Research subjects w/ electrodes implanted to help advance understanding of paralysis want more data protections. Neuralink to begin implanting 20,000 a year, including for improved cognitive function. Scientists can now read BCI subjects' inner speech, raising stakes therecord.media/neural-data-...

By me, with lotsa previously unreported details: Cyber threat information law hurtles toward expiration, with poor prospects for renewal cyberscoop.com/cyber-threat...

An industry watchdog group found that the popular YouTuber MrBeast collected children’s data without obtaining consent from parents, prompting the influencer to overhaul his channel’s data collection and advertising practices. therecord.media/watchdog-mrb...

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Wednesday signed a law requiring digital service providers to verify the ages of users and adhere to strict new data protection and privacy requirements for children and adolescents. therecord.media/brazil-enact...

Judge issues scathing order rejecting Meta bid to nuke jury verdict finding it broke CA wiretapping law by collecting sensitive data from period tracking app Flo. Meta’s contention that it had consent is “rank speculation that is completely untethered to the evidence" therecord.media/judge-reject...

So how is OpenAI going to know that a user is under 18? "We’re building an age-prediction system to estimate age based on how people use ChatGPT." openai.com/index/teen-s...

OpenAI to begin predicting users ages and requiring ID when it cannot determine if a user is over 18. Users under 18 will have special settings which prevent discussion of self-harm, prompt company officials to try and contact parents if suicide is mentioned. therecord.media/openai-age-p...

🚨🇪🇺 EU cash💰 and taxpayer money in countries such as 🇮🇹Italy and 🇪🇸Spain are flowing to commercial #spyware firms, yet this public funding is not well-known or analysed. 🧵My investigation for @ftm.eu. 👇👇👇 www.ftm.eu/articles/spy...

CISA mismanaged multimillion dollar Cyber Retention Incentives program, didn't keep basics records of who it paid how much and paid ineligible people bonuses and back pay. Agency exploring how to recoup funds therecord.media/cisa-cyberse...

Legislation which forces browsers to accommodate universal data sharing opt out signals heads to Gavin Newsom's desk for a signature. He vetoed similar but broader legislation last year therecord.media/california-l...

Digital freedoms advocates worldwide are alarmed by a Swiss government plan requiring service providers to get user ID at sign up, retain data for 6 months. The law, still under debate, also would require decryption. Proton moving infrastructure out of the country therecord.media/switzerland-...

US investors in spyware companies nearly tripled in 2024 w/ 31 firms now bankrolling the manufacturers, per new Atlantic Council report. Examples include Integrity Partners, which recently invested in Candiru manufacturer despite company appearing on the Entity List. therecord.media/us-investors...

Forensic researchers @citizenlab.ca today confirmed FlexiSPY spyware was found on 2 Kenyan filmmakers' phones. Victims helped produce a documentary about youth uprisings in the increasingly autocratic country. Spyware was installed while phones were in police custody. therecord.media/researchers-...

Texas sues PowerSchool for poor security practices which it says led to the hack of 72 million students and teachers data. Hacker obtained student bus stop locations for specific children, endangering kids, AG says. therecord.media/powerschool-...

Jury awards plaintiffs $425 million for collecting and using data belonging to millions of users who had switched off tracking features. Damages are only compensatory because the jury determined Google acted without malice. Tech giants says it will appeal therecord.media/google-hit-w...

French data protection regulator fines Shein $175 million and Google $325 million for illegal cookie practices therecord.media/shein-google...

CISA guide seeks a unified approach to software ‘ingredients lists’ cyberscoop.com/cisa-guide-s...

A day after announcing it fined Disney $10 million for violating COPPA in its advertising practices, FTC announced enforcement action against toy robot manufacturer for allowing a Chinese third-party to collect kids' location data therecord.media/chinese-toy-...

Tech companies and other businesses won out Wednesday when a European Union court held that the United States adequately safeguards the personal data of Europeans. ✍️ @suzannesmalley.bsky.social

In surprise decision, EU General Court of Justice gives EU-US data transfer deal stamp of approval therecord.media/european-cou...

NEW: 🇩🇪#Germany's top court says spyware severely violates fundamental rights. Bans spyware in cases with <3year sentences. Imposes tough proportionality tests. Restricts #spyware to serious cases. Very interesting 1/ www.bundesverfassungsgericht.de/SharedDocs/P...

European law to protect journalists from spyware takes effect amid criticism that EU member states have done little to prepare. Law could ultimately be toothless if that doesn't change, they say. Spyware protections in EMFA already had been substantially weakened therecord.media/eu-law-to-pr...

Federal judiciary announces "recent escalated cyberattacks" one day after Politico reported that a major hack may have exposed confidential informants' identities. therecord.media/federal-judi...

Great analysis from @timstarks.bsky.social

Germany's top court: Police can only use spyware to probe serious crimes due to its "exceptional reach" and "very serious interference" with individual rights therecord.media/germany-spyw...

New active infrastructure for Candiru spyware linked to Hungary and Saudi Arabia identified therecord.media/candiru-spyw...

Jury finds Meta violated the CA Invasion of Privacy Act and used sensitive health data it improperly obtained from a period tracking app (Flo) to inform targeted advertising. therecord.media/jury-verdict...

Women sign up to Tea anonymously, and Tea says it will protect that anonymity. With these messages it is trivial to de-anonymize many of the women using Tea. Unclear who else has this data beyond us, malicious or otherwise. www.404media.co/women-dating...

