I’m sometimes quoted in the press about privacy and security (select clips below).
2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 and prior
2014
2014-10-27 Unraveling and Unpacking the Technology of Web Tracking IAPP The Privacy Advisor #privacy #tracking
2014-10-17 Ad Tracking CBC Radio (Canada) #floodwatch #tracking #privacy
2014-10-15 Turning the tables on online advertisers Washington Post #floodwatch #tracking #privacy
2014-10-14 Don’t Listen to Snapchat’s Excuses. Security Is Its Job Wired #privacy #hacking #breach
2014-10-13 The Floodwatch Plug-In Exposes Exactly How Advertisers Are Profiling You BetaBeat #floodwatch #tracking #privacy
2014-10-10 Here’s One Way To Find Out Which Advertisers Are Tracking You Across The Internet Business Insider #floodwatch #tracking #privacy
2014-10-10 Floodwatch Helps Track The Advertisers Tracking You Fast Company #floodwatch #tracking #privacy
2014-10-02 Why companies really want you to use an app for that Marketplace Tech #privacy #apps #surveillance
2014-09-05 Apple Promises Security Improvements Data Breach Today #privacy #hacking
2014-09-05 Tim Cook Says Apple to Add Security Alerts for iCloud Users Wall Street Journal #privacy #hacking
2014-09-02 Apple Denies iCloud Breach: Tech Giant Says Celebrity Accounts Compromised by ‘Very Targeted Attack’ Wall Street Journal #privacy #hacking
2014-09-02 Stolen Nude Images Reveal Celebs’ Location Information Forbes #privacy #hacking #tracking
2014-09-02 Apple’s basically blaming hack victims for not securing their own iCloud accounts Washington Post #apple #security
2014-08-21 Encryption Is Going Mainstream, But Will People Actually Use It? Vice Motherboard #encryption #privacy
2014-07-09 Google confronts more site certificate problems CNET #security
2014-05-05 Facebook, Google, tech CEOs urge Senate to limit personal data collection, push for more transparency NY Daily News #surveillance #nsa #government
2014-06-05 Heartbleed Redux: Another Gaping Wound in Web Encryption Uncovered Wired #encryption #ssl #security
2014-06-05 U.S. technology companies beef up security to thwart mass spying Reuters #surveillance #privacy #nsa
2014-05-11 Ex-FBI official: Intel agencies don’t share cyber threats that endanger companies The Washington Times #surveillance #privacy #nsa
2014-05-08 Why You Might Not Be Charged the Same Prices as Your Friend ABC News #privacy #FTC
2014-04-23 NSA Finally Reveals How PRISM Works, But It’s Nothing New Mashable #surveillance #privacy #nsa
2014-04-02 You Are What You Search: How online activity is monitored, compiled, and sold The Devil’s Advocate (a local high school paper) #privacy #mobile #tracking #big data
2014-03-25 Lessons for Journalists and Sources from the Microsoft/Blogger Privacy Fiasco Freedom of the Press Foundation #security #email
2014-03-25 Your Smartphone Is A Crucial Police Tool, If They Can Crack It NPR’s All Tech Considered #privacy #mobile
2014-03-21 Snowden’s leaked NSA trove yields its secrets only slowly Washington Post #surveillance #privacy #nsa
2014-03-21 As Surveillance Costs Fall, Could the NSA Gain Ability to Record & Replay Every Call, Everywhere? Democracy Now #surveillance #privacy #nsa
2014-03-19 A newly revealed NSA program collects an entire country’s phone calls — and keeps them for 30 days PRI’s The World #surveillance #privacy #nsa
2014-03-19 NSA Can Record 100% of a Foreign Country’s Calls KCRW’s To The Point #surveillance #privacy #nsa
2014-03-18 Edward Snowden’s TEDTalk “Here’s how we take back the Internet“ Reference at 30:45 #surveillance #privacy #nsa
2014-03-11 Edward Snowden: ‘The NSA set fire to the internet. You are the firefighters’ The Guardian #surveillance #privacy #nsa
2014-03-09 The Data Brokers: Selling Your Personal Information 60 Minutes #tracking #big data
(This also led to the beginning of my career as a movie star–at least that’s what I assume happens as soon as someone has an IMDB page.)
