The European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA) in its report Big Data Threat Landscape and Good Practice Guide has signalled Read the rest of this entry »

Sometimes the figures are so staggering that one has to pause and ask, is that right?  Or even possible?!?

One of those moments came Read the rest of this entry »

It is something of a myth that there are no privacy protections in the USA. At the Federal level there are protections but the regulations are narrow and sectorally focused.  There is a permissiveness in the sale of data which undermines basic privacy protections.

At a state level however there are far greater privacy protective regulations.  Often times when the Federal Government dawdles the States step in to fill the gaps.  This is exemplified in New Mexico passing laws to clarify when police need a warrant to search phones and computers while the Vermont Senate has passed a bill to enhance electronic privacy.   And now some States are legislating in unison, with the coordination of the ACLU, to enhance protections as reported in  New privacy bills to hinder data collection could affect 100M Americans and Wired in 5 Things Congress Should Learn From New State Privacy Bills looks at what the States are doing to provide protections.  The Wire article provides:
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On 14 January 2016 the Pew Research Center issued a very interesting report titled Privacy and Information Sharing.  It debunks, or at least continues to debunk, the myth that most people are happy to compromise their privacy.  A variation on the “There is no privacy, get over it” mantra used by those who would like there to be no effective privacy. At least in the commercial space.

The research makes clear that American’s do care about their privacy, (as the scenarios set out below attest) are more nuanced on where and when they would be prepared to let their personal information be disclosed and what annoys and worries them is what is done with their personal information after it has been collected.  In that respect it is a universal concern.  The research is not ground breaking.  The concerns raised Read the rest of this entry »

In Locker Group Pty Ltd v HEA Australia Pty Ltd [2015] VSC 752 the Victorian Supreme Court, per Randall AsJ, considered the authorities relating to the obligations to provide full disclosure, the failure to disclose a material fact and the consequences of not complying with an order in the service of an application resulting in late service. The Court made orders under the Civil Procedure Act relating to the very unfortunate conduct of Locker Group. The court also considered the scope of the power under the Civil Procedure Act in making costs orders encompassing costs incurred by liquidators.

FACTS

On 16 April 2014  Australia Pressure Vessel Heads (2011) Pty Ltd, the Plaintiff, filed an originating process seeking to wind up HEA Australia Pty Ltd (‘the Company’) under s 459P of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (‘Corporations Act’)[2]. On 14 May 2014 the plaintiff’s counsel appeared. There was no appearance for the Company. There were negotiations the result of which was that payment was expected within seven days. A further hearing was adjourned to 21 May 2014 [3]. At that time the plaintiff’s counsel again appeared, advised that the plaintiff had been paid out and sought to be excused. Counsel for Locker Group Pty Ltd, a supporting creditor (‘Locker Group’), appeared and advised the Court that it wished to be substituted as plaintiff. At that time the Company had not filed a notice of appearance under r 2.9  of the Supreme Court (Corporations) Rules 2013 and s 465C of the Corporations Act [4]. Read the rest of this entry »

In Australia telcos tend to be frequent fliers when it comes to poor privacy practices and data breaches. And Telstra Read the rest of this entry »

Revenge porn is phenomana from the dark side of the internet.  It has a number of definitions but probably the most succinct and accurate description of what it entails is “ the publication of explicit material portraying someone who has not consented for the image or video to be shared”.  The use of intimate photographs to humiliate predates the internet.  Before photographs, heartfelt letters to erstwhile lovers were used.  The reach of the net and the ease of downloading photographs onto a social media site or any number of sites hosted in the country or in a suitably lawless overseas site makes it a far more vicious form of attack.   Read the rest of this entry »

It is a blessing of the digital age that charities can use information in a far more effective way than was previously the case.  Costs of administration in storing information on line should be less than maintaining bulky documents in cabinets.  Using algorithms instead of guesswork helps fund raising and using email Read the rest of this entry »

Cyber criminals can obtain personal information for purpose of identity theft and to blackmail the site’s hapless owners.  But the really big win is getting credit card information.  Details of lots cards makes a win all the bigger.  It is disastrous for Read the rest of this entry »

Hospitals, health centers and the professionals that work within them provide excellent medical services.  Their privacy practices are, however, generally appalling.  Notwithstanding the longstanding requirement for confidentiality the culture within parts of the medical community has been all to often to treat patient’s personal information in a cavalier fashion.  Some are so silly as to Read the rest of this entry »