August 17, 2012
Facebook and privacy may not be strangers but they only have passing awareness of each other. Having just resolved a breach of an agreement in America Facebook finds itself being investigated, again, in Germany for retaining biometric data without consent.
The article in out-law.com provides:
German privacy regulator re-opens investigation into Facebook facial recognition feature
Facebook is storing pictures of its users without having those individuals’ required consent to do so, a data protection authority in Germany has alleged.16 Aug 2012
The Hamburg data protection authority has re-opened its investigation into the issue and called on Facebook to delete the biometric data it has collected of its users through the use of automated facial recognition technology. It said the social network must obtain users’ opt-in consent before compiling information about users through the use of the feature, according to a report by the New York Times.
Facebook uses automated facial recognition technology to suggest to users the identity of other members of the site when they feature in pictures the users are uploading to the social network. Those users can choose to ‘tag’ those individuals based on the suggestions, meaning the pictures are labelled with pop-up captions to enable people who view the photos to identify who is in the shot by hovering their mouse over the picture.
Under the EU’s Data Protection Directive personal data can only be processed under strict conditions. Personal data must be “processed fairly and lawfully” and generally it can only be collected for “specified, explicit and legitimate purposes and not further processed in a way incompatible with those purposes”.
Organisations must generally obtain “unambiguous consent” from individuals in order for personal data processing to be Read the rest of this entry »
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August 14, 2012
Section 461(1)(k) of the Corporations Act is a very useful provision when dealing with directors and shareholders who are in dispute but there is no evidence of oppression (where sections 232 and 233 would apply). The circumstances giving rise to the court exercising the very broad discretion vary. As such it is worth briefly reviewing 3 decisions to gauge the approach the court’s take in the very practical exercise of deciding whether it is appropriate to wind up a company; Giacobbe & Anor v Giacobbe & Anor [2012] VSC 285, Warner v Global Pacific Aerospace Pty Ltd & Anor [2012] VSC 291 and White Family No 1 Pty Ltd v Organic Brands Pty Ltd & Anor [2011] VSC 247.
Giacobbe & Anor v Giacobbe & Anor [2012] VSC 285
Facts
Michele and Antonio Giacobbe, brothers, went into business in 1962 manufacturing and selling office furniture. In October 1974, a family trust was established and the furniture business became an asset of the trust. The beneficiaries of the trust were the two brothers and their respective family members. In the early 1980s, Michele and Antonio fell out Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Corporations Law, General, Insolvency, Legal
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August 11, 2012
The Federal Trade Commission has announced a settlement with Facebook regarding its policies on sharing information beyond the established privacy settings.
The announcement (found here) provides:
Facebook Must Obtain Consumers’ Consent Before Sharing Their Information Beyond Established Privacy Settings
Following a public comment period, the FTC has accepted as final a settlement with Facebook resolving charges that Facebook deceived consumers by telling them they could keep their information on Facebook private, and then repeatedly allowing it to be shared and made public.
The settlement requires Facebook to Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in General, Privacy, Privacy US case Law
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August 10, 2012
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced a settlement with Google for its misrepresentation of privacy assurances.
The statement provides:
Google Inc. has agreed to pay a record $22.5 million civil penalty to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it misrepresented to users of Apple Inc.’s Safari Internet browser that it would not place tracking “cookies” or serve targeted ads to those users, violating an earlier privacy settlement between the company and the FTC.
The settlement is Read the rest of this entry »
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August 9, 2012
The Victorian Privacy Commissioner is investigating a potential privacy issue involving Myki according to Zdnet.
The article provides:
A glitch in point of sales machines for Victoria’s Myki ticketing system has caught the attention of the Victorian Privacy Commissioner over concerns that the Transport Ticketing Authority may be compromising passengers’ privacy.
The Victorian Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) raised the privacy issue, providing images of receipts from Myki vending machines that contain customers’ full names, more than the last four digits of the credit cards used for transaction and the credit card expiry date.
