“Simply staggering” surveillance conducted by social media and streaming services, FTC finds


The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a report that examines the data collection and use practices of major social media and video streaming services, finding that the companies engaged in vast surveillance of consumers in order to monetize their personal information while failing to adequately protect users online, especially children and teens.

The report, called A Look Behind the Scenes: Examining the Data Practices of Social Media and Video Streaming Services, is based on responses from nine companies to questions about how the companies collect, track, and use personal and demographic information, how they determine which ads and other content are shown to consumers.

Read more…
Source: Malwarebytes Labs


Sign up for our Newsletter


Related:

  • Meta bans ‘cyber-mercenaries’ that targeted 50,000 people

    December 17, 2021

    Meta, Facebook’s parent company, has banned several “cyber-mercenary” groups thought to have been offering surveillance services aimed at activists, dissidents and journalists worldwide. The social media giant said on Thursday it had begun warning about 50,000 people it believed may have come under scrutiny across more than 100 nations. The Facebook parent said it deleted accounts tied ...

  • UK spy chief warns China, Russia racing to master AI

    November 30, 2021

    The chief of the United Kingdom’s foreign spy service is to warn that China and Russia are racing to master artificial intelligence in a way that could revolutionise geopolitics over the next 10 years. Richard Moore, who heads the Secret Intelligence Service, known as MI6, is due to make his first public speech since becoming chief ...

  • UK: Facial recognition firm faces possible £17m privacy fine

    November 29, 2021

    An Australian firm which claims to have a database of more than 10 billion facial images is facing a potential £17m fine over its handling of personal data in the UK. The Information Commissioner’s Office said it had significant concerns about Clearview AI, whose facial recognition software is used by police forces. It has told the firm ...

  • Norwegian student tracks Bluetooth headset wearers by wardriving around Oslo on a bicycle

    September 4, 2021

    A Norwegian student who went wardriving around Oslo on a pushbike has discovered that several popular models of Bluetooth headphones don’t implement MAC address randomisation – meaning they can be used to track their wearers. Norwegian state broadcaster NRK revealed Bjorn Hegnes’ findings after helping him analyse Bluetooth emissions from a dozen different models of audio ...

  • U.S. Special Operations Command Paid $500,000 to Secretive Location Data Firm

    March 30, 2021

    A section of U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM), a part of the military tasked with counterterrorism, counterinsurgency, and special reconnaissance, paid half a million dollars to a company that sells access to location data harvested from ordinary apps installed on peoples’ phones, Motherboard has learned. Specifically, SOCOM paid Anomaly 6, a secretive contractor run by ...

  • WhatsApp: Share your data with Facebook or delete your account

    January 6, 2021

    After WhatsApp updated its Privacy Policy and Terms of Service on Monday with additional info on how it handles users’ data, the company is now notifying users through the mobile app that, starting February, they will be required to share their data with Facebook. “Respect for your privacy is coded into our DNA,” the company said ...