Yesterday I received an e-mail from Google about the changes to their privacy policy. On the face of it, it seems reasonable that they would like to consolidate all their policies into one. The downside to this is that they also plan on sharing that information across their products which gives them a better picture of all your Internet activities. The question the, is what will they do with this information.

Having stated the above, some sites are very clear on their privacy policies.  For example, look at the Trollbeads privacy policy.  They state that they do not give out your information.  Given that this is a jewelry site, they would gain very little in giving it out.  The site’s goal is to sell jewelry.

Google on the other hand is interested in your information.  They make money based on it.

If you are concerned about privacy, there are two simple steps you can take to obscure the information that any website or search engine sees.

1. Use multiple user names or ID’s when you access a site.  This spreads your data across accounts which breaks any direct linkage to you.
2. Use an anonymous proxy that changes your IP address so that your accounts are not linked to your IP address.  Even better would be to use a shared proxy because many people will be using the same IP addresses thus rendering the information collected by the website useless.

There are many names to call it, but all in all, a natural disaster is one that comes with or without warning. The past year was overloaded with natural catastrophes that cost billions of dollars. People in the United States alone suffered from several hurricanes and tornadoes. There were many areas that were rocked and destroyed by earthquakes, like the East Coast, Colorado and Peru. Japan had her share of tsunami, and Queensland, Australia, Bangkok and most recently, the Philippines suffered from destructive floods. These events tend to send a lesson across – that natural disasters should be put in the top risk concern.

Today, businesses and government agencies should prepare for all of these looming disasters. Each should have an individual plan for disaster recovery. In today’s information-driven world, further disasters can result from power outages and network failures. There should still be time for every business to adjust and respond to risks. In any possible event, there should be uninterrupted and continuous access to either personal or corporate data.

For every increase in the number of shoppers who visit retail stores, there is a corresponding increase in incidents of identity theft and fraud. It seems that it is connected with the use of credit cards, checks and identification documents. Shoppers have been warned to be extra careful when using these personal information-containing cards and documents. Thieves are out there waiting for the right opportunity to steal personal information or to commit fraud. The holiday season encourages them to heighten their operations because shoppers seem to be more energized than observant.

In the United States, at least two regions have reported a large increase in identity crimes, most of which are data breaches. The cost of information that is stolen from companies costs more than $150 billion in the national picture. This was reported by LifeLock Consumer Education that spanned the years from 2005 to 2010. The theory is that this is a result of technology that criminals take advantage of, plus human error on the part of consumers.

Is there a new computer malware that was released in time for Christmas? Yes, and as always, this new malware attack comes in a disguise; this time as a license key. There are spam emails that pretend to come from Adobe, and the license key is supposed to be for Adobe InDesign. This desktop publishing software is one of Adobe’s most useful products at present.

The emails sent bear the subject InDesign CS4 License Key, and looks very convincing. It is not easy for users to suspect that the emails are spam. It uses very subtle encouragement for them to explore what is new about InDesign and how its features were enhanced. The email bears an attachment that supposedly contains tips, tutorials, and eSeminars.

It was noted that there were different versions of emails; each one being slightly different from the other. The emails also used different reference numbers in the subject line. Some attachments bear the filename “AdobeSystems-Software_Critical Update Dec_2011-[random].zip”; others have the filename “License_key_ID[random number].zip”.

Hackers know that users are concerned about their security so they use subtle threats in their emails. To make sure that users open the attachment, they “promise” such things as advanced features. Furthermore, there is insinuation that work productivity would not be enhanced unless users open the file.

Users who do not have sufficient knowledge about how malwares are spammed out are likely to open the attachment. Not realizing that it contains malicious software, they will install it and so, their Windows computers are infected with it. Sophos said that its antivirus software detects the malware as the Troj/Bedo-MY Trojan horse. It also reminded users that Adobe would not send emails to people and attach its updates in them. Users have to always remember that Adobe only uses its own website where users can visit for legitimate updates.

Internet privacy protection efforts are being improved by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and this time it will be brought to a new level. Without stifling innovation on the internet, consumers can receive more protection. The set of proposals by the FTC includes innovative functions such as “do not track” and several others.

For a long time, consumers’ online activities have been tracked by the use of “cookies”. Websites send cookies to the consumer’s computer, and this makes it easy for data miners to easily discover their choices of online activities. With enough information gathered, companies can target specific products and services to online consumers. It is difficult for consumers to protect themselves because most of them do not know how to turn off cookies. They need to make an extra effort in finding out the browser’s privacy settings so that they can opt out of cookies. Now, this one is not easy even for the experienced user.

It is true that some consumers might benefit from data mining. This is especially true for those who make online purchases because discounts and other offers may be available if they wish to buy the same item again. However, most consumers find targeted advertisements annoying and threatening to their privacy. That is why authorities are continually finding ways to protect consumers from these kinds of unsolicited ads.

