Read more online privacy stories on Newserhttp://www.newser.com/taggrid/2321/online-privacy.html2009 - Newseren-usNewser Feed GeneratorTue, 24 Nov 2009 18:26:08 CSThttp://www.newser.com/story/73722/privacy-advocates-hijack-300-facebook-groups.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagA group advocating for social-networking privacy has hijacked nearly 300 Facebook groups over the past few days to point out weaknesses in the site’s control of personal information. The protesters renamed all the Facebook groups “Control Your Info,” pointing out that after administrators of groups step down, anyone else can...http://www.newser.com/story/73722/privacy-advocates-hijack-300-facebook-groups.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagTue, 10 Nov 2009 15:29:48 CSThttp://www.newser.com/story/72858/facebook-gives-death-a-makeover.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagFacebook has responded to yet another qualm arising from its revamp last week. This one was actually sort of serious: Users were inundated with suggestions that they “reconnect” with friends who—though their Facebook pages were still active—had in reality shuffled off this mortal coil. “Would that I could,...http://www.newser.com/story/72858/facebook-gives-death-a-makeover.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagThu, 29 Oct 2009 14:08:04 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/71735/facebook-refuseniks-still-sorta-use-it.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagThe Washington Post today profiles an increasingly rare breed: people in their 20s and 30s who don't use Facebook or other such sites. And though the “refuseniks” interviewed have different rationales—privacy, “morals and beliefs,” being “old-school in the personal touch way,” many share something in common that speaks to...http://www.newser.com/story/71735/facebook-refuseniks-still-sorta-use-it.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagThu, 15 Oct 2009 11:00:00 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/67962/facebook-beefs-up-privacy-protection.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagIn response to criticism by the Canadian government, Facebook is enacting far-reaching changes in how third-party applications gain access to personal data, TechCrunch reports. Currently, Facebook applications ask users once, upon installation, for approval to access personal information. Under the new rules, the apps will have to ask repeatedly as...http://www.newser.com/story/67962/facebook-beefs-up-privacy-protection.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagThu, 27 Aug 2009 16:10:01 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/66596/obama-rethinks-ban-on-tracking-web-visitors.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagPrivacy groups are up in arms over a White House proposal to allow tracking technology to be used on government websites, the Washington Post reports. Supporters argue that social networking sites have used cookies and other tracking tools to spectacular effect, but the ACLU says the proposal is a “massive”...http://www.newser.com/story/66596/obama-rethinks-ban-on-tracking-web-visitors.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagTue, 11 Aug 2009 8:27:53 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/65487/facebook-crosses-line-on-privacy-again.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagImagine Peter Smith’s surprise when an ad for “hot singles” on Facebook featured a picture of … his wife. The site blames that flap on a third-party company violating policy, but the incident underscores Facebook’s notoriously unclear privacy settings, writes Bob Sullivan for MSNBC: “A hard-to-spot toggle switch grants the...http://www.newser.com/story/65487/facebook-crosses-line-on-privacy-again.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagTue, 28 Jul 2009 12:54:00 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/63330/facebook-streamlines-clunky-privacy-settings.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagFacebook is starting a pilot program to test a more user-friendly version of its sprawling privacy controls, CNET reports. The 40 different settings now occupy six separate pages, and are so complicated that many users ignore them completely. “These can add up and pile up and not be as clean...http://www.newser.com/story/63330/facebook-streamlines-clunky-privacy-settings.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagWed, 01 Jul 2009 16:15:02 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/59740/social-sites-dont-delete-photos-promptly-study.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagUploaded photos remain on social-networking sites long after users think they’ve deleted them, a study finds. Researchers put photos on 16 popular sites and then deleted them. A month later, the BBC reports, the photos were still accessible using their direct URLs on seven of those sites, including Facebook—which...http://www.newser.com/story/59740/social-sites-dont-delete-photos-promptly-study.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagThu, 21 May 2009 11:48:01 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/55772/assembly-votes-surprise-non-on-french-web-piracy-law.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagThe French legislature has put a stop—for now—to an anti-piracy law that would deny Internet access to repeat offenders, AFP reports. The law, a pet of President Nicolas Sarkozy, would deal the ultimate blow to illegal downloaders after three strikes, and replace the current regime of fines and...http://www.newser.com/story/55772/assembly-votes-surprise-non-on-french-web-piracy-law.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagThu, 09 Apr 2009 14:40:09 CDT