Safety Security & Privacy

The loud knocking jarred him from his online research. Odd to hear a knock at the door at this hour, he thought. It was too powerful to be a friend. Then again, anyone he knew would have called ahead. As he approached the door, the second knock was insistent, and he heard, “Police. Open up. We know you’re home.” Continue Reading →

Apple contractors are listening to snippets of private conversations though Siri. Should you worry? Shelly Palmer speaks with Sukanya Krishnan and Kerry Drew about it on Fox 5 New York's Good Day Wake Up. Original Airdate: July 30, 2019 Continue Reading →

The lawsuit filed against Amazon’s Alexa Voice Services this past Tuesday fascinates me. It alleges that Amazon is recording children who use Alexa without parental consent. Excuse me? Mom or Dad bought the Echo, put it in the house, and taught the kids to talk to it. How much more parental consent do you need? That said, there is more to the story. Continue Reading →

I was checking out my Twitter feed the other day and I came upon a tweet from Richard Dawkins. He is one of my favorite writers and I’ve been following him for years. The tweet was a link to an article, but was it true? Time to find out. But how much time? Continue Reading →

Wikiality, “the best narrative wins,” has all but replaced reality. Fiction often replaces facts. Lies are harder and harder to separate from truths. A pure democracy is truly dangerous to powerful people. Narratives are hard to control. Which raises the question, can a constitutional republic (or a bunch of other elected central governments) control a true democracy that is the direct voice of about 55 percent of the global population? Continue Reading →

Facebook has been under relentless attack since the Cambridge Analytica scandal in early 2018. Broadcasters and news publishers have declared open season on Mark Zuckerberg, Sheryl Sandberg, and other senior executives at the company. And while not quite ubiquitous, #deletefacebook pops up every time there’s a story about data privacy. The EU has fined them, the US is trying to figure out how to regulate them, and the notion that free services should be absolutely free (as opposed to checking a box on a terms and conditions page that allows the free service to use your data as payment) is gaining traction. Whether or not Facebook deserves the scrutiny it is under is a great topic for another article. Today, I want to have a look at alternatives. If you don’t like Facebook, what might work for you? Is the time right for the reemergence of focused social networks? Continue Reading →

We live in the age of exponentiation. Everything is evolving at an almost unimaginable speed. New tools, techniques, iterations, breakthroughs, and game-changing discoveries happen almost daily. Today, just staying on top of what's happening is practically a full-time job. This raises a question: If free unencumbered commercial enterprises are struggling to keep up with the pace of change, what hope do governments have? Continue Reading →

Shelly Palmers discusses Yahoo Mail's business practice of scanning user email accounts to gather data for targeted advertising with Sukanya Krishnan and Jennifer Lahmers on Fox 5’s Good Day New York. Original Air Date: September 4, 2018 Continue Reading →

On May 25, a new law called the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is going into effect in the European Union. The law was created to protect EU citizens from potential abuses, like the recent Cambridge Analytica scandal. Wondering how this will change your world? Here are 5 things you should know. Continue Reading →

Shelly Palmer talks about GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations) and why you’re getting all those privacy notices now on Fox 5’s Good Day Wake Up with Sukanya Krishnan and Kerry Drew. Original Airdate: May 8, 2018 Continue Reading →