James Samuel reports: A relatively new report outlines how universities nationwide have signed over students’ private FERPA data to a third-party vendor that reviews their personal information to help study college students’ voting trends. The nine-page report describes how a national voting study run out of Tufts’ Institute for Democracy in Higher Education gets university administrators from…
The Real Battle for Data Privacy Begins When You Die
Shawn Wen reports: In 2012 a 15-year-old girl died in Berlin after being hit by a subway train. Her bereaved parents asked Facebook to turn over her private messages in hopes of understanding whether her death was a suicide or an accident. Facebook refused. Her death had already been reported to the social media site,…
Is Big Brother tracking your driving?
Jesse Jones reports: Your private driving data is being shared, and it could be used against you. When Temieka Clay requested her LexisNexis consumer file, she got more than 200 pages of records cataloging details from the car’s onboard computer about her driving. “This is my LexisNexis consumer disclosure report. I’m appalled,” said Clay. Read…
Can Florida’s new digital data law tame the ‘Wild West’ of online privacy?
Tom Hudson reports: Floridians may have new privacy options this summer if you use Amazon, Facebook or Google, thanks to a new digital privacy law that goes into effect July 1. Big tech companies have had a year to prepare for the new law, which expands what’s considered personal data to include your voice, fingerprints and face….