2014-03-07 Why You Need To Rip The Mailing Label Off Magazines As Soon As They Arrive Forbes #privacy
2014-03-01 Analyst blames Yahoo for laxness around spying Radio New Zealand #surveillance #privacy #ssl
2014-02-27 UK Spy Agency Collected Millions of Webcam Images From Yahoo Users Mashable #surveillance
2014-02-26 Apple gotofail bug addressed with update, some iDevices bricked Silicon Angle #encryption #apple
2014-02-25 Apple’s culture of secrecy delays security response — again #encryption #apple
2014-02-25 Apple Staying Silent About Security Snafu Wall St Cheat Sheet #encryption #apple
2014-02-24 The Apple Security Hole Keeps Getting Worse Huffington Post #encryption #apple
2014-02-24 Apple apps left vulnerable to encryption flaw Global News #encryption #apple
2014-02-24 Apple’s Deafening Silence On ‘GoToFail’ Security Flaw Forbes #encryption #apple
2014-02-24 Apple encryption mistake puts many desktop applications at risk IT World #encryption #apple
2014-02-23 Apple’s ‘Gotofail’ Security Mess Extends To Mail, Twitter, iMessage, Facetime And More Forbes #encryption #apple
2014-02-23 The OS X Apps Affected by Apple’s Unpatched Security Flaw Gizmodo #encryption #apple
2014-02-23 Security certification group EC-Council’s website defaced with Snowden passport Ars Technica
2014-02-22 Extremely critical crypto flaw in iOS may also affect fully patched Macs Ars Technica #encryption #apple
2014-02-14 Harvard Professor Attacking Google Prospers as Internet Sheriff Bloomberg #shoutout
2014-02-11 Locking down your data KOAA5 #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-28 How App Developers Leave the Door Open to NSA Surveillance MIT Technology Review #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-14 How Easy It Is To Spy These Days, In One Graphic Business Insider #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-14 How Cheap It Is To Spy On You, In One Infographic Co.Exist #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-13 Surveillance: Fast, Cheap, And Out Of Control Information Week #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-11 Cell Phone Tracking Costs As Little As $0.04 An Hour, Say Privacy Researchers Digital Trends #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-10 The staggeringly cheap costs of monitoring you with a cell phone SF Gate #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-10 Cost of tracking suspects by GPS so low that legal questions are raised: Study Examiner #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-09 How the cost of cell phone surveillance can change legal privacy protections CNET #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-09 Cell Phones Let Cops Track People for a Thousandth of the Price, Study Finds Forbes #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-09 Cellphone surveillance costs $5 per hour, according to report The Verge #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-09 (Portuguese) Espionagem de celulares custa US$ 5 por hora, diz estudo INFO Online #surveillance #privacy
2014-01-03 SecOps failure: GPG+Gmail on OSX Mavericks may store unencrypted drafts Ars Technica #security #privacy
2014-01-04 Thousands of visitors to yahoo.com hit with malware attack, researchers say Washington Post #security
2014-01-04 Facebook, Google, Yahoo all being sued over message scanning SF Chronicle #privacy
2013
2013-11-19 Hijack customers’ computers to generate bitcoins? New Jersey has a problem with that Washington Post #government
2013-11-19 Brilliant But Evil: Gaming Company Fined $1 Million for Secretly Using Player’s Computers to Mine Bitcoin Forbes #government
2013-10-21 How Apple’s Address Book app could allow the NSA to harvest your contacts ArsTechnica #apple #encryption
2013-10-17 Experts: Yes, Apple and the NSA Can Read Your iMessages Mashable #surveillance #nsa #encryption
2013-10-06 Lobbyists question take-down of websites The Hill #government #FTC
2013-10-04 Ad groups developing standard opt-out technology SFGate #tracking #cookies
2013-10-04 Technologists’ Submit Comments to the NSA Review Group CDT Press Release
2013-10-03 Blippex offers a new, and private, way of searching — but privacy is elusive Public Radio International #tracking #big data #surveillance
2013-10-02 Stale Cookies: How companies are tracking you online today SF Gate #tracking
2013-10-01 Your Digital Trail: Private Company Access NPR All Tech Considered #tracking #big data #surveillance
2013-09-30 Your Digital Trail, And How It Can Be Used Against You National Public Radio #tracking #big data #surveillance
2013-09-30 Easily obtained subpoenas turn your personal information against you Center for Investigative Reporting #tracking #big data #surveillance
2013-09-27 Will Biometrics Replace Passwords As Keys To Our Digital Lives? Cult of Mac #security
2013-09-18 Your Deadbeat Facebook Friends Could Cost You a Loan Mother Jones #facebook #civil liberties
2013-09-12 FTC Reviewing Whether Facebook Violated Privacy Rules US News and World Report #facebook #security
2013-09-12 Sen. Franken Presses Facebook to Reconsider Potential Expansion of its Facial Recognition Program #facebook #security
2013-09-12 Privacy Pros and Cons of the iPhone 5S Fingerprint Scanner US News and World Report #security
2013-09-11 Online data brokers know you surprisingly well San Jose Mercury News #tracking #big data
2013-09-10 NSA Online Spying? You Can Avoid It … For Now Discovery News #surveillance #civil liberties #nsa #encryption
2013-09-06 Google accelerates encryption project CNET #surveillance #civil liberties #nsa #encryption
2013-09-05 Data Marketing Critics Check Out What’s Written About Them NPR #tracking #big data
2013-09-04 How “MEGApwn” pilfers your Mega files and why it’s nothing to worry about #surveillance #civil liberties #nsa #encryption
2013-09-04 Getting a Glimpse of Your Own Marketing Data Online New York Times #tracking #big data
2013-08-27 Miranda case highlights extent of personal data on our devices Marketplace #surveillance #civil liberties
2013-08-23 NSA FISA Surveillance: Member Of NSA Review Panel May Think Phone Records Program Is Illegal International Business Times #nsa