Mastercard’s Security Rules and Procedures (PDF) clearly state that merchant members must omit the card expiration date and that only the last four digits of the card should be visible.
Additionally, Read the rest of this entry »
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August 8, 2012
The UK Information Commissioner’s Office has been penalised a health trust in Devon for releasing details of 1,000 employees on its web site. The announcement is found here.
The release provides:
A health trust in Torquay has been served with a £175,000 penalty after the sensitive details of over 1,000 employees were accidentally published on the Trust’s website, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) announced today.
Staff at Torbay Care Trust published the information in a spreadsheet on their website in April 2011 and only spotted the mistake when it was reported by a member of the public 19 weeks later. The data covered Read the rest of this entry »
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August 5, 2012
On 30 July Media Watch ran an exhaustive (for TV at least) on privacy issues with coverage of private tragedy involving the Channel 7 coverage of Molly Lord’s death. I posted on the incident here on 25 July 2012.
It is a fascinating story which throws a light on some newsgathering techniques, how the social networking impacts mainstream media and how that media seeks to justify itself. The transcript provides:
Private tragedy vs public interest
I am the mother of the beautiful Molly Lord who was killed on a quad bike last week. I would just like to let everyone know of the pain and harassment we suffered as a result of channel 7…
— Channel Seven News, Facebook page, 21st July, 2012
Welcome to Media Watch, I’m Jonathan Holmes, and no jokey start this week. Our main item concerns something too tragic, and too serious
It was on the Saturday before last Read the rest of this entry »
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Yesterday the Attorney General gave a speech to the New South Wales Alternative Dispute Resolution Workshop.
It provides:
Introduction
It’s a pleasure to be with you this morning to discuss the role alternative dispute resolution plays in this Government’s ambitious agenda to improve access to justice.
I know I’m speaking to the truly committed practitioners of and advocates for ADR, when you’re willing to forgo everything a sunny Sydney Saturday morning has to offer, and spend it here instead!
Today I will, of course, speak about alternative dispute resolution – its benefits and the ways in which the Government is supporting this worthy policy area.
But, I will also emphasise how alternative dispute resolution plays an important role helping to alleviate pressure on our courts, and ensure that more Australians can access the justice system – a key priority for a Labor Government.
As such Read the rest of this entry »
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July 25, 2012
The perceived need for the visual footage can drive a news crew to do all sorts of things, most of it appallingly distasteful. Like buzzing overhead in a chopper and peering down on Linda Goldspink -Lord while she was at the body of her 13 year old daughter Molly Lord on her farm. The facts as reported reek of intrusions into a deeply private space. Appalling behaviour is a given here but probably an intereference with privacy.
It provides:
Channel Seven has apologised to a mother who lost her teenage daughter in a quad-bike accident almost two weeks ago after her criticism of its news crew was removed from its Facebook page.
Linda Goldspink-Lord wrote of her anger on the Seven News Sydney Facebook page in a post that attracted more than 32,000 “likes” before it was removed.
She alleged the news station filmed her with the body of her 13-year-old daughter Molly Lord from a helicopter above a property at Kembla Grange, near Wollongong on July 11.
“I would just like to let everyone know of the pain and harassment we suffered as a result of channel 7,” she wrote.
“A reporter was on our private property very soon after the accident Read the rest of this entry »
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Last Friday the Herald Sun ran a report McDonald’s says hi-tech specs ‘sparked privacy fears’. The article has a bit of the gosh golly geez to it but it does raise a very important issue. People are concerned about visual recording devices in their midst, particularly when not mounted as a CCTV (though I think there is enough concern about them as well. There tends to be one side of the topic reported on those issues).
It provides:
MCDONALD’S workers in Paris who stopped a Canadian professor from wearing computerised eyeglasses feared he could be recording or photographing people in violation of their privacy, the company has said. Read the rest of this entry »
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