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Posts tagged "Privacy"
Partial Reprint from CNET.com
Facebook announced this week that it’s seeking user comment on a proposed redesign of its privacy policy that’s meant to make the policy easier to understand while bringing the world of legalese-smothered documents into the widget-filled realm of the 21st century.
In a post to Facebook’s site governance section, the company’s privacy team offers a look at its “first attempt” to re-organize, rewrite, and add interactivity to the current policy, which is essentially your standard mass of small black text.
Among other potentially interesting re-imaginings, the proposed redesign features an interactive tool intended to demonstrate how profile data is put to use in serving advertisements (click “Personalized ads” and scroll down to “Try this tool”). The tool puts Facebook members into the shoes of someone creating and targeting an ad. It’s not clear if users would deem it an educational aid or a nuisance in practice, but that seems to be part of why the potential redesign is being put to public scrutiny in this way.
Posted in Cyber Data Security, Identity Theft Prevention, Online Privacy by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: Expert, Facebook, Policy, Privacy, Redesign, Sileo, Speaker
Identity theft is all about control. Who has control over your personal and financial information? Is it you, or the criminal on the other end of your computer using your information to apply for a credit card? Losing control of your personal information can be all too easy online. But by taking some precautions, you can maintain privacy while safely surfing the internet.
Here are 5 tips to protect your privacy online:
1. Adjust social-network privacy settings
Facebook has been working to simplify their privacy settings, but they can still be confusing to the average users. Spend about 10 minutes a month making sure that your privacy settings are what they should be and are actually protecting your privacy.
To get there, log in to Facebook, in the top right of your screen it should say “Account” when you scroll over or click on that tab you can see you Privacy Settings. Click here for a step by step process of how to adjust your privacy settings.
Posted in Identity Theft Prevention, Online Privacy by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: Facebook, identity theft expert, Identity Theft Prevention, John Sileo, Online Privacy Tips, Privacy, Privacy Means Profit
The many changes that Facebook has been making recently have users nervous. Nervous because they are lacking the control that they once had over their privacy on the social networking site. While Facebook has never been the mecca of privacy, the recent and swift changes they are making has created more of an issue for users. One by one they are voicing their concerns with the new features and why they feel Facebook is slowly revealing the end of your privacy.
Facebook and privacy issues go hand in hand.
Here are a few of the new features; although they are snazzy, they have many users concerned.
Posted in Cyber Data Security, Identity Theft Prevention, Online Privacy by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: Facebook, identity theft expert, Identity Theft Prevention, John Sileo, Online Safety, Privacy, social networking
According to a recent New York Times article, the government may be creating a department solely dedicated to strenghthening privacy policies within the United States and other countries. A recent report details why such a force is necessary. Although this new office would lack enforcement authority, they would work directly with the administration and necessary agencies to attack and solve privacy issues.
“America needs a robust privacy framework that preserves consumer trust in the evolving Internet economy while ensuring the Web remains a platform for innovation, jobs and economic growth,” the Secretary of the Commerce, Gary F. Locke, said in a statement. “Self-regulation without stronger enforcement is not enough. Consumers must trust the Internet in order for businesses to succeed online.”
The policy task force already suggested we make visible exactly what information is collected online through a “Privacy Bill of Rights.” Companies that collect this information will then have increased accountability and limits on what they can do with information collected.
Posted in Cyber Data Security, Fraud Detection & Prevention, Identity Theft Prevention by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "Identity Theft, Expert, Federal Office, FTC, Identity Theft Speaker, John Sileo, New York Times, Online, online privacy, Online Privacy Office, Online Safety, Privacy, Security
Some months ago, Google got caught sniffing the wireless connection in our homes as they photographed our houses to post on Google Street View. Although the case may be newsworthy, the settlement is only peanuts. Google has been found guilty of trespassing on Aaron and Christine Boring’s home and will have to pay them the astounding amount of $1 for punitive damages. The search engine giant admitted that they trespassed when they took a picture of the plaintiffs house for Google Street View and ended up settling the case. The couple were hoping to make a point, but also realized that they financially can’t take on the huge corporation.