2013-08-12 Snooping? Companies do it, too Christian Science Monitor #surveillance #tracking
2013-08-12 Experts in the United States named the reasons hacking media accounts in social networks RIA Novosti (Russian) #hacking, #phishing, #passwords, #security
2013-08-06 NSA spying scandal sends cloud market into frenzy gbtimes #surveillance
#tracking
2013-08-01 NSA Surveillance Can Penetrate VPNs Information Week #surveillance #tracking
2013-07-31 Leaked docs: NSA gathers half-trillion Web files a year Associated Press #surveillance #tracking
2013-07-29 PulsePoint To Pay $1 Million For Safari Hack Online Media Daily #tracking, #cookies
2013-07-25 N.J. wins $1 million settlement from online ad company for violating web user privacy NJ News #tracking, #cookies
2013-07-25 New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs Obtains Million-Dollar Settlement With Online Advertising Company Accused of Overriding Consumers’ Privacy Settings Without Consent New Jersey Attorney General’s Office #tracking, #cookies
2013-07-18 If ‘Just Metadata’ Isn’t An Issue, Why Can’t Tech Companies Reveal ‘Just Metadata’ About NSA Surveillance? Techdirt #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-07-18 Microsoft to Google Input Sought in Probe of NSA Programs Bloomberg News #surveillance, #tracking
2013-07-16 Microsoft Hints Skype Calls May Be Fair Game for NSA Mashable #surveillance #tracking
2013-07-12 One Major Hacker Conference Bans the Feds. Another Welcomes Them Slate #surveillance
2013-07-09 Privacy Panel Considers Restraints on Secret U.S. Spy Program Bloomberg Business Week #surveillance #civil liberties
2013-07-08 Berkman Center Announces 2013-2014 Community Berkman Center for Internet and Society #ashkansoltani Announcing my position as an affiliate of the Berkman Center in the coming academic year.
2013-07-08 Experts Destroy Obama’s Argument That Americans Must Sacrifice Privacy For Security Business Insider #surveillance #civil liberties
2013-07-06 Privacy vs. security: ‘False choice’ poisons debate on NSA leaks NBC News #surveillance #civil liberties The idea I reject is that you need to violate everyone’s privacy rather than be better at your job of identifying specific (targets).
2013-07-05 Creative destruction, government snooping- Is the Internet worth it? Salon.com #surveillance #civil liberties
2013-07-02 Tools To Help You Hide Online Raise The Ire Of Advertisers NPR’s All Things Considered #tracking, #privacy
2012-07-01 Technology, Not Law, Limits Mass Surveillance MIT Technology Review #surveillance #civil liberties This article, which I wrote, is also posted on my blog.
2013-06-26 Can Apple read your iMessages? Ars deciphers “end-to-end” crypto claims ArsTechnica #surveillance, #encryption Independent privacy and security researcher Ashkan Soltani performed the mud puddle test earlier this week and confirmed that it’s possible for Apple to decrypt iMessages stored in the Apple cloud in just seconds or minutes.
2013-06-22 Data Security Is a Classroom Worry, Too New York Times #tracking, #encryption
2013-06-21 Alternatives To Google And Gmail: Private Search And Email Services Promise Online Anonymity In The Wake Of NSA Surveillance International Business Times #email, #surveillance
2013-06-21 How Web mail providers leave door open for NSA surveillance CNET #email, #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-19 Yahoo’s Dirty Trick To Get People To Use Their Products Again Forbes #email, #security, #passwords
2013-06-18 On Glenn Greenwald and His Fans The Nation #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-17 Tech titans and their ‘trust problem’ Politico #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-14 See How PRISM Might Work in This Infographic Mashable #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-14 Ideas For Keeping Your Data Safe From Spying Associated Press #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-12 How Prism might work, and why that matters to Congress and you NBC News #civil liberties, #surveillance
013-06-11 Zuckerberg Offers Another PRISM Denial Mashable #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-11 Expect more secret surveillance revelations, online privacy expert says National Post #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-10 In digital age, leaks get harder to hide Marketplace #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-08 PRISM: Does the NSA Really Get Direct Access to Your Data? Mashable #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-08 The Corporate Roots of the NSA Spying Controversy US News #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-08 Intel Director Sets Record Straight on PRISM, Sort Of Wired #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-07 Phone spying and PRISM internet surveillance: what’s the difference? The Verge #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-07 New Reports of Government Surveillance Escalate Privacy Debate Has the administration run roughshod over the public’s rights? AdWeek #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-07 How is the NSA accessing your data on Google, Facebook and more? FoxNews #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-07 NSA PRISM Creates Stir, But Appears Legal Information Week #civil liberties, #surveillance
2013-06-04 Evidon Acquires Mobile Privacy Tool Online Media Daily #mobilescope, #mobile
2013-05-22 Microsoft is reading Skype messages Naked Security #tracking, #skype, #encryption
2013-05-20 PSA: Your Skype Messages Aren’t as Private as You Think They Are Gizmodo #tracking, #skype, #encryption
2013-05-20 Microsoft may be scanning your Skype messages PC World #tracking, #skype, #encryption
2013-05-20 Think your Skype messages get end-to-end encryption? Think again Ars Technica #tracking, #skype, #encryption With the help of independent privacy and security researcher Ashkan Soltani, Ars used Skype to send four Web links that were created solely for purposes of this article. Two of them were never clicked on, but the other two—one beginning in HTTP link and the other HTTPS—were accessed, by a machine at 65.52.100.214, an IP address belonging to Microsoft.
