Rappler's latest stories on privacy
Makabayan bloc seeks House probe into StaySafe's data privacy issues
'From the process of selection, effectivity, and data privacy, the interests of the Filipino people are put to great risk,' say progressive lawmakers pushing for the investigation

Unauthorized disclosure of COVID-19 patients’ identities continues
Privacy breaches are committed by health workers, local government units, ordinary citizens, says the National Privacy Commission, which is investigating cases

[OPINYON] App, app, and away!
Naniniwala akong kahit anong warning ng mga eksperto, hangga’t hindi inabuso ang data natin, hangga’t malayo sa ating bituka, tuloy-tuloy ang paglipana at pagtangkilik sa mga app na ito

Google loses appeal against 50-million-euro French fine
The Council of State, a French government body that is also the court of last resort for matters of administrative justice, confirms a 2019 ruling by the CNIL, the French data watchdog

National Privacy Commission to meet with Facebook on impostor accounts
Privacy Commissioner Raymund Liboro invites Facebook representatives to a meeting 'to seek information regarding the numerous reports of impostor Facebook accounts'

[OPINYON] Hindi ito ang panahon para bumitaw ka sa Facebook
Kung may kalokohang gagawin o ipo-post ang kapangalan mo, mabuting active ang iyong tunay na account. Madaling maipapakita sa sinumang praning na awtoridad na may bukod-tangi at pumipintig kang account. Buhay na buhay.

Task force orders StaySafe developer to give users' data to DOH
IATF-EID warns it will revoke StaySafe's official status if the developer does not comply with new directives. Yet it was the task force itself that endorsed the app before it went through technical vetting.

StaySafe developer says Rio accusations 'unfair'
But Multisys CEO David Almirol Jr admits technical and privacy assessments were not yet completed when the government adopted and promoted StaySafe

Will Facebook dummy account probe look at govt too? DOJ says 'all angles'
The DOJ promises it will not misuse user data that will be submitted to them in the course of an investigation
U.P. Cebu confirms data breach on its Student Evaluation on Teaching system
The names and passwords to access a site used to let students rate the performance of their lecturers and professors are made public in the breach

‘Doomsday’ warning for San Beda University resurfaces
The university has a 72-hour window to send a notification to affected data subjects, according to the National Privacy Commission’s policies
Qatar tracing app flaw exposed 1M users' data – Amnesty International
Data exposed in the flaw includes users' ID numbers, location and infection status, vulnerable to hackers
Canada fines Facebook over misleading privacy claims
Canada's competition watchdog says Facebook made Canadians believe that they were in control of their data while the company allowed data to be shared with 3rd party developers
Data privacy musts while working from home
Brought to you by ePLDT Data Privacy Consulting

Lessening data privacy risks in the work-from-home era according to an expert
Kevin Shepherdson, CEO of data privacy platform solutions provider Straits Interactive, shares his advice for employers and employees on creating a safe working-from-home environment during the coronavirus crisis
Zoom rolls out new measures as security fears mount
Zoom is rolling out a bug bounty program, and a toolbar for easily accessing features such as locking chats from strangers, and making meeting password requirements a default setting
NPC: Gov't agencies must collect 'only necessary data' for relief operations
(UPDATED) The National Privacy Commission says employers are not required to obtain consent from their employees when sharing data with the government for the relief program
Zoom under scrutiny in U.S. over privacy, porn hacks
Some sessions are being 'Zoom-bombed' by porn, hate images, and threatening language
Things to know before sharing others' personal info amid coronavirus outbreak
The health department must continue performing its role and make that crucial call on what information is necessary to release to the public, says the National Privacy Commission

Asia deploys innovative, if invasive, tech to curb virus
Countries such as South Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore make use of high-tech solutions to track the coronavirus
Google and Tinder probed over use of data in EU
Regulators check if the companies have a 'valid legal basis for processing' user data
NPC suspends Grab's selfie, audio, video recording systems
The National Privacy Commission says Grab 'did not sufficiently identify and assess the risks posed by these systems on the rights and freedoms' of its passengers

