Privacy
Amazon Filed A Patent To Record You Before You Even Say "Alexa"
Amazon Echo devices could one day capture, process, and record audio spoken before the wake word for commands like “Play some music, Alexa.”
Nicole Nguyen
Google Has A Secret Page That Records All The Things You've Bought Online
Gmail's "Purchases" page collects and sorts out all of your online shopping and in-app purchase receipts.
Katie Notopoulos
Google Combined The Google Home And Nest Security Cam Into One Screen
The Google Nest Hub Max is like a Google Home with a touchscreen and built-in security, plus video chat, camera.
Nicole Nguyen
Google Will Soon Let You Automatically Scrub Your Location And Web History From Your Account Every Few Months
It’s a plus for privacy.
Pranav Dixit
I Love Facebook’s Video Chatting Device Because I’m Drunk On Dumb Bitch Juice
I set up the critically reviled device in the BuzzFeed office and every one was utterly, truly delighted with it.
Katie Notopoulos
United, Delta, And American Airlines Cover Creepy Cameras On Seatback Screens Following Outcry
United Airlines and Delta have covered the cameras on their entertainment systems after passenger outcry over privacy concerns. American Airlines said plans to do the same.
Nicole Nguyen
Amazon Echo Owners Say They Can't Listen To Some Audio Snippets Accidentally Recorded By Alexa
An Amazon spokesperson said the issue is "a bug" and it's rolling out a fix early next week.
Nicole Nguyen
Apple Wants To Remind Us It Isn’t Screwing Us Over On Privacy Like Everyone Else
Apple wants to be the only tech company we can trust.
Katie Notopoulos
Facebook Employees Had Access To Millions Of Unprotected Passwords
In a blog post titled “Keeping Passwords Secure," Facebook explained that it had not.
Leticia Miranda
Here's Elizabeth Warren's Plan To Break Up Huge Tech Platforms Like Facebook, Google, And Amazon
Warren would classify tech companies with global revenue of $25 billion or more as "platform utilities" and attempt to break them up via antitrust laws.
Ryan Broderick
After A Year Of Hurt, Mark Zuckerberg Unveils A New Privacy-Focused Social Network
“Frankly we don't currently have a strong reputation for building privacy protective services.”
Ryan Mac
Mark Zuckerberg Tried Hard To Get Facebook Into China. Now The Company May Be Backing Away.
“As we build our infrastructure around the world, we've chosen not to build data centers in countries that have a track record of violating human rights like privacy or freedom of expression,” Zuckerberg wrote on Wednesday.
Ryan Mac
Musical.ly, Also Called TikTok, Will Pay A $5.7 Million Settlement To FTC For Allegedly Taking Kids’ Info
As a result of a settlement reached with FTC, Musical.ly users under 13 will not be able to share videos or maintain a profile on the lip-synching platform starting today.
Nicole Nguyen
People Are Worried About Singapore Airlines' Entertainment System Cameras. Turns Out, American Airlines Has Cameras, Too.
American Airlines told BuzzFeed News that the camera hardware “has never been activated.”
Nicole Nguyen
Amazon Bought A Router Company You've Never Heard Of. Here Is Why It's A Huge Deal.
Experts are concerned about what Amazon’s acquisition of Eero means for consumer privacy.
Nicole Nguyen
Amazon Recorded Video Of A Seller's Face For Identification Purposes
“We will record a 5-second video of your face. ... To proceed, enable access to your webcam.”
Leticia Miranda
Apple CEO Tim Cook Calls For A New Privacy Law That Would Let You Delete Your Data
"In 2019, it’s time to stand up for the right to privacy — yours, mine, all of ours."
Davey Alba
The Internet Is A Privacy Disaster. But We Still Don't Know How To Talk About It.
We know our data has been left vulnerable, or sold, or misused. But do we really understand what that means for our safety and security online — and when it actually matters?
Charlie Warzel
A Man Sent 1,000 Men Expecting Sex And Drugs To His Ex-Boyfriend Using Grindr, A Lawsuit Says
“It was like an episode of Black Mirror,” said Matthew Herrick, whose high-profile lawsuit alleges that Grindr looked the other way while his ex-boyfriend tormented him.
Tyler Kingkade
Profile Picture Robbery Is So Bad In India That Facebook Is Letting People Block Screenshots
That shiny blue shield isn't going to stop creepy exes, though.
Pranav Dixit
6 Times When “Opting Out” Doesn’t Actually Stop Data Collection
Telling a company you want out doesn’t necessarily mean it stops collecting, or even sharing, your data.
Nicole Nguyen
The Year’s Biggest Data Breaches — And What To Do About Them
The databases at Marriott, Facebook, and more were breached this year. Here’s how to secure your account and protect yourself from identity theft.
Nicole Nguyen
India Wants Tech Platforms To Break Encryption And Remove Content The Government Thinks Is "Unlawful"
It is not clear whether India will now choose to be a leader in privacy or mass surveillance, sources told BuzzFeed News.
Pranav Dixit
Google’s App Store Has “Disturbing” Kids Games, Groups Warn
“Google doesn’t really have any incentive to clean up its own app store,” said one child advocate.
Virginia Hughes
India's Government Denies Telling Federal Agencies They Can Snoop On Every Computer, Despite An Order That Seemingly Says They Can
“Welcome to 1984.”
Pranav Dixit
Apps Are Revealing Your Private Information To Facebook And You Probably Don't Know It
Facebook provided developers with tools to build Facebook-compatible apps like Tinder, Grindr, and Pregnancy+. Those apps have been quietly sending sensitive user data to Facebook.
Charlie Warzel
Facebook Allowed Netflix, Spotify, And A Bank To Read And Delete Users’ Private Messages
The social network also allowed Microsoft’s search engine Bing to see the names of nearly all users’ friends without their consent, according to a report.
Pranav Dixit
Why, After 2018’s Privacy Scandals, Does Facebook Deserve Our Data?
A seemingly endless parade of privacy scandals has dredged up an existential question for the company.
Charlie Warzel
Facebook Says A Bug May Have Exposed The Unposted Photos Of Millions Of Users
“We have a responsibility to protect your information. If we can’t, we don’t deserve it."
Ryan Mac
Facebook Filed A Patent To Calculate Your Future Location
The methods described in three Facebook patent applications use your historical location data — and others’ — to figure out where you’ll go next.
Nicole Nguyen
