Facebook only risks a fine of €20,000 (US$26,000) if it loses a dispute over its real name policy in Germany, but will be hurt more by bad publicity generated by the litigation, a German privacy regulator said on Tuesday.
Loek Essers | 08 Jan | Read more
The Dutch government's cyber security center has published guidelines that it hopes will encourage ethical hackers to disclose security vulnerabilities in a responsible way.
Loek Essers | 04 Jan | Read more
A German privacy regulator ordered Facebook to stop enforcing its real name policy because it violates a German law that gives users the right to use nicknames online.
Loek Essers | 17 Dec | Read more
When users install Google Maps on their iPhone, the option to share location data with Google is switched on by default. By doing this, Google violates European data protection law, according to a German data protection watchdog.
Loek Essers | 14 Dec | Read more
German consumer organizations are suing Facebook because the social network keeps sharing personal data with third-party app makers without getting explicit consent from users.
Loek Essers | 07 Dec | Read more
Privacy campaign group Europe vs. Facebook has threatened to take the Irish Data Protection Commissioner to court if it is not satisfied with the DPC's final responses to its 22 complaints about Facebook's privacy policies, and appealed for donations to cover the costs of such an action.
Loek Essers | 04 Dec | Read more
Facebook could be taken to court by consumer organizations in the Nordic countries if it does not stop placing unsolicited advertisements in users' news feeds.
Loek Essers | 23 Nov | Read more
Facebook users will no longer be allowed to vote on proposed policy changes at the company because their comments weren't good enough.
Loek Essers | 22 Nov | Read more
A majority of European Internet users expect companies to ask for permission to track their activities online using cookies, privacy management company Truste said Thursday. But despite the 2009 introduction of the European Union's so-called cookie directive requiring just that, only a small minority of websites ask for visitors' consent, according to a survey by the company.
Loek Essers | 15 Nov | Read more
Mozilla introduced a pre-loaded list of domains for Firefox that only can be connected to securely in order to help protect the privacy and security of users.
Loek Essers | 02 Nov | Read more
Public transportation companies and authorities in the U.S., Canada and South Africa hand over private information about travelers gathered by electronic ticketing systems to law enforcement agencies on a voluntary basis, Privacy International said Monday.
Loek Essers | 29 Oct | Read more
The German and Canadian data protection commissioners signed an agreement on Monday that aims to ensure people's digital privacy will be better protected if data travels across borders via the Web, the authorities announced. International cooperation could help put companies like Facebook and Google on a privacy leash.
Loek Essers | 15 Oct | Read more
The German police have been monitoring social media and email services for years, an overview of expenditures by the Federal Ministry of the Interior suggests.
Loek Essers | 11 Oct | Read more
Online social networks are gathering information about their users that those people never intended to disclose, and government regulation may be the only way to stop the practise, a researcher said Tuesday.
Loek Essers | 09 Oct | Read more
A "huge loophole" is being carved in the European Union's upcoming data protection regulation, according Ross Anderson, a professor of security engineering at the University of Cambridge in England.
Loek Essers | 08 Oct | Read more