AP reports: Microsoft will pay a fine of $20 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it illegally collected and retained the data of children who signed up to use its Xbox video game console. The agency charged that Microsoft gathered the data without notifying parents or obtaining their consent, and that it also illegally…
Category: Govt
Russia says US hacked thousands of Apple phones in spy plot
Guy Faulconbridge reports: Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Thursday it had uncovered an American espionage operation that compromised thousands of iPhones using sophisticated surveillance software. Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab said dozens of its employees’ devices were compromised in the operation. The FSB, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, said in a statement that…
Out of the mouths of babes? FTC says Amazon kept kids’ Alexa voice data forever – even after parents ordered deletion
Lesley Fair writes: “Stop it!” Moms and Dads may have to repeat that instruction to their kids, but when parents said it to Amazon in an effort to get the company to delete children’s voice data obtained through its Alexa voice assistant, Amazon should have honored those requests immediately. But according to a complaint filed…
Amazon to pay over $30 million in FTC settlements over Ring, Alexa privacy violations
Lauren Feiner and Annie Palmer report: Amazon will pay the Federal Trade Commission more than $30 million as part of settlement agreements related to its Alexa and Ring divisions, according to filings on Wednesday. The agency filed a lawsuit alleging Amazon’s Ring doorbell unit violated a portion of the FTC Act that prohibits unfair or deceptive…