Did Google Get Off Easy With $7 Million ‘Wi-Spy’ Settlement?
Seven million dollars. That’s how much Internet giant Google will pay to settle a multi-year investigation into its controversial “Wi-Spy” data collection practices. The furor erupted in 2010 when Google disclosed that it had collected Wi-Fi data from unsecured wireless networks as its “Street View” vehicles crawled major cities worldwide, photographing buildings for a ground-level view on Google Maps. On Tuesday, Google agreed to pay $7 million to 38 states and the District of Columbia to settle the matter. To put that in perspective, Google generated revenue of about $50 billion last year, or nearly $6 million per hour. Big Internet companies like Google and Facebook frequently push the boundaries of user privacy. But the “Wi-Spy” case was particularly alarming to consumer advocates, because it raised the specter of Google’s “Street View” cars — which had already raised privacy concerns — roaming around major cities vacuuming up personal data, including snippets ...
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Free Federal Wireless Broadband For All Americans? Fuggedaboutit!
The United States government is not going to be providing free WiFi Internet access to consumers anytime soon. That news may surprise anyone who read a startling Washington Post story on Sunday that seemed to confuse a fairly esoteric telecom policy proposal about the use of so-called “white space” wireless spectrum with some sort of free national wireless Internet access plan. The “free WiFi for all” story, which was passed around uncritically by Internet blogs and news sites, set off a furor because the notion cuts to the heart of ongoing battles over access to the Internet, the “digital divide,” and federal policy decisions that could have major implications for the telecom, cable, and technology industries. But the story was wrong, as Ars Technica pointed out. On Tuesday, outlets that repeated the bunk story began walking their reports back, in some cases apologizing for giving bad information to the public. The episode, which provoked a strong pushback from tech ...
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Facebook swapping free Wifi routers for check-ins
Facebook is trialing a new WiFi hotspot service for some local businesses that provides a router allowing customers to browse the Internet free of charge if they check-in on Facebook.
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iPad Mini release and security breaches in Android Apps
Tuesday, October 23, 2012 - 07:07 John Moore/Getty Images European researchers say some apps on Android smartphones leave passwords, bank accounts, credit cards, and other sensitive info vulnerable to theft. The fact that harckers are lurking is no surprise, but what about news that 185 million users might be vulnerable to thieves who want to steal your data? They won't divulge which ones, but European researchers say some apps on Android smartphones leave passwords, bank accounts, credit cards, and other sensitive info vulnerable to theft. Eight percent of apps downloaded by the researchers from the official Google Play store were found to have security flaws. The warning was contained in a paper submitted to a Computer Security Conference . "We'll use the free WiFi at Starbucks or a hotel or the airport," says Chester Wisniewski, a senior cyber security adviser at Sophos who helps us understand this stuff. "That allows someone to perform what's called a 'man in the middle' attack. In esence, ...
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FreedomPop launches free WiFi beta, and "transient electronics"
Monday, October 1, 2012 - 21:28 Sean Gallup/Getty Images This week a new mobile company, FreedomPop, takes aim at giants AT&T and Verizon by offering free cellphone data. What if the data used by your Smartphone to browse the web, check email and Facebook and look for nearby restaurants were free? I just checked and I am paying $30 a month for that privilege. Starting this week, an outfit called FreedomPop is letting people connect without charge, if they use only 500 megabytes per month or less. I happen to be on track to use 400 megabytes of data this month on my plan, but I'm not much of a data hog. For instance, I am not trying to stream movies on my phone. But since nothing is free, how does this company propose to make money? By charging people if they use more than that allotment. Here's the CEO Stephen Stokols modestly suggesting that other phone companies are going to be scared. "We are coming after them and they had better get ready for war," Stokols said. FreedomPop does ...
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