ComputerWorld – Page 3 – PossibleThreat Articles

Credit to Author: eschuman@thecontentfirm.com| Date: Mon, 12 Feb 2024 03:00:00 -0800

The IT community of late has been freaking out about AI data poisoning. For some, it’s a sneaky mechanism that could act as a backdoor into enterprise systems by surreptitiously infecting the data large language models (LLMs) train on and then getting pulled into enterprise systems. For others, it’s a way to combat LLMs that try to do an end run around trademark and copyright protections.

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ComputerWorld Independent

What a future without browser cookies looks like

February 7, 2024 0 Comments Browsers, Data privacy, facebook, Google, Microsoft, Privacy, regulation

Most online users have experienced it. You do an online search for healthcare purposes, travel information, or something to buy and soon you’re being bombarded with emails and targeted online ads for everything related to your search. That’s because browser cookies were tracking you as you performed your searches; they identified you and your activity.

Over the past few years, the online advertising industry has been undergoing a sea change as regulators restricted how cookies can be used and browser providers moved away from their use in response to consumer outcries over privacy.

“They often feel surveilled; some even find it ‘creepy’ that a website can show them ads related to their behavior elsewhere,” according to a recent study by the HEC Paris Business School.

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ComputerWorld Independent

When a customer gets defrauded, should the enterprise reimburse?

February 6, 2024 0 Comments Financial Services Industry, Security

Credit to Author: eschuman@thecontentfirm.com| Date: Tue, 06 Feb 2024 03:00:00 -0800

The New York Attorney General’s decision to sue Citibank last week for failing to reimburse customers who’d been victimized by fraud raised some interesting issues for business that go beyond just Citibank. Specificially, when should a customer be reimbursed for fraud and at what point do the customer’s own actions come into play?

To be clear, financial institutions have been routinely refusing to reimburse customers who have done nothing wrong. The far trickier issue is when the customer does indeed do something wrong.

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ComputerWorld Independent

Apple accuses UK gov't of ‘unprecedented overreach’ on privacy

January 30, 2024 0 Comments Apple, Data privacy, iOS, Security

In the name of security, the UK government may well have put a cybersecurity target on the nation’s back, with Apple once again warning that proposed changes to the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 are a “serious and direct threat to data security and information privacy.

“We are deeply concerned about the amendments to the Investigatory Powers Bill currently before Parliament, which will put the privacy and security of users at risk,” Apple said in a statement. “This is an unprecedented overreach by the government and, if implemented, the UK new user protections could be secretly vetoed globally, preventing us from ever delivering them to customers.”

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ComputerWorld Independent

Russia hacks Microsoft: It’s worse than you think

January 29, 2024 0 Comments Government IT, Microsoft, regulation, Security, small and medium business, Windows

Another day, another hack of Microsoft technology. Ho-hum, you might think, this has happened before and will happen again — as surely as the sun rises in the morning and sets at night.

This time is different. Because this time the targets weren’t Microsoft customers, but rather the top echelons of Microsoft itself. And the hacker group, called Midnight Blizzard, or sometimes Cozy Bear, the Dukes, or A.P.T. 29, is sponsored by Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (and has been since at least 2008).

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ComputerWorld Independent

10 must-have security tips for digital nomads

January 19, 2024 0 Comments Mobile, Security, small and medium business

I’ve been a digital nomad since 2006. Since then, I’ve spent more time abroad than in the United States, working all the while, no matter where. And I’ve learned a lot about safety, security and privacy in specific locations on the European, African, and American continents — often the hard way.

Lots of people travel for business or vacation. The difference with digital nomads abroad (and bleisure and workcation travelers) is that you’re more likely to be carrying your most expensive electronics, more likely to be staying at an Airbnb than a hotel, and more likely to be in serious trouble if you lose work computers and devices (not to mention passports and your wallet).

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ComputerWorld Independent

The most significant number from Samsung's Galaxy S24 announcement

January 19, 2024 0 Comments Android, Google, Operating Systems, Privacy, samsung electronics, Security, smartphones, software provider

My goodness, there’s a lot to be said about Samsung’s newly announced Galaxy S24 family of flagship Android devices.

Aaaaand, spoiler alert: We won’t be saying most of those things here, in this column, today.

Now, don’t get me wrong: Samsung’s latest and greatest Galaxy models have tons of good stuff going for ’em. From the eye-catching hardware to the specs to end all specs, Samsung rarely holds back with its top-of-the-line Android offerings. And this year’s devices appear to be no exception.

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ComputerWorld Independent

3 exceptional Android privacy power-ups

January 17, 2024 0 Comments Android, Browsers, chrome, Internet, mobile apps, Privacy

In many ways, privacy has become a bit of a conceptual buzzword — something that, similar to the AI craze of the moment, is as much about marketing a broad idea to people as it is anything specific or practical.

But all opportunistic hype aside, privacy absolutely does matter — once you dig in past that silly outer layer and actually think about what, exactly, you want to achieve. And here in the land o’ Android, you’ve got plenty o’ potential-packed possibilities to ponder.

Today, I want to draw your attention to one area where a teensy bit of effort can give you an awful lot of added privacy advantages — and that’s in the ever-evolving domain of web browsing on your favorite Android gadget.

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ComputerWorld Independent

How OpenAI plans to handle genAI election fears

January 16, 2024 0 Comments Artificial intelligence, generative ai, Government, Security

OpenAI is hoping to alleviate concerns about its technology’s influence on elections, as more than a third of the world’s population is gearing up for voting this year. Among the countries where elections are scheduled are the United States, Pakistan, India, South Africa, and the European Parliament.

“We want to make sure that our AI systems are built, deployed, and used safely. Like any new technology, these tools come with benefits and challenges,” OpenAI wrote Monday in a blog post. “They are also unprecedented, and we will keep evolving our approach as we learn more about how our tools are used.”

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ComputerWorld Independent

Failed unsubscribes could be a clue your data's out of control

January 15, 2024 0 Comments data center, Data privacy, legal, Security, Technology Industry

Credit to Author: eschuman@thecontentfirm.com| Date: Mon, 15 Jan 2024 03:00:00 -0800

Anyone who’s eveer tried to unsubscribe to an email list knows that “unsubscribe” button never seems to work — except to verify your email account is working. But what if that failure arises from something more problematic than an unethical person ignoring the request?

What if it is the latest symptom of the overly distributed data problem?

That’s the same issue that undermines compliance and legal discovery rules such as GDPR’s Right To Be Forgotten rule. It’s also the same problem that makes it all-but-impossible for enterprises to have current and comprehensive datamaps.

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