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#brokers

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Public
h o ʍ l e t t

→ Fingerprinting: Critics say Google rules put profits over privacy
bbc.com/news/articles/cm21g005

“[O]pponents to the change say fingerprinting and IP address collection are a blow to privacy”

“"The same tracking techniques that Google claims are essential for online #advertising also expose individuals' sensitive information to data #brokers, #surveillance companies, and law enforcement," [Lena Cohen, staff technologist at the EFF] added.”

Stock image of a computer generated image of a multi-coloured fingerprint with red digitally rendered squares in the background
www.bbc.comFingerprinting: Critics say Google rules put profits over privacyGoogle is allowing advertisers to collect more personal information, which is harder for users to control.
#fingerprinting#privacy#tracking
Public
Angerman 🦅

Oh… #privacy where.. oh, wait .. 🥹

Massive breach at #location data seller: “Millions” of users affected

Like many other #data #brokers, #Gravy is a company you may never have heard of, but it almost certainly knows a lot about you if you’re a #US #citizen.

Gravy Analytics specializes in location intelligence, meaning it collects #sensitive #phone location and #behavior data.

One of the buyers is the US #government who increasingly circumvents the need to get a #warrant by simply buying what they want to know from a data broker. Ironic, given that the #FTC sued Gravy Analytics after saying it routinely collects sensitive phone location and behavior data without getting the #consent of #consumers.

And now, apparently, it’s Gravy Analytics’ turn to be #breached. According to 404 Media, #cybercriminals breached Gravy Analytics and stole a massive amount of data, including customer lists, information on the broader industry, and location data harvested from #smartphones which show peoples’ precise #movements.

The cybercriminals claim to have stolen 17TB of data and are threatening to publish the data. Considering the sensitivity of location data for some groups, this breach could potentially be just as significant as the National Public Data leak.

The whole ordeal, whether the data will be published or not, proves once again why data brokers should stop trading health and location data. 📊

More: malwarebytes.com/blog/news/202

Replied in thread
Public
Karl Voit :emacs: :orgmode:

@EricAlper Yes, this is old.

However:

It did not have in-app purchases.

Oh, it didn't come with #ads.

It had no direct or indirect #expiration date where it stopped working altogether.

It continued working even when its original #manufacturer went out of business.

You really owned it.

It had no dependency to the #cloud.

There were no features that stopped working because of some remote marketing guy decided so.

It didn't contain call-back routines to the manufacturer.

It did not listen to its surrounding and generate #voiceprofiles for all people you meet.

It didn't spy on its buyers and sell those voice profiles an other very personal #data to #brokers which resell to #insurances, #advertisement companies and worse.

You could actually go to any electronic shop to get it repaired.

It was not overpriced.

It just played #music. It was perfect.

#capitalism#surveillance#entshittification
Public *
Chuck Darwin

The United States Federal Trade Commission is taking action against two American #data #brokers accused of unlawfully trafficking in people’s sensitive location data.

The data was used, the agency says, to track Americans in and around churches, military bases, and doctors’ offices, among other protected sites.

It was sold not only for advertising purposes but also for political campaigns and government uses, including immigration enforcement.

#Mobilewalla, a Georgia-based data broker that’s said to have digitally tracked the residents of domestic abuse shelters, is accused by the agency of purposefully tracking protesters in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in 2020.
In a court filing, the FTC says Mobilewalla attempted to unmask the protesters’ racial identities by tracking their mobile devices to, for example, Hindu temples and Black churches

The FTC also accused #Gravy #Analytics and its subsidiary #Venntel of harvesting and exploiting consumers’ location data without consent, alleging that the company used that data to unfairly infer health decisions and religious beliefs.

According to the FTC, Gravy Analytics collected over 17 billion location signals from approximately a billion mobile devices daily.
It has reportedly sold access to that data to federal law enforcement agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security, the Drug Enforcement Agency, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
wired.com/story/ftc-mobilewall

WIRED · FTC Says Data Brokers Unlawfully Tracked Protesters and US Military PersonnelBy Dell Cameron
Public
h o ʍ l e t t

→ Anyone Can Buy Data Tracking US Soldiers and Spies to #Nuclear Vaults and Brothels in Germany
wired.com/story/phone-data-us-

“Before a targeted #ad appears on an #app or #website, third-party software often embedded in apps called software development kits transmit information about their users to data #brokers, real-time bidding platforms, and ad exchanges—often including #location #data. Data brokers often will collect that data, analyze it, repackage it, and #sell it.”

Now the biter is bit…

WIRED · Anyone Can Buy Data Tracking US Soldiers and Spies to Nuclear Vaults and Brothels in GermanyBy Dhruv Mehrotra
Public
Datarainbow Privacy Assistant✅

´How #data #brokers sell our #locationdata and jeopardise national security

The #adtech industry is torpedoing the privacy of millions of people in Germany and is a threat to national security. But the underlying problem is global: databrokers sell location data without sufficient control. This is the summary of a joint research by netzpolitik.org and BR.´ netzpolitik.org/2024/data-brok

netzpolitik.org · Data Broker Files: How data brokers sell our location data and jeopardise national securityThe AdTech industry is torpedoing the privacy of millions of people in Germany and is a threat to national security. But the underlying problem is global: databrokers sell location data without sufficient control. This is the summary of a joint research by netzpolitik.org and BR.
Public
Nonilex

#InsuranceLobbyists block #federal crackdown on costly [good] #retirement advice

The #FinancialServicesIndustry has blocked the #Biden admin from requiring #brokers to put #retirees’ needs first — above lucrative #commissions.

To protect older Americans’ #LifeSavings, #POTUS #JoeBiden pledged in Oct to crack down on #financial advisers who recommend #investments just because they pay higher commissions. Then the insurance industry got to work.

#law
washingtonpost.com/business/20

The Washington Post · Insurance lobbyists block federal crackdown on costly retirement adviceBy Tony Romm
Public
C.

The #kerfuffle this week about #GM's practice of collecting #drivers' behavioural #data and then providing it to #data #brokers (causing some to have their insurance costs raised) brings up one of my pet #peeves.

#Journalists, can you please stop writing "<company> shares data with <data broker>"? They're not "#sharing" anything - they're #selling it.

"GM is selling drivers' behavioural data to LexisNexus" is a much more accurate statement. Why are you doing companies' PR for them?

Public
sunbeltagent

California's Premier Business Broker: Sunbelt Of Beverly Hills’ Tailored Solutions
Navigating the dynamic landscape of California's business market requires expertise and insight. At Sunbelt of Beverly Hills, our seasoned team of #Business #Brokers in California offers tailored solutions for sellers and buyers alike. canva.com/design/DAF89OuLDig/L

Public
h o ʍ l e t t

#NSA finally admits to spying on #Americans by purchasing sensitive #data
arstechnica.com/tech-policy/20
“The [NSA] has admitted to buying records from data #brokers” “[It] "can reveal sensitive, #private information about a person based on where they go on the #Internet, including visiting websites related to #mental_health resources, resources for survivors of sexual assault or domestic abuse, or visiting a telehealth provider who focuses on birth control or abortion medication."”

Ars Technica · NSA finally admits to spying on Americans by purchasing sensitive dataViolating Americans’ privacy "not just unethical but illegal," senator says.
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