2020-08-07 15:30
The US Department of Justice has filed for an injunction to stop Claifornia from implementing their own net neutrality laws. Net neutrality has been repealed in the United States Federal Com… Read More
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Online Privacy blog by Private Internet Access VPN. Learn how an anonymous VPN can help protect you and your family along with other top tech news and info.
2020-08-05 15:34
Last month we wrote about France’s “hate speech” law, and noted that it followed in the footsteps of the earlier German law known as NetzDG (short for “Netzwerkdurch… Read More
2020-08-04 16:15
China is rolling out a real name authentication and verification system for all gamers in the country by September as a way to track gamers and make sure that they aren’t playing too… Read More
2020-08-03 16:30
T-Mobile customers were being shadowbanned from sending SMS text messages for ten days because they sent the word “belly.” When shadowbanned, T-Mobile users receive no notice tha… Read More
2020-07-31 16:01
Featured: Privacy News Online – Week of July 31st, 2020
Top EU court sinks main framework for sending personal data across the Atlantic
The Privacy Shield framework, which allowed th… Read More
2020-07-29 20:00
Back in 2017, this blog noted a new threat to privacy from the increasing use of workplace surveillance. Once people’s work is quantified automatically, it can then be used for algori… Read More
2020-07-29 19:00
Garmin recently suffered a ransomware attack that crippled services for days. The ransomware attack could have been a cover for a more targeted attack on individuals around the world. This w… Read More
2020-07-24 17:00
A new whitepaper by Osana confirms what many of us already suspected: that companies with poor privacy practices are 80% more likely to suffer a data breach. To back up the intuitive conclus… Read More
2020-07-24 16:00
Privacy News Online Weekly Recap videos will be back in a few weeks. We are taking a short break, then we will be back with some new segments featuring some top names in the privacy communit… Read More
2020-07-23 15:16
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has ruled that. The ruling came down in the case of U.S. v. Gratowski and sets the precedent that law enforcement doesn’t need a warrant… Read More
2020-07-23 14:56
The Privacy Shield framework for transferring personal data across the Atlantic was brought in to deal with a problem created by the EU’s GDPR. According to the latter, the personal da… Read More
2020-07-17 16:00
Privacy News Online Weekly Recap videos will be back in 2 weeks. We are taking a short break, then we will be back with some new segments featuring some top names in the privacy community! Y… Read More
2020-07-16 00:02
Several free VPN apps based in Hong Kong logged internet activity from millions of users then left that data unsecured on the internet for anyone to find. This batch of fake no log VPNs was… Read More
2020-07-15 14:20
As this blog has noted, for all its faults, the European Union’s GDPR represents one of the most important attempts to protect digital privacy. Although it concerns the EU and its citi… Read More
2020-07-14 23:52
The United Kingdom (UK) is banning telecommunications companies from using Huawei 5G equipment. Following sanctions put on Huawei by the United States, United Kingdom Digital Secretary Olive… Read More
2020-07-14 17:42
The Hong Kong VPN exit node will return as a geo-located region.
Denver, CO, July 14th 2020 — Effective immediately, Private Internet Access (PIA) is wiping and shutting down our VPN s… Read More
2020-07-10 18:30
France plans to implement an age verification system for pornography and expand website blocking powers to punish non-compliant websites. The new law would grant the French audiovisual autho… Read More
2020-07-10 16:00
Featured: Privacy News Online – Week of July 10th, 2020
HongKongers prepare for China and new national security law by scrubbing digital footprint
China has officially passed a new na… Read More
2020-07-09 16:13
A new law being proposed in Germany would see all 19 federal state intelligence agencies in Germany granted the power to spy on German citizens through the use of trojans. The new law would… Read More
2020-07-08 15:30
The world’s attention is rightly focused on the terrible new National Security Law in Hong Kong. But, as ever, there are bad things happening to human rights elsewhere as well. For exa… Read More
2020-07-03 19:00
Tim Hortons is facing a class action lawsuit for its data collection practices – which include tracking your GPS location through their mobile app even when the app was turned off. Thi… Read More
2020-07-03 16:02
Featured: Privacy News Online – Week of JUly 3rd, 2020
Andrew Yang unveils Data Dividend Project to make tech companies pay for your personal information
A new project started by Andr… Read More
2020-07-03 15:07
Linkedin and Reddit both check your clipboard and copy and paste your clipboard contents with every keystroke – even when you’re in another app. Another set of potential privacy… Read More
2020-07-02 15:00
Back in February, this blog was one of the first to warn that the obvious technological response to the coronavirus – the use of contact tracing apps – raised important privacy q… Read More
2020-07-02 13:00
As China takes over Hong Kong with a new national security law, Hongkongers prepare by cleaning up their social media presence. Before, under the now demolished “one country, two syste… Read More