2013-04-25 Meet the Stalkers American Prospect
2013-04-18 How Facebook Home Undermines Your Security Tech News Daily #facebook, #passwords, #security
2013-04-08 Today on Your Call: What do data brokers know about you? KALW Radio
2013-04-06 Facebook Home isn’t where your privacy is CNET #facebook, #big data, #tracking
2013-03-18 Mobile wallet technology raises privacy, security concerns McClatchy News Services #mobile, #apps, #privacy
2013-02-19 This Is the Site Likely Responsible for the Recent Major Tech Company Hacks All Things D #hacking, #phishing, #apps
2013-02-11 Facebook Login Bug: Lessons Learned Information Week #facebook, #passwords Soltani likens the situation to using giving a speech using the Mad Libs format. You allow a third-party to supply you with words periodically and hope that those words don’t alter what you meant to say or embarrass you.
2013-02-06 Federal Reserve Admits To Getting Hacked Mashable #hacking, #passwords, #phishing “Ultimately, the weakest link in security are humans,” explains Ashkan Soltani in an email. “‘Social engineering’ is typically much easier than trying to attack a bank from the outside. A ‘forged’ email from a service you use that contains your home address or contact information would be slightly more credible than a generic one since it contains what you perceive as ‘private information’ that only a trusted party would have (exploiting your social ties).”
2013-02-02 Twitter Got Hacked, Expect More Companies to Follow All Things D #hacking, #passwords, #privacy “There’s a herd mentality when it comes to disclosure,” independent security researcher Ashkan Soltani told AllThingsD. “Having other companies disclose their breaches makes it easier for your company to as you’re less likely to get singled out in the press and public eye.”
2013-02-02 Twitter says hackers compromise 250K accounts Associated Press #hacking, #passwords, #privacy
2012
2012-12-10 Big Brother’s Listening The Daily #civil liberties, #public transportation, #surveillance Government officials are quietly installing sophisticated audio surveillance systems on public buses across the country to eavesdrop on passengers, according to documents obtained by The Daily. “This technology is sadly indicative of a trend in increased surveillance by commercial and law enforcement entities, under the guise of improved safety,” said Ashkan Soltani.
2012-12-10 Public Buses Across Country Quietly Adding Microphones to Record Passenger Conversations Wired #civil liberties, #public transportation, #surveillance
2012-12-09 Delta Air Lines publishes privacy policy, but researcher finds a fault Computerworld #airlines, #apps, #privacy
2012-12-07 They Know What You’re Shopping For Wall Street Journal #advertising, #tracking, #datium
2012-12-07 Dear Journalists at Vice and Elsewhere, Here Are Some Simple Ways Not To Get Your Source Arrested Forbes #encryption, #journalism, #security
2012-12-06 Advocates: Free market doesn’t work for online privacy CSO/IDG News Service #FTC, #deep packet inspection, #privacy Web and mobile device users have little understanding about how much of their personal data is collected online, making it difficult to rely on free-market competition for solutions to privacy concerns, privacy experts told the U.S. Federal Trade Commission Thursday (Dec 6, 2012). It’s difficult for Web and mobile users to make informed decisions about Web-based products because much of the data collection happens behind the scenes, other speakers said. “It’s hard to compete on something people don’t know about,” said Ashkan Soltani, an independent security researcher and consultant.
2012-12-06 Despite Security Fixes, New Cracks Appear In New Jersey’s Last-Minute Email Voting Scheme Forbes #elections, #hacking, #passwords
2012-10-22 Hidden in Plain Sight Delta Sky Magazine #privacy, #big data
2012-10-22 Online Analytics Firm Settles Suit Over Unstoppable User Tracking Wired #cookies, #KISSmetrics, #tracking [KISSmetrics] was sued in August 2011, just after Wired.com reported on research into the company’s practices by UC Berkeley researchers including Ashkan Soltani. The suit, brought on behalf of John Kim and Dan Schutzman, accused the company of violating California and federal anti-hacking laws and misappropriating their personal information for profit.
