Privacy Concerns

Facebook Starts Blocking Sensitive Medical Data Shared by Apps Over Privacy Concerns

Agence France-Presse | Saturday February 20, 2021

Facebook has been accused of not policing its own rule of barring apps from sharing sensitive medical data of users. Data fed into a Facebook analytics tool by app makers included medical diagnoses and whether users were pregnant, according to a report shared by New York financial services department on Thursday.

ByteDance Explores Sale of Indian TikTok Assets to Rival Firm Glance: Report

Reuters | Saturday February 13, 2021

TikTok parent company ByteDance is said to be exploring the sale of TikTok India business to rival firm Glance, according to a Bloomberg report. The talks reportedly initiated by Softbank are said to in the early stages.

WhatsApp Using Status Messages to Reassure Users of Its ‘Commitment to Privacy’

ANI | Monday February 1, 2021

WhatsApp is now posting status messages to reassure users of its “commitment to privacy” in the latest attempt to keep them from switching to alternate messaging apps. A recent privacy policy update from WhatsApp that mentioned about sharing data with other Facebook products and services has sparked privacy concerns among users.

Facebook Said to Be Questioned on WhatsApp’s Privacy Terms by Parliamentary Panel

Reuters | Thursday January 21, 2021

Facebook executives will field questions from a parliamentary panel about the changes to WhatsApp's privacy, a source said, days after the messaging platform was asked by the country's technology ministry to withdraw them.

Full-Page Ads On Day 2: WhatsApp Tries To Allay Privacy Concerns Again

India News | Reported by Roobina Mongia, Edited by Deepshikha Ghosh | Wednesday January 13, 2021

WhatsApp's clarification on its privacy policy was splashed across newspapers in full-page ads this morning with the boldfaced title: "WhatsApp respects and protects your privacy".

Supreme Court To Examine Special Marriage Act Over Privacy Concerns

India News | Reported by A Vaidyanathan, Edited by Chandrashekar Srinivasan | Wednesday September 16, 2020

The Supreme Court is to examine whether certain provisions of the Special Marriage Act of 1954 - which allows personal records to be available to the public during the 30-day notice period before the marriage - violate the individual's right to privacy

TikTok Faces Preliminary Investigation by French Data Privacy Watchdog CNIL

Reuters | Tuesday August 11, 2020

TikTok, the Chinese short-form video sharing app owned by ByteDance, is subject to a preliminary investigation by French data privacy watchdog CNIL. TikTok is already under investigation over privacy concerns by the US, European Union, and Dutch authorities.

Indian TikTok Handles Go Dark, Shadow Over Celeb Accounts After Ban

India News | Edited by Shatabdi Chowdhury | Monday June 29, 2020

The government today banned 59 Chinese mobile apps, including the wildly popular TikTok, over national security and privacy concerns just weeks after a deadly Himalayan border clash between the nuclear-armed nations.

French Coronavirus Tracing App Flops With Only 14 Alerts

Agence France-Presse | Wednesday June 24, 2020

France's much-heralded new phone app for tracking coronavirus cases has only alerted 14 people that they were at risk of infection since its launch three weeks ago, the digital affairs minister said Tuesday.

Amnesty Sounds Privacy Alarm Over Gulf, Norway Coronavirus Tracing Apps

Agence France-Presse | Wednesday June 17, 2020

Amnesty International warned Tuesday that contact-tracing technology developed to contain the novel coronavirus threatens users' privacy, highlighting Bahraini, Kuwaiti and Norwegian apps as "among the most dangerous."

Norway Ends Coronavirus Tracing App Over Privacy Concerns

Associated Press | Tuesday June 16, 2020

Norway has suspended use of its smartphone app meant to track and trace coronavirus contagions after a public spat between health authorities and the information watchdog.

Aarogya Setu Completely Secure: Ravi Shankar Prasad

India News | Press Trust of India | Saturday May 30, 2020

Amid privacy concerns, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Friday said Aarogya Setu mobile application was completely secure and there was no security or data breach in coronavirus tracking mobile application.

Aarogya Setu App Code Gets Open Sourced, Bug Bounty Programme Announced

Jagmeet Singh | Wednesday May 27, 2020

NITI Aayog has open sourced the code of the Aarogya Setu app weeks after privacy concerns were raised by various experts.

Coronavirus: French Privacy Watchdog Okays Contact Tracing App

Agence France-Presse | Tuesday May 26, 2020

The issue of how to track coronavirus spread with mobile technology has sparked privacy concerns in several countries now lifting strict home confinement measures as they hope to kickstart their economies.

As Chinese Authorities Expand Use of Health Tracking Apps, Privacy Concerns Grow

Reuters | Tuesday May 26, 2020

To walk around freely, people in China must have a green rating and since February they have been asked to present their health QR codes to gain entry into restaurants, parks, and other venues.