One “desperate” woman from New Jersey committed another not-so-unusual case of identity theft just to get even with her ex-boyfriend. Her “ingenuity”, a case of impersonation, has nearly succeeded in ruining another person’s image online. She was able to create a fake Facebook page using her ex-boyfriend’s name, photo and some personal information. After creating the page, she then posted inflammatory comments. While a judge ruled that she can be accused of identity theft, legislators have to think further about the case’s wider implications for cyber speech.

The woman took the identity of her ex-boyfriend, who works as a police narcotics officer. The posts that were mostly self-destructive appeared to be made by him. There was one comment that talked about his being “high all the time”. Others mentioned his disreputable activities like frequenting prostitutes and escort services, and that he had herpes.

Impersonation, however it is done, is aimed at obtaining a benefit for one’s own self or to injure or defraud another. Way back in 2006, the issues of online impersonation and cyber bullying came out and quickly spread. It all started with the suicide of a 13-year-old girl who became a target online by a fictitious 13-year old boy. The case concluded with the “boy” being identified actually as the mother of another teenage girl.

A majority of the world’s population today is connected to the internet for many different purposes. There are those who find that social networking can be an effective tool for individuals, organizations, schools, institutions, businesses, governments, etc. Along with this are the billions of devices that are interconnected via an array of wired and wireless networks. These devices come in a wide range of sizes, including those that are small, hand held gadgets to bigger devices that are powerful enough to get connected to the whole world. It is much easier now to communicate with anybody, anywhere in the cyber world.

Behind the scenes of the beneficial effects of internet technology are those unscrupulous criminals who use that same technology to carry out their own agenda. There is a very high risk of cyber attacks, coming in different forms. There is espionage, malware, denial-of-service, cyber war, and terrorism that lurk behind the interconnected systems. This is one concern that needs to be addressed not only by individual networks, but by the cooperative effort of all.

Network protection is becoming more and more important, and researchers in Germany have proposed a new approach to it. They believe that the risk of cyber attack could be reduced by rewarding those organizations that support their own network security. They have observed that those organizations who have implemented this strategy have greatly reduced the spread of malware and other problems. Today, communications that are internet and computer-based are, for the most part, done anonymously. This results in systems becoming ever more vulnerable to cyber attacks and harassment.

If the plan to update the U.S. online privacy rules for children will be approved, it will include teenagers, aged 13 to 17. Because of this, debates during hearings in Congress started as the House does not have a common stand on this issue. Parents of children under the age of 13 are given the right to decide what information about their children can be collected by websites and other providers. These parents will still hold the same power if the rule would be revised, but this time that power will extend to an older age group.

Supporters of the revision say that there is a need to update the law’s provisions. They say that today’s breed of teenagers is not mature enough to evaluate and be aware of the dangerous aspects of the internet. They observe that children are becoming more technologically advanced. This makes it possible for them to effortlessly cope with the fast changing technology. What they lack is the ability to self-regulate in time with existing technology. This can result in privacy problems, thus the need to include children in the higher age bracket.

Websites and other providers are required to obtain verifiable approval from parents before they can collect information from children. This means that the consent must be proven to have been given by the parents. The revised consent will use more sophisticated verification methods. Examples are video-conferencing and electronic scans of consent forms, which would be signed by parents. Lack of this evidence will prohibit the collection, use, or disclosure of personal information of children.

Many areas of human society have been benefited by DNA technology. In crime investigation, the use of DNA has helped the police for a number of years. From the unheard of, to notorious cases, the use of DNA to identify criminals has made officers’ work less difficult. There is a current privacy concern involving the collection of DNA profiles. The police aired their privacy concerns about the move by officials to keep a database of the officers’ own DNA.

To rule out speculation that a police officer committed a complicated crime, police officials have ordered the DNA testing of law enforcement personnel. This unpopular order was issued after the deaths of eight women in Louisiana in 2009. These were cases of a serial killer that showed a high degree of “workmanship” in committing the murders. Rumors spread that a police officer was involved in the killings. Consequently, all officers in Louisiana agreed to undergo testing. The final outcome showed that the killer was not among them.

Some officers feel that this DNA collection is not something they should give much attention to. They say that having a DNA file of police officers is important in conducting crime scene investigations because it would make it easier for them to recognize unknown genetic materials found at crime scenes.

Collecting personal information from users on the internet is not a new issue. It has been around for a long time, and it started out as something that was commonly done. For example, it was normal to provide your name and email address when you registered on a certain website. Social networking sites would even give users the option to provide even more sensitive personal information. Users willingly shared data with different web companies, not thinking about any privacy implications.

Then, targeted advertising was popularized by companies that use this collected personal information. They have accumulated so much of it that they could build profiles of users, especially when it comes to their product preferences. Immediately, privacy advocates cautioned users to be more prudent when sharing their personal data. Despite intensive consumer education, privacy issues got worse, and problems cropped up.