2012-10-04 Facebook scans private messages for brand page mentions, admits a bug is boosting Likes Digital Trends #facebook, #likes,
2012-10-03 How Private Are Your Private Facebook Messages? Wall Street Journal #facebook, #likes
2012-09-19 Mobile apps allow analysts to view private information The Age (Australia) #mobilescope, #mobile, #tracking
2012-09-10 App Firm Was Source of Leaked Apple Data Wall Street Journal #bluetoad, #apps, #security
2012-09-01 A knight in digital armour The Economist #FTC, #privacy, #ashkansoltani Dr Soghoian is one of a group of researchers, some of whom are affiliated with academic institutions and many of whom work together, who have risen to prominence by showing how tedious technical flaws can affect ordinary people. Ashkan Soltani, who like Dr Soghoian has worked as an adviser to the FTC, has shown how some companies have devised “evercookies”—cookies that are very difficult to eradicate. Along with Jonathan Mayer of Stanford Law School, he showed how Google was bypassing tracking preferences in Apple’s web browser, Safari, which resulted in Google having to pay a $22.5m fine.
2012-08-20 New App Plugs Data Leaks ReadWrite #mobilescope, #mobile, #apps MobileScope monitors, detects and controls the leakage of personal data on your mobile phone. It prevents apps and other programs on your phone from transmitting your personal info without your consent.
2012-08-16 How To Tell If Your Boss Is Spying On You Forbes #privacy, #tracking
2012-08-14 See What Information Your Smartphone Sends with MobileScope Technology Personalized #mobilescope, #mobile, #apps With its help you will be able to see just how much information about you is being requested by the developers and determine if a certain app is harmful to your privacy. Also, apart from seeing the information that your device sends, you will be able to control the flow of information and block apps that are potential leaks.
2012-08-09 FTC Dings Google $22.5M in Safari Cookie Flap Wired #FTC, #google, #safari Google agreed to pay a record $22.5 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges it intentionally circumvented the default privacy settings of Apple’s Safari browser, using a backdoor to set cookies on browsers configured to reject them. […] Google immediately disabled the practice in February after the Wall Street Journal disclosed it, which was discovered by Stanford researcher Jonathan Mayer and confirmed by security consultant Ashkan Soltani.
2012-07-30 The Online Privacy Debate: Top Twitter Influencers To Follow Techopedia. List includes Ashkan Soltani. Follow Ashk4n.
2012-07-28 Scary thought: governments will secretly track our locations via smartphones Venture Beat #carrier IQ, #mobile, #tracking
2012-07-02 Kid apps: Are mobile providers protecting your child’s privacy? Christian Science Monitor #FTC, #apps, #children In a report issued in February, the FTC examined more than 400 randomly selected children’s apps at Apple’s iTunes App Store and Android’s Market. Prior to downloading an app, researchers found that disclosures about data-gathering practices, targeted advertising, social media links, and third-party data sharing were virtually nonexistent.
2012-06-25 Facebook’s Brazen Switch: User Email Addresses Change to @Facebook.com The Daily Beast #apps, #email, #facebook
2012-06-22 Facebook to require privacy policies for all apps in App Center Los Angeles Times #apps, #facebook, #privacy
2012-06-20 Apple Patents Technique That Uses Cloned ‘Doppelgangers’ To Protect Your Privacy Forbes #apple, #multiple identities, #privacy
2012-06-21 Flaw in Face.com iPhone App Would’ve Allowed Someone to Hack Your Facebook Account Betabeat #apps, #face.com, Security researcherAshkan Soltani discovered something rather alarming while poking around the company’s KLIK iOS app, which deploys its fancy face technology to help you tag friends in photos in real time and requires would-be users to use Facebook Connect. In short, the weak spot allowed any Tom, Dick, or Harry to take over your Facebook account and, if you’d linked it, your Twitter account. It’s since been patched, but yikes.
2012-06-25 Researcher Says Face.com iOS Flaw Left Facebook, Twitter Vulnerable PC World #apps, #face.com
2012-06-20 Face.com plugs security hole that enabled Facebook, Twitter account hijack Info-Security #apps, #face.com
2012-06-20 Once More Unto the Privacy Breach, Dear Facebook Friends? TechNewsWorld #apps, #face.com
2012-06-19 Face.com App Allowed Facebook, Twitter Account Hijacking Wired #apps, #face.com
2012-06-16 Acxiom, the Quiet Giant of Consumer Database Marketing New York Times #big data, #privacy, #tracking
2012-06-08 What the Password Leaks Mean to You CNET #passwords, hacking, #privacy
2012-06-06 LinkedIn confirms passwords were ‘compromised’ CNET #passwords, hacking, #privacy
2012-05-18 Oh, Facebook, Why Can’t I Quit You? Information Week/Byte #facebook, #privacy “Facebook is essentially Brokeback Mountain. Everyone thinks ‘Why can’t I quit you?'” But [Ashkan Soltani] is concerned about several security loopholes Facebook opens up for companies. One is the accidental disclosure of corporate information. “This could simply be posting a photo with sensitive product or trade secret info. We’ve seen this happen to military troops, who inadvertently disclose info. So it’s not surprising that ‘average joe employee’ accidentally reveals a new product launch,” he said.