2020-07-01 13:00
One of the most worrying trends in today’s online world is a move by governments against “hate speech”. That’s a vague term in itself, so policing it is hard. Makin… Read More
2020-06-30 14:56
A new anti-encryption bill proposed by Senator Graham will face a key vote this week, and activists are working to make sure that the bill does not pass. The bill is the EARN IT Act –… Read More
2020-06-26 16:00
Featured: Privacy News Online – Week of JUNE 26th, 2020
Internet freedom under attack by Limiting Section 230 Immunity to Good Samaritan’s Act
A new bill called The Limiting Sec… Read More
2020-06-25 16:01
A new privacy feature in iOS 14 has revealed that TikTok is copying the contents of your clipboard with every keystroke. The new feature – called paste notifications – shows that… Read More
2020-06-25 16:00
As this blog has noted, police forces around the world have been pushing for the routine deployment of real-time facial recognition technologies. It’s an attractive option for politici… Read More
2020-06-25 12:00
Andrew Yang is making headlines again with a new endeavor called the Data Dividend Project that would make tech companies pay users for the personal information given up while using a compan… Read More
2020-06-24 17:49
Three Senators, including the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, have introduced a new anti-encryption bill called the Lawful Access to Encrypted Data Act. The bill was introduced b… Read More
2020-06-23 18:05
Private Internet Access is removing its Mexico VPN server from our VPN network. We are leaving the Mexico region temporarily as we seek a new data center partner to work with. In the p… Read More
2020-06-22 15:45
BlueKai, a company bought by Oracle in 2014, has leaked. The database of internet activity records was left on the open web in an unsecured server. The leaked data was discovered by Anurag S… Read More
2020-06-19 19:00
The “Limiting Section 230 Immunity to Good Samaritan’s Act” has been introduced to the US Senate and would do away with legislation that has become a cornerstone of interne… Read More
2020-06-19 16:00
Featured: Privacy News Online – Week of JUNE 19th, 2020 35 Members of Congress sign letter asking federal agencies to stop surveillance on Black Lives Matter protests A group of 35 Con… Read More
2020-06-18 22:41
Private Internet Access users will soon be able to access our Next Generation network of hardened VPN servers – which will be exiting a recently announced beta. These new VPN servers h… Read More
2020-06-12 19:00
Privacy is one of the key concerns of people using digital technology. Of course, this blog has been warning about threats in this area for years, but it’s common now to read about dat… Read More
2020-06-12 16:00
Featured: Privacy News Online – Week of JUNE 12th, 2020 To work together with law enforcement, Zoom won’t provide end-to-end encryption for free users Video conferencing company… Read More
2020-06-11 17:11
The Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) has issued a reminder that all VPN users need to register their VPN tunnel with their internet service provider (ISP) by June 30th, 2020. This… Read More
2020-06-11 16:00
Rep. Anna G. Eshoo (D-CA) and Bobby Rush (D-IL) have published a letter which was sent to multiple federal agencies demanding that the federal agencies stop spying on Black Lives Matter prot… Read More
2020-06-08 19:00
The government is flying predator drones and other military aircraft, well known for their use in foreign combat zones, over US cities to surveil the ongoing protests against police brutalit… Read More
2020-06-08 18:30
Geo-located regions are rolling out to all Private Internet Access users in June, 2020. Private Internet Access made the decision to start offering geo-located regions as a way to re-enter r… Read More
2020-06-05 18:30
Private Internet Access beta users are now able to access Next Generation VPN servers on the PIA network using out beta desktop clients and mobile apps. To do so, make sure that you’re… Read More
2020-06-05 16:03
Featured: Privacy News Online – Week of JUNE 5th, 2020 House delays vote on renewing FISA surveillance powers to grant FBI warrantless access to internet history The much anticipated v… Read More
2020-06-05 15:15
A couple of weeks ago, a post on this blog explained how the OpenSAFELY project allowed trusted analysts to run large-scale computation across live pseudonymized patient records inside the d… Read More
2020-06-04 15:01
Google is being sued for 5 billion USD in a class action lawsuit over the tracking of private internet activity. Boies Schiller Flexner LLP has filed a massive lawsuit against Google and Alp… Read More
2020-06-03 20:25
Zoom CEO Eric Yuan has admitted that he won’t provide end-to-end encryption to free users in favor of being able to work with law enforcement. It has previously been discussed in Zoom… Read More
2020-06-03 20:19
The DEA is now surveilling protesters in the United States. BuzzFeedNews has uncovered a memorandum that shows that the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) has been granted powers by the Departmen… Read More
2020-06-03 18:59
As part of its ongoing VPN Network Expansion Plan, Private Internet Access is proud to announce the addition of 30 geo-located regions in June. These geo-located regions will still be bare m… Read More
