a malicious hacker could potentially invade their privacy. For those who use Tor to mask fraudulent activity, however, it means investigators could develop the means to uncover their tracks. The report explains how hackers could compromise the system’s anonymity by interfering with traffic passing through Tor’s exit server. [Source]

WW – Intel Drafts Privacy License for Mobile Device Software

Intel has attached a privacy license to its new location-aware software product, intended to protect cell phone users’ personal information as mobile devices increasingly rely on tracking technology to provide targeted services. Installed on a smart phone or ultramobile PC, location-aware software can use Global Positioning System technology to produce tailored information like driving directions, nearby restaurants and movie schedules. The downside of that feature is that handsets can double as tracking devices if location data is not kept private. The abuse of such access could range from civil liberties violations to physical threats in the cases of vulnerable people like battered spouses, Intel fears. So, Intel has added a privacy addendum to the Eclipse Public License it uses for the software application called Privacy Observant Location System (POLS), according to a posting on Intel’s Web site by John Miller, the privacy and security policy manager of Intel’s corporate technology group. The addendum says that vendors must inform the end-user what information is recorded and how long it is stored, and it requires developers to include opt-out capability so users can change those settings, Miller said. [Source] [Addendum]

US – US Customs Announces Massive New Database on Trucks and Travelers

US Customs and Border Protection issued a notice in the Federal Register this week which detailed the agency’s massive database that keeps risk assessments on every traveler entering or leaving the country. Citizens who are concerned that their information is inaccurate are all but out of luck: the system “may not be accessed under the Privacy Act for the purpose of contesting the content of the record.” The system in question is the Automated Targeting System, which is associated with the previously-existing Treasury Enforcement Communications System. TECS was built to screen people and assets that moved in and out of the US, and its database contains more than one billion records that are accessible by more than 30,000 users at 1,800 sites around the country. Customs has adapted parts of the TECS system to its own use and now plans to screen all passengers, inbound and outbound cargo, and ships. The system creates a risk assessment for each person or item in the database. The assessment is generated from information gleaned from federal and commercial databases, provided by people themselves as they cross the border, and the Passenger Name Record information recorded by airlines. This risk assessment will be maintained for up to 40 years and can be pulled up by agents at a moment’s notice in order to evaluate potential threats against the US. [Source]

US – FTC Chair Says She Opposes New Laws for Technology

The head of the FTC voiced reluctance toward adopting consumer protection laws that target technological concerns du jour, saying the “collective voice” of consumers often prompts change. Deborah Platt Majoras, the agency’s Republican chairwoman, said she prefers relying on a combination of existing laws, vigorous competition and user pressure to address complaints about new products or potentially worrisome uses of technology. Majoras made the remarks at the start of a 3-day FTC event, “Protecting Consumers in the Next Tech-ade.” [Source] [Source]

US – FTC Commissioner: Companies Should Self-Regulate

The FTC will not shy away from using its powers to bring actions against online fraudsters, said an FTC commissioner during Day 2 of the “Protecting Consumers in the Next Tech-Ade” hearings. However, companies have a role to play by self-regulating their practices or contributing to education efforts, according to the commissioner. Online advertising that targets consumers based on Web surfing habits presents increased challenges for regulators in “a growing media universe,” said FTC Commissioner J. Thomas Rosch. [Source] [FTC Commissioner Urges Congress to Grant Agency Expanded Authority To Impose Civil Penalties On Spyware Distributors] [Consumerists Want FTC Probe of Online Advertising] [FTC Chief Warns Against ‘Unnecessary’ Net Rules]

US – Survey: One In Four Managers Google Job Candidates

uGoofed: Internet background checks costing people jobs: A survey by CareerBuilder.com finds that one in four managers use Internet search engines to check up on job candidates. Even more potentially troubling for job candidates is the impact the searches are having on hiring decisions. More than half of the candidates fail to make the cut after the online prowling. Experts are reminding students to think twice before revealing information online that could impact their future career success. The Careerbuilder.com survey pointed to the following information they discovered on the Web that caused them to deny hiring of potential employees:

31% of candidates lied about qualifications.
25% had poor communication skills.
24% of candidates were linked to criminal behavior.
19% bad mouthed their previous company or fellow employee.
19% of candidates posted information about themselves drinking or using drugs.
12% of candidates lied about an absence.
11% posted provocative or inappropriate photographs.
8% of candidates had an unprofessional screen name. [Source] [Source]

NZ – New Zealand Workplace Privacy Among the World’s Worst: Study

New Zealand workplaces have been fingered as allegedly among the world’s worst for prying on staff, but employers deny being nosier than most. A British-based organization, Privacy International, has given New Zealand the lowest score for workplace monitoring - on a scale of one to five – a dishonour shared by just two other countries among 21 assessed. Co-defendants similarly accused of “extensive surveillance” or being leaders in bad practice at work are Singapore and the United States. [Source]

AU – Australian Union Says GPS in Trucks “Unacceptable Threat to Privacy”

Telstra’s largest union, the Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Union (CEPU) has claimed that the installation of GPS systems linked to field workforce management tools pose an unacceptable threat to employee privacy. The CEPU has called for a halt to installations of the equipment until clear guidelines about its use can be agreed on. It has also advised its members not to consent to having these devices placed in their vehicles. [Source]

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