2012-05-09 Apple policy has mobile advertisers scrambling SF Gate #apple, #apps, #UDID
2012-05-08 Here’s A Tool That Gives You Control Over What Advertisers See Information Week/BYTE #mobilescope, #mobile, #apps
2012-05-07 Ashkan Soltani introduces MobileScope, an innovative approach to online privacy Tech Republic #mobilescope, #mobile, #apps
2012-05-04 Consumer Reports Roundtable: Who’s To Blame For Rising Privacy Problems on Social Networks? Social Times #apps, #facebook
2012-05-03 Mobile experts disagree on who should protect privacy IT World #apps, #developers, #mobile Ashkan Soltani, an independent security and privacy researcher, said app developers bear most of the responsibility for protecting privacy. App developers need to police themselves, given that many consumers don’t understand the privacy implications of the apps they download, he said.
2012-04-17 MobileScope Takes WSJ Data-Transparency Prize Wall Street Journal #mobilescope, #consumers, #tracking
2012-04-16 The Winners of WSJ’s Data Transparency Weekend Wall Street Journal #mobilescope, #consumers, #tracking Ready for Primetime Award: MobileScope – a service that lets people see what data is being transmitted without their knowledge by their cellphone. It also offers ad-blocking and do-not-track services for cellphones.
2012-04-10 Instagram could struggle to turn a profit APM Marketplace #apps, #facebook #instagram
2012-04-06 Obama has aggressive Internet strategy to woo supporters Washington Post #ads, #elections, #predictive marketing
2012-04-04 Mobile privacy risks: Who should alert end users? GCN Network #apps, #FTC, #privacy
2012-03-26 Consumer Privacy Defended In FTC’s Caution To Congress On Data Brokers Huffington Post #big data, #do not track, #FTC
2012-03-26 Public relations: Phones not smart about protecting privacy Kentucky.com #mobile, #apps, #privacy
2012-03-16 Google faces new investigation over Safari privacy breach Slashgear #google, #safari, #cookies
2012-03-12 Smartphone Battery Dead Again? Geoloqi Locates a Possible Solution Wired #location, #apps, #mobile
2012-03-04 Sen. Schumer Wants Apple, Android Phone Investigation CBS
2012-03-02 Android apps can access and post personal photos PC Pro
2012-03-02 He Helped Bust Google On Privacy — Now He’s Got Some Advice For Your Startup Business Insider #ashkan soltani, #consumers, #developers
2012-03-02 Why You Should Treat Your iPhone Like a Toddler: The State of Mobile App Security Techcrunch TV #apps, #mobile, #apple
2012-03-01 Et Tu, Google? Android Apps Can Also Secretly Copy Photos New York Times #android, #apps, #mobile
2012-02-28 The Google Cookie that Seems to Come out of Nowhere Wall Street Journal #persistent tracking, #google, #safari Ashkan Soltani, a technologist and adviser to the Journal, first noticed the cookie in mid-February, when he was doing research for a Journal story on Google advertising cookies that were appearing on Safari browsers. The cookie, which is named PREF and contains a unique ID number, is not an advertising cookie. But it “cannot be disabled by consumers without disabling core browser security features such as anti-phishing protection” or blocking cookies, Mr. Soltani writes in a technical explanation of his findings.
2012-02-24 Mobile Data Privacy Is Terra Incognita to Users and Developers PC World #mobile, #apps, #data
2012-02-23 YouPorn User Emails and Passwords Exposed Mashable #passwords, #hacking
2012-02-23 Obama pushes tech companies on consumer privacy Washington Times #consumer, #do not track, #privacy bill of rights
2012-02-23 Consumer Privacy ‘Bill of Rights’ Seeks To Give Web Users More Control Over Their Data Huffington Post #consumer, #do not track, #privacy bill of rights
2012-02-22 Online privacy bill remains elusive Politico #privacy bill of rights, #FTC
2012-02-22 YouPorn: Up To 1 Million Adult Chat Users’ Email Addresses And Passwords Exposed Huffington Post #passwords, #hacking
2012-02-22 YouPorn Users Exposed In Breach (Or, Why You Should Have An Email Address Not Linked To Your Identity) Forbes #passwords, #hacking
2012-02-22 Exposed: YouPorn passwords in all their plain-text glory Ars Technica #passwords, #hacking
2012-02-18 Path CEO: ‘We Thought We Were Doing This Right’ Wired #path, #privacy
2012-02-17 Google searches for Facebook solution Politico #google, #facebook, #privacy
2012-02-17 Report: Google bypassed Apple’s privacy settings to track iPhones NBC #google, #mobile, #safari
2012-02-17 Google Tracks Safari Users NBC Nightly News #google, #mobile, #safari
2012-02-17 Google’s iPhone Tracking Wall Street Journal #google, #mobile, #safari Google Inc. and other advertising companies have been bypassing the privacy settings of millions of people using Apple Inc.’s Web browser on their iPhones and computers—tracking the Web-browsing habits of people who intended for that kind of monitoring to be blocked. The Google code was spotted by Stanford researcher Jonathan Mayer and independently confirmed by a technical adviser to the Journal, Ashkan Soltani, who found that ads on 22 of the top 100 websites installed the Google tracking code on a test computer, and ads on 23 sites installed it on an iPhone browser.