2020-06-03 15:15
A new research paper presented at IEEE 41 calls attention to the fact that Google Suites App Marketplace – whose apps are able to tap into the powerful Google API to read contacts, ema… Read More
2020-06-02 17:57
Testing VPN speeds has just gotten a whole lot easier with Top10VPN’s Speed Test Tool. Anyone can use the Top10VPN.com Speed Test Tool to view historical fastest VPN performance data a… Read More
2020-06-01 20:01
Private Internet Access is proud to announce the launch of 24/7 live chat coverage by our customer support team. Our customers will be able to chat live with a customer support agent any tim… Read More
2020-05-29 16:01
Featured: Privacy News Online – Week of May 29th, 2020 UK’s largest airline, easyJet, reveals January 2020 breach of 9 million customer records The biggest airline in the United… Read More
2020-05-29 00:13
Arizona has filed a lawsuit against Google for “deceptive and unfair practices used to obtain users’ location data.” Specifically, Google has been collecting location histo… Read More
2020-05-28 16:22
Your internet history is safe from the FBI… for now. Government surveillance powers under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) – which have sat unrenewed since March… Read More
2020-05-27 18:45
A few weeks ago, this blog noted that there were questions hanging over the GDPR, not least the fact that no major fines had been issued against top Internet companies. The GDPR has just pas… Read More
2020-05-26 17:15
Internet privacy is on the line as Congress votes this week on whether or not the FBI will be able to access the internet history of Americans without a warrant. The House of Representatives… Read More
2020-05-23 16:00
In recent weeks, there has been an intense focus on the use of contact tracing apps as a way to emerge safely from the lockdowns that are in place around the world. A key question is whether… Read More
2020-05-22 16:09
Featured: Privacy News Online – Week of May 22nd, 2020 Congress plans to expand Patriot Act with DOJ access to your web browsing and search activity without a warrant The Patriot Act i… Read More
2020-05-22 16:00
Germany’s Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof), the highest court in the country, has ruled that parts of a 2016 law that allowed monitoring of the internet activity of foreign… Read More
2020-05-21 20:51
RE: Vote “NO” on H.R. 6172, USA FREEDOM Reauthorization Act of 2020 Dear Representative Crow, Private Internet Access implores you to vote “NO” on H.R. 6172, the USA… Read More
2020-05-21 17:04
Hong Kong will soon have a new national security law implemented without a single vote by a Hong Kongese politician. If that doesn’t sound democratic, that’s because it isn&rsquo&hell…Read More
2020-05-21 15:30
If passed as is, the USA FREEDOM Reauthorization Act of 2020 will expand the infamous Section 215 of the Patriot Act to allow the FBI to view your internet search history without a warrant… Read More
2020-05-19 21:06
The largest airline in the United Kingdom, easyJet, revealed that they had been hacked by a “sophisticated attack” in January of 2020. All in all, approximately 9 million custome… Read More
2020-05-18 15:00
The Patriot Act is up for renewal with the USA FREEDOM Reauthorization Act and this bill as-is allows the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department of Justice (DOJ) to access your… Read More
2020-05-15 19:00
Every phone has an Android Advertising ID and it can be used to track your phone’s actions – and tied back to your identity. A privacy advocacy group called Noyb – European… Read More
2020-05-15 16:00
Privacy News Online provides a “Week in Review” with privacy news summaries from around the world. Keep up to date with what has happened in the online privacy world over the las… Read More
2020-05-14 16:31
A New Zealand woman went to a Subway restaurant for a regular purchase of a sub sandwich, but then went home to an unpleasant surprise: unwanted advances from the man who sold her the sub sa… Read More
2020-05-14 16:00
A key amendment to the USA Freedom Reauthorization Act of 2020 that would have required authorities to obtain a warrant before gaining access to American internet browsing and search history… Read More
2020-05-13 16:29
The infamous Patriot Act, which uses the threat of terrorism to expand surveillance over American citizens, is up for renewal under the USA FREEDOM Reauthorization Act – which is set t… Read More
2020-05-13 16:00
It’s increasingly evident that the coronavirus pandemic will cause a radical re-shaping of many aspects of society, not least in the world of privacy. Many people are trying to discern… Read More
2020-05-11 19:00
The Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee of the California Assembly is supposed to have an obvious, eponymous purpose – but doesn’t seem to. There’s a new “onlin… Read More
2020-05-09 16:00
The Hungarian government is suspending portions of the GDPR as part of their COVID-19 response. They are allowed to do so because the country is under a state of emergency – which may… Read More
2020-05-06 16:20
As this blog noted a couple of weeks ago, many governments around the world are looking to introduce coronavirus tracing apps to help take their countries out of lockdown. The hope is that s… Read More
2020-05-01 19:00
Apple and Google have been working together for the last few months on a not-so-secret project to combat the COVID-19 pandemic which uses LE Bluetooth for contact tracing while still preserv… Read More
