Daycare Apps Are Dangerously Insecure

Daycare Apps Are Dangerously Insecure
By Alexis Hancock Last year, several parents at EFF enrolled kids into daycare and were instantly told to download an application for managing their children’s care. Daycare and preschool applications frequently include notifications of feedings, diaper changes, pictures, activities, and which guardian picked-up/dropped-off the child—potentially useful features for overcoming separation anxiety of newly enrolled children and their anxious parents. Working at a privacy-oriented organization as we do, we asked questions: Do we have to use these?… Read the rest

Oracle Quietly Closes $28B Deal To Buy Electronic Health Records Company Cerner

Oracle Quietly Closes $28B Deal To Buy Electronic Health Records Company Cerner
TechCrunch reported on June 7: At the end of last year, just before Christmas, Oracle made a big move when it announced it was acquiring electronic health records company Cerner for $28 billion, thrusting it quickly into the top enterprise deal for 2021, just under the wire. Today, the company announced it has closed the deal, effective tomorrow. The announcement was anticlimactic in a way, full of corporate financial speak: “Oracle Corporation (NYSE: ORCL) announced that a majority of the outstanding shares (the “Shares”) of Cerner Corporation (Nasdaq: CERN) were validly tendered, and the other conditions to the tender offer have been satisfied or waived.… Read the rest

Apple Just Killed the Password — For Real This Time

Apple Just Killed the Password — For Real This Time
WIRED reported: Your passwords are terrible. Year after year, the most popular passwords leaked in data breaches are 123456, 123456789, and 12345 — “qwerty” and “password” come close behind — and using these weak passwords leaves you vulnerable to all sorts of hacking. Weak and repeated passwords are one of the most significant risks to your online life. For years, we’ve been promised a more secure, password-free future, but it seems like 2022 will actually be the year that millions of people start to move away from passwords.… Read the rest

Our Country Moves Closer to a Federal Privacy Law, and I Move Closer to Losing My Mind

Our Country Moves Closer to a Federal Privacy Law, and I Move Closer to Losing My Mind
  Gizmodo reported: After years of fizzled talks and stalled negotiations on a federal data privacy bill, House and Senate committee leaders finally set aside enough of their differences to release a draft of a new bipartisan tech privacy bill this past Friday. The legislation, called the “American Data Privacy and Protection Act,” is being spearheaded by House Energy and Commerce Chair Frank Pallone (D-N.J.),… Read the rest