Posted in Identity Theft Prevention by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: Google, John Sileo, Privacy, Security, Sniffing, Spying, Street View, Wireless
During a recent 60 Minutes interview, I was asked off camera to name the Achilles’ heel of an entire country’s data security perspective; what exactly were the country’s greatest weaknesses. The country happened to be New Zealand, a forward-thinking nation smart enough to take preventative steps to avoid the identity theft problems we face in the States. The question was revealing, as was the metaphor they applied to the discussion.
Achilles, an ancient Greek superhero — half human, half god — was in the business of war. His only human quality (and therefore his only exploitable weakness) was his heel, which when pierced by a Trojan arrow brought Achilles to the ground, defeated. From this Greek myth, the Achilles’ Heel has come to symbolize a deadly weakness in spite of overall strength; a weakness that can potentially lead to downfall. As I formulated my thoughts in regard to New Zealand, I realized that the same weaknesses are almost universal — applying equally well to nations, corporations and individuals.
Posted in Fraud Detection & Prevention, Identity Theft Prevention, Online Privacy, Sileo In the News by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "New Zealand", 60 Minutes, data, Facebook, financial crime, Financial Speaker, Fraud Training, Identity, identity theft expert, Identity Theft Speaker, information, John Sileo, Privacy, Security, Sileo, social engineering, Social Media Privacy, social networking, Theft
According to TIME Newsfeed, Facebook is taking on a new marketing giant – Groupon. Groupon.com has gained popularity extremely fast due to the huge discounts they offer users on a daily basis. Their average discount ranges from 50% to 80% off of food, services, shops and entertainment. They boast over 18 million subscribers and have sold over 12 million deals. It is no wonder that Facebook would want a piece of the action — when Groupon featured clothing giant GAP on their site, they sold 400,000 deals, making them $11 million.
But there is a catch: Facebook Deals only goes hand in hand with Facebook Places. In order to receive the promotions, you have to use their location sharing app and “check in” to get the deal. In other words, to gain the benefits offered by Facebook Deals, you have to sacrifice more privacy. Groupon only asks users for their city location in order to tailor deals to their area. To take advantage of a deal, you must share your address and billing information, and that is done on their secure checkout site.
Posted in Fraud Detection & Prevention, Identity Theft Prevention, Online Privacy by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: Facebook Deals, Facebook Places, Groupon, Privacy, Sileo
Facebook is a cigarette, information is the nicotine, and you are the addict. And it is time to stop blaming Facebook if you get privacy cancer.
Years ago, after a long and drawn out fight, the tobacco industry was forced to put labels on their cigarette packs warning smokers that these nicotine delivery devices caused cancer, birth defects and premature death. The warnings did little to slow down sales of cigarettes, though they might have helped the tobacco companies avoid some costly lawsuits because, after all, they had clearly warned users about the dangers.
With the latest iteration of privacy settings being introduced this week on Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg (or more likely the brilliant Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg) has discovered a similar truth – you are either too addicted to the information drug, or too indifferent to the privacy consequences, to care.
Posted in Online Privacy by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: Addiction, Application, Applications, Apps, Facebook, Groups, Information Addiction, Information Survival, John Sileo, Privacy, Sheryl Sandberg, Third-Party
You and your business are worth a lot of money, whether your bank accounts show it or not. The goldmine lies in your data, and everyone wants it. Competitors want to hire the employee you just fired for the thumb drive full of confidential files they smuggled out. Data thieves salivate over your Facebook profile, which provides as a “how to” guide for exploiting your trust. Cyber criminals are digitally sniffing the wireless connection you use at Starbucks to make bank transfers and send “confidential” emails.
Every business is under assault by forces that want access to your valuable data: identity records, customer databases, employee files, intellectual property, and ultimately, your net worth. Research is screaming at us—more than 80% of businesses surveyed have already experienced at least one breach (average recovery cost: $6.75 million) and have no idea of how to stop a repeat performance. These are clear, profit-driven reasons to care about who controls your data.
Posted in Burning Questions (Video), Fraud Detection & Prevention, Identity Theft Prevention, Video Tips by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: “business fraud”, data theft, Expert, Fraud, Hot Spots, Identity Theft Prevention, Information Hot Spots, Information Security, Inside Spies, mobile data, Prevention, Privacy, Protection, Sileo, social engineering, Speaker
