#privacy
8 stories taggedprivacy.
WhatsApp Starts Username Reservations, Finally Decoupling Identity From Phone Numbers
The optional handle system lets users be reachable without exposing an E.164 number — a meaningful identifier change for a 3-billion-user directory.
Google to Harvest UK and EU IP Addresses for Ad Targeting Starting August 2026
The same signal Google once branded a privacy red flag becomes a measurement tool, just as the ICO sharpens its consent rules.
UK's Under-16 Social Media Ban Turns Every Signup Into an Identity Checkpoint
Spring 2027 rules will force ID uploads or face scans at account creation. The IAM bill comes due — and so does the breach surface.
US Surveillance Capabilities Temporarily Halted by Congressional Inaction
Congressional impasse leaves Section 702 in limbo, halting some warrantless surveillance.
Starmer's Device-Scan Mandate Puts Enterprise Encryption in the Crosshairs
The UK Prime Minister gave tech firms three months to build image-filtering controls into every device. Security leaders say the architecture required would gut encryption protections, create fresh exfiltration paths, and hand future governments a surveillance tool the current one insists it doesn't want.
Meta Expands Off-Platform Data Use to Feed Ranking and AI Chatbot Replies
Activity shared by third-party businesses — already feeding ad targeting — will now shape what users see in their feeds and how Meta AI answers their questions.
FROST: A Browser-Only Side Channel That Reads Your SSD to Guess What You're Doing
Graz University researchers show that JavaScript timing alone can fingerprint websites and applications by measuring contention on a victim's solid-state drive.
Authorities Shut Down First VPN Over Criminal Ties
A European crackdown takes out a VPN aiding crime, but raises wider privacy concerns.