#individual privacy

[eideard]

Charlie Rose copped out on Apple vs FBI

Charlie Rose copped out on Apple vs FBI

Yup. Charlie Rose copped out on Apple vs FBI. I don’t watch Charlie Rose very often. I’ll go to his website and search for something, someone, if I’ve heard about a solid interview or – more likely – I caught the end of a segment. I like his interviews because unlike 99% of the Talking Heads on TV he knows how to ask a leading question. Most rely on a stupid question. A whole nuther topic.…

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[odishasamaya-blog]

Govt exempts WhatsApp, Facebook Apps from encryption policy

http://odishasamaya.com/news/govt-exempts-whatsapp-facebook-apps-from-encryption-policy/56212

On Tuesday the government said it will keep mass-use social media and web applications like WhatsApp, Twitter and Facebook out of the purview of a new policy that seeks to control secured online communication.

A fresh proposed addendum to the draft encryption policy clarifies that ‘encryption products’ that have been exempted from the policy comprise social media sites like WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, payment gateways, e-commerce and password based transactions and more.

After a vast outcry over the union government’s new draft encryption policy making it mandatory to store data in plain text format for 90 days, the government has now confirmed some exemptions.

The following categories of encryption products are being exempted from the purview of the draft national encryption policy:

The mass use encryption products, which are currently being used in web applications, social media sites, and social media applications such as Whatsapp, Facebook, Twitter, etc.

SSL/TLS encryption products being used in Internet-banking and payment gateways as directed by the Reserve Bank of India.

SSL/TLS encryption products being used for e-commerce and password based transactions.

The Union government had released a draft National Encryption Policy document online seeking methods of data encryption of data and communications used by the government, businesses, and even citizens. So, an ‘expert panel’ from the Department of Electronics and Information Technology was set up to prepare the draft. Looks like the experts got it all wrong about the importance of data encryption. According to the draft, encrypted messaging service on demand should reproduce same text in plain format before the law enforcement agencies whenever asked to. On failing to do so, the government can even take legal action as per the laws of the country.

[lawofsecrecy]

New Jersey Bill Upgrades Facebook Privacy Settings

What kind of information can employees keep secret from their employers?

Last week, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie signed legislation that limits an employer’s right to access the personal social media login information of employees and job applicants. The new law attempts to balance the rights of an employee’s right to privacy with the employer’s right to investigate employee misconduct and evaluate an applicant’s qualifications.

For example, the bill allows an employer to investigate any employee misconduct as long as any social media information used is in the public domain. Also, the bill protects employees from retaliation for reporting any of the employer’s violation of the law to the Department of Labor or Workforce Development.

The new law restricts any ability of the employer to require that current or future employees provide login credentials to their personal social media accounts.

More information available in this Bloomberg BNA article.

[lawofsecrecy]

Employee Secrecy, the Stored Communications Act and Facebook

A federal mediator with the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service recently released an opinion related to the type of secrets an employee may keep from an employer.  The arbitrator in Am. Fed'n of Gov't Emps. v. DHS, FMCS, No. 12-56290-A, released 8/11/13, determined that an employer cannot use a fake Facebook profile to gather evidence to fire an employee.

Earl Trapp worked for the U.S. Border Patrol and had allegedly written inappropriate comments on Facebook. His boss, Michael Bodes, decided to investigate Trapp’s inappropriate posts and created a fake Facebook account pretending to be a female. Trapp accepted the friend request. The arbitrator, Edward Scholtz, ruled that this action violated the Stored Communications Act.

The determining factor was that Trapp’s posts were set as “private” and could only be seen by his friends. Scholtz explained, “Trickery cannot be used by law enforcement officials to obtain consent to view and potentially acquire evidence where an individual has an expectation of privacy.”

Typically employees have very little ability to keep secrets from employers (although public employees have some greater protection than private employees because of the Fourth Amendment). It is good that the mediator recognized that employers should not be able to use deception to decrease this ability even further.