2020-05-01 16:00
Private Internet Access is happy to announce that we are sponsoring the WireGuard® project as a bronze company donor. Private Internet Access first sponsored WireGuard in 2018, and with… Read More
2020-05-01 15:47
The coronavirus pandemic rightly dominates the headlines, including those of the privacy world, but in the background, life goes on. For example, companies operating in the EU are still subj… Read More
2020-04-29 15:38
Right now the news is being flooded by articles highlighting the importance and efficacy of physical sanitation habits. Tips that you’ve undoubtedly heard an inundating number of times… Read More
2020-04-28 15:30
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought out the best – and worst – in human society. While people around the world have come together in solidarity to try and flatten the curve and fro… Read More
2020-04-24 16:45
Private Internet Access is proud to announce a second year of Silver Sponsorship of Let’s Encrypt. Private Internet Access believes that every website should be served encrypted over H… Read More
2020-04-24 15:45
The Investigatory Powers Act was passed in 2016 and mandated that internet service providers and mobile data providers in the UK store internet connection records for twelve months. Internet… Read More
2020-04-23 17:00
As the coronavirus pandemic continues, governments around the world are desperately trying to find a way to ease current lockdowns without triggering massive new waves of infection by Covid… Read More
2020-04-23 16:00
A zero-click security vulnerability has been found that leaves hundreds of millions of iPhones and iPads vulnerable to remote code execution. The vulnerability affects iOS 13 through the Mob… Read More
2020-04-20 18:35
The Tor Project, the non profit organization behind the Tor (The Onion Router) Browser, has let go of roughly a third of its staff due to the COVID-19 crisis. Tor is known as a private brows… Read More
2020-04-16 18:03
A new study on IP address has been released. Specifically, the study looks at IP address retention periods of internet service providers (ISPs) around the world. The study is titled: … Read More
2020-04-15 15:30
Open source figures frequently on this blog. That’s in part because Private Internet Access is a long-time supporter of free software, and is in the process of open-sourcing its own so… Read More
2020-04-10 18:30
The internet is an essential part of business nowadays for businesses small and large. While large businesses often utilize site to site VPNs as part of their cybersecurity plan, the convent… Read More
2020-04-10 16:00
In March, Private Internet Access rolled out WireGuard® support to our beta testers on PIA desktop clients and mobile apps. We are proud to announce that WireGuard support is out of beta… Read More
2020-04-09 18:30
Private Internet Access is expanding our VPN network coverage with a new VPN Network Expansion Plan. Over the past several years, one frequent request from our customers has been more gatewa… Read More
2020-04-08 16:00
It would be an understatement to say that Covid-19 has affected practically every aspect of our lives, given the scale of the transformation. Its impact on privacy, too, is evident. Last wee… Read More
2020-04-03 17:30
The Chinese government and the Chinese telecommunications companies such as Huawei under its control are proposing a “New IP” addressing system for the internet to replace TCP/IP… Read More
2020-04-01 19:00
Will we see more and more open source software in the future, or is this a passing trend that will die off eventually? According to survey data, open source is definitely here to stay. Right… Read More
2020-04-01 16:02
A couple of weeks ago, this blog looked at the use of smartphones to track people so that contact tracing can be carried out to slow the spread of Covid-19. Two weeks is a long time in a pan… Read More
2020-03-27 20:54
A telecommunications lobbying group, the GSMA, has confirmed that several telecom companies in Europe are providing mobile phone location data with the European Union as a way to track the s… Read More
Taiwan Is Using A Phone Location “electronic Fence†To Help Police Track Quarantined Individuals
2020-03-27 20:33
The government in Taiwan has rolled out an “electronic fence” to keep quarantined individuals in their homes. The “electronic fence” uses mobile phone data to notify… Read More
2020-03-26 22:42
An ongoing security vulnerability in iPhones and iPads is keeping VPN applications from doing their job. For iOS versions 13.3.1 and later, this bug remains unpatched and has been rated with… Read More
2020-03-26 15:31
For obvious and justified reasons, the coronavirus pandemic dominates the news currently. One of the latest developments is that India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has put his enti… Read More
2020-03-25 16:30
People in Poland under a mandatory 14-day quarantine have an interesting way to prove that they are following the quarantine. Usually, such mandatory quarantines are checked on by local auth… Read More
2020-03-25 16:00
A VPN is a virtual private network that connects two or more devices via an encrypted tunnel. VPNs are set up using different VPN protocols which include OpenVPN PPTP, L2TP, IPSec, and WireG… Read More
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