Hot on the heels of last week’s security issues, dating app Grindr is under fire again for inappropriate sharing of HIV status with advertisers and inadequate security on other personal data transmission. It’s not a good look for a company that says privacy is paramount.
View More Grindr sends HIV status to third parties, and some personal data unencryptedCategory: encryption
Inquiry finds FBI sued Apple to unlock phone without considering all options
The Office of the Inspector General has issued its report on the circumstances surrounding the FBI’s 2016 lawsuit attempting to force Apple to unlock an iPhone as part of a criminal investigation. While it stops short of saying the FBI was untruthful in its justification of going to court, the report is unsparing of the bureaucracy and clashing political motives that ultimately undermined that justification.
View More Inquiry finds FBI sued Apple to unlock phone without considering all optionsThe web will soon be a little safer with the approval of this new security standard
Hear that? It’s almost as if thousands of spooks and hackers suddenly cried out at once… The Internet Engineers Task Force has just unanimously approved a security framework that will make encrypted connections on the web faster and more resistant to snooping.
View More The web will soon be a little safer with the approval of this new security standardVirtru’s new API brings encryption tech built by ex-NSA engineer to third-party developers
Virtru co-founder Will Ackerly developed the company’s underlying encryption technology while he was working as an engineer at the NSA, so it’s fair to say he knows a thing or two about the subject. The company has been delivering encryption products for email and files in transit for several years now, mainly through a partnership with Google GMail and Microsoft Office… Read More
Apple moves iCloud encryption keys for Chinese users to China
Apple told Reuters that the company had to comply with Chinese authorities and move iCloud data to Chinese data centers. Not everyone’s data is moving to China. This is only going to apply to residents of mainland China who chose China as their main country when they created their Apple account (not Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan). The Chinese government can now ask Apple to decrypt… Read More
Signal expands into the Signal Foundation with $50M from WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton
Perhaps the most surprising thing I learned about Signal when I spoke with Moxie Marlinspike, the app’s creator, last year at Disrupt, was that it was essentially running on a shoestring budget. An tool used by millions and feared by governments worldwide, barely getting by! But $50M from WhatsApp founder Brian Acton should help secure the app’s future, through the newly founded… Read More
Signal expands into the Signal Foundation with $50M from WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton
Perhaps the most surprising thing I learned about Signal when I spoke with Moxie Marlinspike, the app’s creator, last year at Disrupt, was that it was essentially running on a shoestring budget. An tool used by millions and feared by governments worldwide, barely getting by! But $50M from WhatsApp founder Brian Acton should help secure the app’s future, through the newly founded… Read More
Electric car charge station payment systems may lack basic security measures
Just a PSA: If you charge your car regularly at a public charge station, you might want to keep an eye out for fraudulent charges on whatever card you use to pay for it. Researchers have found that some charge stations, specifically those that require a dedicated card, “have not implemented basic security mechanisms” like encryption. Read More
DuckDuckGo adds tracker blocking to help curb the wider surveillance web
Some major product news from veteran anti-tracking search engine DuckDuckGo: Today it’s launched revamped mobile apps and browser extensions that bake in a tracker blocker for third party sites, and include a suite of other privacy features intended to help users keep surfing privately as they navigate around the web. Read More
More details emerge of Uber’s tactics for thwarting police raids
Yet another uncomfortable revelation about Uber’s legacy business and attitude to legal oversight: Between spring 2015 until late 2016 the ride-hailing giant routinely used a system designed to thwart police raids in foreign countries, according to Bloomberg, citing three people with knowledge of the system. Read More
Skype adds e2e encrypted ‘private chats’ powered by Signal Protocol
Skype is adding an opt-in e2e encryption feature, utilizing the industry standard Signal Protocol to power ‘Private Conversations’. Read More
Security researchers flag invite bug in WhatsApp group chats
Security researchers have revealed details of a vulnerability in WhatsApp’s security that could be used to compromise the secrecy of encrypted group chats on the messaging platform. Read More