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Daily Archives: March 4, 2021

You got a vaccine. Walgreens got your data.

Vox – Retail pharmacies are now giving out Covid-19 vaccines, and some of them are using it as an opportunity to profit off your information. “… If you schedule a Covid-19 vaccine appointment with major pharmacy chains such as Walgreens or CVS, your data may be used to bulk up those companies’ own significant marketing apparatuses, giving them a source of income even beyond what they’re paid for administering the vaccines and whatever you might decide to buy while you’re in the store to get one. In some cases, you’re forced to make an account with the store to get a vaccine at all, and deactivating your mandatory account after the fact isn’t easy….When you go to the Walgreens vaccine scheduler, you can find out if there are vaccines available in your area, but you can’t see where and when appointments are available — let alone schedule one — without first making a Walgreens account. And that means giving Walgreens the information it considers necessary to make that account, including your name, date of birth, phone number, address, gender (male or female are the only options), and email address. You’re also automatically signing up to receive marketing emails, which you can only opt out of later through your account settings. Oh, and you’re encouraged to join the myWalgreens loyalty program, which gives Walgreens even more data about your purchases and automatically signs you up for even more marketing emails…Walgreens, for instance, will use your data to target ads to you on its website, on social media, and in marketing emails — as detailed in Walgreens’ own privacy policy…”

‘We’re Vaccinated. Everyone Wants to Visit. Now What?’

Wired: “…More than half the old folks in the United States have been vaccinated against Covid-19—65 percent of people 75 years of age or older. That’s great news. It also means that more and more people are trying to figure out what happens next. Earlier this week, news leaked that the Centers for Disease Control… Continue Reading

How banks and banking customers can protect themselves against financial crimes

Tech Republic: “Amid the coronavirus pandemic, 2020 saw a quick and abrupt transition to digital banking and commerce, a boon for banks and customers alike. But that shift also triggered a host of schemes and scams from cybercriminals eager to take advantage of the new environment. A financial crime report released Thursday by fraud prevention… Continue Reading

Joe Biden has picked 58 nominees to fill key roles in his administration so far

Washington Post – We are tracking 791 government positions among about 1,250 that require Senate confirmation. Presidents are required to fill roughly 4,000 politically appointed positions in the executive branch and independent agencies, including more than 1,250 that require Senate confirmation. The Washington Post and the Partnership for Public Service are tracking nominees for roughly… Continue Reading

The Era of Audio Creators Has Arrived

The New York Times – The Era of Audio Creators Has Arrived: “Audio creators are a new kind of influencer, born of the meteoric rise of the audio-only chat app Clubhouse. Together, they are pulling in millions of weekly listeners and building online followings. Now, with Clubhouse booming and other social apps, like Twitter, taking… Continue Reading

How to use storytelling strategies to get your emails answered

Fast Company: Our brains love stories. When you use storytelling to share information and ideas, they often stand out and are more memorable to the listener. Stories also engage visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners because they often include graphics, the spoken word, and experiences or feelings. You may think storytelling would come in handy if… Continue Reading

NFTs, explained

The Verge: “There’s nothing like an explosion of blockchain news to leave you thinking, “Um… what’s going on here?” That’s the feeling I’ve experienced while reading about Grimes getting millions of dollars for NFTs or about Nyan Cat being sold as one. You might be wondering: what is an NFT, anyhow? After literal hours of… Continue Reading

This is Our House!” A Preliminary Assessment of the Capitol Hill Siege Participant

George Washington University Program on Extremism / Top Level Findings – “We released a new report coauthored jointly by our staff, titled “This is Our House!” A Preliminary Assessment of the Capitol Hill Siege Participants.” The report offers new details about the individuals alleged to have stormed the nation’s Capitol, as well as a number… Continue Reading

How to Make Your Hashtags More Reader-Friendly

Lifehacker: “Communicating in the language of hashtags is an annoyingly universal aspect of social media. But if you’re using hashtags on your Instagram posts, tweets, or Facebook status updates, you should make sure they’re readable for people with visual and cognitive disabilities.Hashtags weren’t designed to be easily read. They’re basically a tool for cataloguing content… Continue Reading

Levin, Senator Jack Reed Introduce Legislation to Modernize Library Infrastructure

Rep. Andy Levin: “[On March 3, 2021], Congressman Andy Levin (D-MI) teamed up with Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) to introduce the House companion of S.127, the Build America’s Libraries Act, which provides long-term improvements to library facilities and updates library infrastructure, prioritizing libraries in predominantly low-income and underserved communities. The Build America’s Libraries Act authorizes… Continue Reading

Are all your productivity tools making you feel…unproductive?

Fortune – “Here’s how to manage the deluge…Before COVID-19, the average knowledge worker in the U.S. used 10 apps at least 25 times per workday, according to a study by Asana, which helps teams track and organize their work. Now, with a record number of Americans working from home, the number of apps has ballooned… Continue Reading