Wyden to DNI Gabbard: UK surveillance laws could be used to “secretly force US companies to store the data of US users in the UK, where it could then be seized by the UK govt." Wyden: UK's IPA law could be used to compel tech cos to "infect their customers w/ spyware" therecord.media/wyden-asks-w...

Huge thanks to @suzannesmalley.bsky.social for covering the growing coalition of state lawmakers taking on the data broker industry. Grateful to work alongside so many smart, dedicated leaders fighting for consumer protection across the country.

Q+A w/ Vermont's @mepriestley.bsky.social, a leader in the quest to implement robust state-level data privacy legislation. Priestley: Coalition of lawmakers across U.S. are discussing how to take on data brokers after the role they played in murder of MN legislator therecord.media/state-coalit...

Crisis pregnancy centers often invoke HIPAA, a trend advocates say tricks women into sharing data on abortion plans which cld lead to prosecution. (CPCs are not HIPAA covered) Databases used store granular info. CPC manual: Keep data for 7 yrs plus in case of subpoena therecord.media/crisis-pregn...

California Privacy Protection Agency approves weakened automated decisionmaking technology rules after pressure from industry and Gov. Newsom therecord.media/california-p...

Trial pitting Meta, period-tracking app Flo vs millions of plaintiffs who say Flo shared sensitive data w/o consent began Monday. Billions in damages possible. In opening argument, Meta denied obtaining the data. Flo settled w/ FTC in 2021 for improper data sharing therecord.media/meta-flo-tri...

Hackers believed to be affiliated with an Iranian intelligence agency are using a newly-discovered strain of the DCHSpy malware to snoop on adversaries. The strain can exfiltrate data from WhatsApp and stored files on devices. therecord.media/malware-exfi...

Roblox today introduced facial estimation age verification tech to check ages of players opting to use new unfiltered chat option, "Trusted Connections." Rollout comes as Roblox is fending off multiple child sexual exploitation lawsuits, law enforcement subpoenas therecord.media/roblox-age-v...

I invued CPPA's Tom Kemp, one of the most important data privacy agenda setters in the US. He spoke abt data brokers, the chance that forthcoming federal data privacy legislation cld preempt state laws + why the agency's new ADMT rule is stronger than critics believe. therecord.media/california-p...

BREAKING: Axon’s AI police report writing tool is designed to not keep a record of which parts of a final report were written by AI and which parts were written by the officer.

Mexico AG has opened probe into former president Peña Nieto for allegedly taking up to $25 million in bribes for govt contracts, incl for Pegasus spyware. Allegations based on court filings in arbitration dispute b/w Israeli men who call bribes their "joint business" therecord.media/former-mexic...

The ruling, which holds that Meta tracking tech violates GDPR, sets precedent which the court acknowledged will allow countless FB users to sue w/o “explicitly demonstrating individual damages.” Experts: Decision leaves countless websites, apps exposed to huge fines therecord.media/german-court...

Appeals court revives Salvadoran journalists lawsuit vs NSO for allegedly facilitating at least 226 Pegasus infections on phones. Appeals court: Lower court didn't properly account for NSO's alleged use of CA-based Apple tech when dismissing suit as "entirely foreign" therecord.media/appeals-cour...

Senate Homeland advances Sean Cairncross nomination to full Senate for vote on his nomination to serve as NCD, a key position for setting the administration's cyber priorities. Cairncross received support from some Democrats, incl. HSGAC ranking member Gary Peters. therecord.media/trump-nation...

SCOTUS allows TX to age gate online porn viewers by requiring govt ID or transactional docs. Will make similar measures hard to beat in 21 other states w/ laws. Minority opinion cites danger of websites selling data plus hacks, subpoenas but majority ignores the issue therecord.media/supreme-cour...

With time running short before expiration of a cyber information-sharing law highly valued by the private sector, Congress is taking a look at the possibility of a short-term extension. via @timstarks.bsky.social cyberscoop.com/cisa-2015-bi...

Privacy advocates who led effort yielding $1.4 billion Meta fine for transferring Euro data to U.S. has filed complaint vs Bumble for alleged GDPR violations, says Icebreakers feature uses OpenAI to pre-formulate messages based on user profile data w/o direct consent therecord.media/bumble-for-f...

NEW Fed judge to Congress: 200 million harmful cyber “events” blocked from penetrating court local area networks in '24 fiscal yr. Judge: PACER, electronic filing system housing sealed docs w/ nat sec secrets, cooperator names etc, "unsustainable due to cyber risks" therecord.media/pacer-filing...

Novel phishing tactic used App Secure Passwords to bypass MFA + take over @keirgiles.bsky.social email accounts. Giles to me: Attack reveals "massive security hole in Gmail,” flaw is "like investing heavily in locks for your front door, but leaving the window open" therecord.media/keir-giles-r...

List of 11 data brokers found in car belonging to alleged killer of MN lawmaker makes case unique bc of how overwhelming the evidence is that data brokers' publication of the victim's address led to the killing. Experts say case will fuel new laws reining in brokers therecord.media/alleged-kill...

Ombudsman overseeing 23andMe bankruptcy sale + consumer privacy: Co should be required to obtain customers "separate + affirmative" consent before data is sold. Says customers worried abt sale of their genetic data have emailed w/concerns, said too hard to delete data therecord.media/23andme-priv...

"“I don’t like conspiracies, but there are two Italian journalists from the same newspaper in the same condition,” he said. “It can’t be a coincidence."" @suzannesmalley.bsky.social and @therecordmedia.bsky.social reports therecord.media/paragon-grap...