Microsoft was first to announce its opt-out technology for users of the internet. Now, Google and Mozilla have also taken concrete steps to give users the freedom of opting out of tracking cookies. Google will also improve its Chrome browser by providing an add-on. Users will soon be free from tracking cookies that monitor their movement and online behavior. From now on, tech companies will find ways to establish a balance between revenue generation and individual privacy protection.

The online advertising industry has been advocating for self-regulation. It has not reacted positively to discussions in regards to privacy protection. There have been many proposals for enhanced privacy policies that protect individual privacy. This recent development will mark the beginning of giving users more control over their personal information.

Many users do not realize the possible consequences of sharing their personal information online. They do not take time to thoroughly read the website’s privacy policies. It is either that they do not understand how their data will be handled, or they do not realize the importance of understanding. Only when they receive unsolicited advertisements – a consequence for being careless – do they realize the need for privacy protection.

You can easily get spammed if you want the easy way out of your weight problem. The fact is that there have been many email users who have lost money due to bogus offers that get into their spam inbox. To avoid falling into a trap, make sure that the claims are true and the site can be trusted. Con artists have become more cunning recently so that they can make their claims appear legitimate. It could seem simple at the start, but it could cost you your privacy in the long run.

Generally, there are two types of weight loss claims that are sent through spam mail. The first one claims that a product such as a pill, cream, patch, or others can guarantee weight loss even without dieting or exercise. The second are those that claim to block fat absorption, calories or carbohydrates so you don’t gain weight.

What makes weight loss spam mails interesting is revealed by a New York-based research. One in five, or 20%, of young, overweight people have been victims of email spam. The research also revealed more related statistics about these mails. First, 88% of overweight individuals say they received spam that “sells” weight loss products as opposed to 73% of other respondents. Second, 42% of overweight individuals say they opened these emails compared to 18% of other respondents. Third, 18% of overweight individuals say they bought these products, while only 5% of other respondents did the same.

Facebook continuously updates its Privacy Policies in order to provide better protection among its users. Many users are confused, but any extra time spent on understanding these policies will save them from any undue problems. Although many users read these policies, they do not fully understand how to take advantage of its features to maintain their privacy.

Understanding Facebook’s privacy settings is the best way to clear away confusions. Only then can you be confident about what happens to the information that you share. This is because you have control over them. You know how far this data can go with regards to your privacy.

One of the best things to start with is to configure your Friend List. Basically, Facebook is about friends. If you can group your friends according to a specific criterion, it would be easy to work with these groups. You will have control over your privacy (who can and who can’t see you). Facebook offers a privacy setting for Friend List that allows you to limit access to your personal information.

Watch out for the hair-raising truths about a new app that warns of an end to internet privacy. It is called Creepy, a “geolocation information aggregator” created by Yiannis Kakavas. Many privacy rights advocates have raised their concern about the potential impact of this application to privacy. Should this really be a cause for worry?

Kakavas created Creepy as a package for Linux or Windows. The third package for Mac OS X is now in the process. Basically, this app makes use of social networking services in order to pinpoint a user’s location. It can do this by gathering the information provided by the user to the network and putting together these pieces of information. The software has just been launched, but has already shown its job efficiency in living up to its name.

Creepy has an in-built search utility to find any individual in the internet. All that the user has to do is to input the Twitter or Flickr username of that individual then hit the “Geolocate Target” button. Creepy will then download all photos or tweets that the individual has published or posted. From each of the downloaded materials, Creepy will be particular with the user’s location at the time the material was published.

The proposed Privacy Bill of Rights sets out the powers and limitations of data collectors on the internet. This bill was sponsored by Senators John Kerry and John McCain. This bill will hopefully stop data marketers from abusing and misusing private data owned by internet users. This would be the first comprehensive legislation about privacy rights that would address deceitful advertisers and data miners.

With its passage, the bill would clearly draw a distinction between reasonable use of data and clear violation of individual privacy. Users have heatedly aired their cases due to repeated privacy violations. The problem has been around for quite a long time and there have been a number of attempts to pass modernized privacy legislation. It seems that the time has come for this issue to be laid to rest. This means that businesses can use important user information for their services without violating users’ privacy.

As an all-inclusive legislation, information collectors are required to provide total user’s privacy protection. They also have to inform them the reason why they gather such data. Simply put, this bill makes information collectors accountable for whatever data they pull out from users.

After numerous users filed charges against Google, the search giant agreed to improve its privacy program. The charges started to pile up after the company launched the Buzz, its new networking service in February 2010. Details of the allegations showed that Google had to answer legally for violating its own privacy policy and for deceiving users.

Buzz was designed to automatically create a group called “public circle of friends” using the users’ Gmail contacts. The circle of friends was created based on the user’s most frequently used Gmail contacts. However, many users did not like the idea, opposite to Google’s intentions and expectations for launching Buzz. Users pointed out that they did not want all their email contacts to be included. Because the group was public, anyone could see it and have access to it. They would like to exclude those “blacklisted” ones like ex-spouses or recruiters. In short, users complained about privacy issues.

After some deliberations, Google acceded to the requirement set by the Federal Trade Commission. The company will spend time studying its existing services in order to find out if any of those pose risks to privacy. The company will implement thisant to any new services that it plans to launch. If risks would be found, policies will be developed to address those.

The 11th draft of the online privacy bill is now ready to be formally introduced. The concern about online privacy has been here for years. Different proposals have been offered to the authorities yet until now, the bill is still in its formative stage and was never given the approval for its implementation. Critics have continually pointed out the need for modernized and applicable online privacy laws. The present laws being implemented are already archaic. These old laws cannot give full security to users, however, the process of modernizing has been very slow.

One of the strong supporters of the online privacy bill is Massachusetts Senator John Kerry. He has been working on it for some time. To get an ally, he persuaded some of the country’s biggest tech companies to support him. Senator John McCain of Arizona is his co-sponsor, and the bill is now supported by eBay, Intel, Microsoft and HP.

These companies have allowed their spokespersons to announce their support to the bill. A Microsoft representative in a declaration through Adweek said that the bill is heading in a positive direction. The company just waits for the endorsement of the bill and will then give some more comments.

Bus drivers would have to give up their personal privacy in order to ensure safety of their passengers. They should disclose mental and physical health issues to their employer. In addition, they also have to consent to random drug testing and list the medications they are on. These were the recommendations written by Judge Bruce Fraser in the fatality inquiry report on the death of Kathelynn Occena in 2007.

The nine-year-old girl was killed in a school bus accident on October 18, 2007. The school bus driven by Louise Rogers swerved into a parked gravel truck then slammed into a power pole. This incident killed Kathelynn and seriously injured three other children including her sister Julia. All four are studying at Mountain View Academy but shared a bus with Third Academy at the time.

Judge Fraser also wrote in his report that there was no indication that the driver did it on purpose. There is no known reason why the bus driver drifted onto the shoulder where the truck has broken down. It was known later that Ms. Rogers had recently been hospitalized for mental health issues. She was prescribed sleeping pills and antidepressants. Tests revealed that the level of these drugs was low in her system that day.