2012-02-16 Smartphone apps dial up privacy worries Los Angeles Times #mobile, #apps, #carrier IQ “App developers are like, this data is there; I’m going to use it until someone tells me otherwise,” said Ashkan Soltani, an independent privacy analyst. “People are going to continue to push the boundaries, especially as long as these boundaries are blurry.”
2012-02-16 How Google Tracked Safari Users Wall Street Journal #google, #mobile, #safari
2012-01-03 California group creates complaint center for online privacy issues Silicon Valley Mercury News #consumer, #privacy
2011
2011-12-15 Franken focuses in on data privacy as technology takes off Minnesota Post #consumer, #Franken, #carrier IQ
2011-12-14 Feds scrutinizing Carrier IQ CNET #carrier IQ, #FTC, #mobile
2012-11-21 Surveillance Catalog is Creepy Read PC World #surveillance, #hacking, #big data
2011-11-21 The Surveillance Catalog Wall Street Journal #surveillance, #hacking, #big data Documents obtained by The Wall Street Journal open a rare window into a new global market for the off-the-shelf surveillance technology that has arisen in the decade since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001
2011-11-14 Removing your Wi-Fi network from Google’s map CNET #privacy, #location, #wifi
2011-10-29 U.S. Firm Acknowledges Syria Uses Its Gear to Block Web Wall Street Journal #blue coat, #surveillance
2011-09-27 Congressmen blast “supercookies” as privacy menace Ars Technica #persistent tracking, #cookies, #etags
2011-09-27 Facebook is tracking you whether you’re logged on, logged off, or not even a Facebook user APM Marketplace #facebook, #tracking
2011-09-02 Traffic apps a two-way street Wheels.ca #location, #apps, #mobile
2011-08-24 Popular websites’ use of ‘supercookies’ raises online privacy issues Daily Californian #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-22 Beware the cookie monster The Economist #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-22 ‘Supercookie’ Code Seen on Hundreds of Sites Wall Street Journal #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-19 Don’t like websites tracking you? The courts don’t seem to care GigaOm #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-19 More Technical Details in KISSmetrics’ eTag Saga Adotas #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-19 Microsoft disables ‘supercookies’ used on MSN.com visitors Computer World #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-16 Man reveals secret recipe behind undeletable cookies The Register #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-15 New, Undeletable, Web Cookie Schneier on Security #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-15 Mobile Advertising: The Next Generation PC World #mobile, #ads, #location
2011-08-10 London riots move online APM’s Marketplace #civil liberties, #surveillance, #facial recognition
2011-08-08 Survey Finds Smartphone Apps Store Too Much Personal Data Wired #mobile, #security, #developers
2011-08-04 AOL, Spotify, GigaOm, Etsy, KISSmetrics sued over undeletable tracking cookies Extreme Tech #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-01 KISSmetrics, Hulu Sued Over New Tracking Technology Mediapost #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-01 Spotify stung for spying Colorado Springs Independent #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-01 Web-Analytics Firm KISSmetrics Reverses Course on Sneaky Tracking Wired #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-08-01 Hulu Caught Respawning Cookies as ETags Enter Tracking Fray Adotas #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-07-31 New tracking technology bypasses incognito mode, browser cookie deletion The Examiner #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag
2011-07-29 Researchers Expose Cunning Online Tracking Service That Can’t Be Dodged Wired #respawning, #persistent tracking, #etag Researchers at U.C. Berkeley have discovered that some of the net’s most popular sites are using a tracking service that can’t be evaded — even when users block cookies, turn off storage in Flash, or use browsers’ “incognito” functions. The service, called KISSmetrics, is used by sites to track the number of visitors, what the visitors do on the site, and where they come to the site from…but the researchers say the site is using sneaky techniques to prevent users from opting out of being tracked on popular sites.
2011-07-27 Researchers probe Google’s geolocation database CNET #google, #location, #apps, #tracking
2011-07-25 Street View cars grabbed locations of phones, PCs CNET #google, #location, #apps, #tracking
2011-07-12 The Silent Snoop on your Computer The Independent #cookies, #privacy
2011-06-22 Apple has GPS Tracking Playmates Rocky Mountain Tracking #google, #location, #apps, #tracking
2011-06-20 Like+1 Turns Facebook Likes Into Google +1s TechCrunch #facebook, #google
2011-06-16 Google is Tracking You Kompyuteran #google, #location, #apps, #tracking
2011-06-16 Google and Others Still Have Your Location, Location, Location CBS Moneywatch #google, #location, #apps, #tracking
2011-06-15 Exclusive: Google’s Web mapping can track your phone CNET #google, #location, #apps, #tracking Tests performed over the last week by CNET and security researcher Ashkan Soltani showed that approximately 10 percent of laptops and mobile phones using Wi-Fi appear to be listed by Google as corresponding to street addresses. Skyhook Wireless’ list of matches appears to be closer to 5 percent.