China slams Xiaomi, tech giants for app privacy violations
China, which amasses its own collection of personal data, has recently tightened its scrutiny of companies that gather data from consumers
Facebook says investigating data exposure of 267M users
A website called Comparitech reports that the database was made available for download last week on an online hacker forum that apparently belonged to a crime group
Facebook says ready for new California privacy law
The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) will give internet users the right to see what data big tech companies collect about them and with whom it is shared
TikTok sued in U.S. over alleged China data transfer
A class-action lawsuit claims the app secretly vacuumed up and transferred private data to China in vast quantities
DLSU pioneers masters program on data protection in 2020
The program will be for data protection officers and compliance, legal, and information security professionals, says De La Salle University

Tech firms react to netizens' digital privacy concerns
A slew of tech entrepreneurs are bidding to turn growing consciousness about the problem of online privacy abuses into a money-making industry

Documents show Facebook controlling competitors with user data – report
The documents show, for example, how Amazon received special data access after purchasing advertising on Facebook while an app called MessageMe was denied data after growing so large it became a competitor
California says Facebook impeding privacy probe
Facebook has failed to provide subpoenaed documents, says California's attorney general
Snowden warns of Web giants' 'irresistible power'
'The problem is not data protection, it's data collection' and the blind faith that internet users must have in the internet's masters, says whistleblower Ed Snowden
'Antidrone' system forces trespassing drones to land or return to owner
When a drone is detected by the system, it sends out an interference beam that jams the drone’s connection, forcing it to return to its owner or slowly descend from its point
National Privacy Commission bans 26 online lenders
These bans are the result of the improper use and processing of personal data by those companies, which are accused of publicly shaming borrowers late on their repayments

NPC employees rally behind Liboro amid bullying complaint
National Privacy Commission Employees Association says the complaint against Privacy Commissioner Raymund Liboro is 'not representative of the views, thoughts, and opinions of the majority' of NPC employees

Privacy group finds alleged vulnerabilities in MyPhone MyA2
Cheap phones may be undermining your privacy, Britain's Privacy International says in new case study

Millions of patient medical records freely accessible online
Some 16 million records are available 'unprotected on the internet and available to anyone with basic computer expertise,' reports say
Almost entire population of Ecuador has online data leaked
The breach exposes citizens' full names, dates and places of birth, education levels, phone numbers and national identity card numbers
Fintech firms adopt code of conduct after spate of online shaming incidents
Financial technology trade association FinTechAlliance.ph seeks to rub out abusive collection practices and excessive disbursement of loans which result in heavy debt
Pia Wurtzbach greeted me a happy birthday, and it was scarier than you think
Are targeted ads and algorithms getting too close for comfort? One writer's run-in with Miss Universe just might convince you.

Online lending execs face charges for shaming users, data privacy violations
The National Privacy Commission says these lending firms targeted 'the privacy of persons, practically making a profit out of people's fear of losing face and dignity'
400 million Facebook users' phone numbers exposed in privacy lapse – reports
Reports say an exposed server stored 419 million records on users across several databases – including 133 million US accounts, more than 50 million in Vietnam, and 18 million in Britain

Google to pay $170-million fine for sharing YouTube kids data
The settlement with the Federal Trade Commission and the New York state Attorney General is the largest amount in a case involving the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, a 1998 federal law

Facial recognition becomes opt-in feature at Facebook
With the change, people will not get automatic tagging suggestions unless a user turns on face recognition on the platform
Philippines helms 1st ASEAN Data Protection and Privacy Forum
The aim of the meeting is to share knowledge and develop a framework for cooperative enforcement of data privacy laws and cross-border data flow

Facebook launches tool to let users control data flow
Facebook's new tool allows users to control data that it receives from other apps and websites about their online activity
Silicon Valley wants to read your mind – here's why you should be worried
Elon Musk's Neuralink is developing a brain implant to connect people's minds directly to a computer. These mind-reading systems could affect our privacy, security, identity, equality, and personal safety.

Why Facebook’s new ‘privacy cop’ is doomed to fail
Facebook is required to have an 'outside assessor' to monitor the handling of user data, but one professor says this 'privacy cop' faces an uphill battle to actually be effective
U.S. slaps $5 billion fine, curbs on Facebook in privacy probe
The Federal Trade Commission says the penalty is the largest ever imposed on any company for violating consumers' privacy and one of the largest penalties ever assessed by the US government for any violation

FAST FACTS: FaceApp data privacy concerns
An app that makes users look older creates some privacy concerns as it stores selfies on its server, and because of its origin

$5B U.S. fine set for Facebook on privacy probe – report
The report says that the deal would be the largest penalty ever imposed by the FTC for privacy violations, though it still needs approval from the Justice Department before it is finalized.