2011-05-26 Mobile privacy: lots of Big Brothers, little clarity Windows Secrets #mobile, #privacy, #tracking
2011-05-12 The Mobile Privacy Hearings: Senators Prod, Apple And Google Defend Techcrunch #mobile, #tracking, #location Ashkan Soltani, an independent researcher who has worked with the Wall Street Journal on mobile-privacy investigations, shortly thereafter quickly cut to the heart of the matter. He told the senators that the biggest privacy threat to mobile users today is the simple fact that “consumers are repeatedly surprised by the information that apps and app platforms are accessing”. Users are entrusting their phones and computers with a great deal of personal information, he said, and these platforms are not taking adequate steps to make clear to the consumer that third-parties have access to this information.
2011-05-10 Apple, Google try to ease lawmakers’ privacy concerns LA Times #mobile, #tracking, #location Ashkan Soltani, a privacy and security consultant, told the subcommittee that the Apple data were not anonymous. Despite Apple’s statement last month that it was difficult to use the data to pinpoint a user’s exact location, Soltani said he tested it in a nearby Senate office building. His location was only 20 feet off.
2011-05-10 Subcommittee hearing on Protecting Mobile Privacy Senator Franken Release #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Thoughts on the Senate Mobile Privacy Hearing MacTrast #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Franken grills Apple, Google on location data KARE-11 Minneapolis St. Paul #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 A Lively Senate Hearing on Mobile Privacy GigaOm #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Alumnus Ashkan Soltani (MIMS 2009) Testifies For Congressional Commitee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law Berkeley School of Information #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Apple, Google Take Heat Wall Street Journal #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Apple, Google face spy accusations before Congress CBS News #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Apple, Google Under Fire at Senate Hearing GovInfo Security #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Apple: We really don’t track our phone users CBS Evening News #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Senator: Google, Apple sending mixed signals on tracking ComputerWorld #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Google and Apple face privacy inquiry from new Senate Judiciary subcommittee on privacy and technology Daily Caller #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 DOJ wants wireless providers to store user info CNET #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Apple Tells Senate, ‘We Don’t Track Users’ Barrons #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Apple: We really don’t track our phone users CBS Evening News #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Congress Hears From Apple and Google on Privacy New York Times #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Users are said to control phone data Boston Globe #mobile, #tracking, #location
2011-05-10 Lawmakers Press Apple, Google on Privacy Bloomberg #mobile, #tracking, #geolocation
2011-05-10 Lawmakers Grill Apple, Google Over Use of Location Data Bloomberg TV #mobile, #tracking, #geolocation
2011-05-10 Watch Apple Get Mocked By Al Franken Gawker TV #mobile, #tracking, #geolocation
2011-05-10 Senate Hearing: Apple, Google and the Future of Mobile Privacy GigaOm #mobile, #tracking, #geolocation
2011-05-06 Apple and Google Execs to Testify Before Senate Hearing on Privacy GigaOm #mobile, #tracking, #geolocation
2011-05-01 Privacy and benefits of location data TopNews New Zealand #geolocation, #apple, #google
2011-04-30 Balancing privacy with benefits of location data San Francisco Chronicle #mobile, #tracking, #geolocation
2011-04-26 Apple’s ‘Locationgate’ 2011 To Be Investigated By Congress Technorati #mobile, #tracking, #geolocation
2011-04-26 Apple and Google To Be The Whipping Boys for Location Privacy Forbes #mobile, #tracking, #geolocation
2011-04-05 Online-privacy fears track technology Washington Times #mobile, #tracking, #geolocation
2011-03-15 Alumnus Testifies before Congress About Online Consumer Privacy UC Berkeley School of Information
2011-02-08 History Sniffing Code Collides With Privacy Concerns Corporate Counsel
2011-02-22 Your Web Browsing Is Being Tracked — Is Government Regulation the Answer? Fox News
2011-02-02 New Study Shows Persistence Of ‘Flash Cookies’ Paid Content
Other key press
2010-12-27 Privacy Alert: 10 Biggest Threats of 2010. #9 zombie cookies PC World
2010-12-13 Gawker data exposed in major hack attack CNN
2010-12-05 Lawsuit Targets an Online Data Collection Technique Wall Street Journal
2010-12-02 FTC Is In Talks With Adobe About The ‘Flash Problem’ Paid Content
2010-10-05 Inside the cookie monster – trading your online data for profits Sydney Morning Herald#tracking, #cookies
2010-09-20 Personal Information Exposed Via Biggest U.S. Websites Wall Street Journal #tracking, #cookies
2010-09-20 Code Known as Flash Cookies Raises Privacy Concerns New York Times #flash cookies, #tracking
2010-09-19 ‘Cookies’ Cause Bitter Backlash Wall Street Journal
2010-09-17 On the Web, Children Face Intensive Tracking Wall Street Journal #tracking, #cookies, #children
2010-07-27 Privacy lawsuit targets ‘Net giants over “zombie” cookies Wired #quantcast, #cookies
2009-08-11 Study: Adobe Flash Cookies Pose Vexing Privacy Questions PCWorld #cookies, #flash cookies
2008-11-30 One Man’s Military-Industrial-Media Complex New York Times Winner of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting