MakeUseOf: “Data brokerage is the underground economy that powers online advertising today. They follow us so much everywhere online; it’s hard to believe that this practice of buying and selling our data is even legal. The real-world equivalent of this practice is someone stalking you 24/7, noting your every move, with little or no consequence.… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: E-Commerce
Amazon’s Dark Secret: It Has Failed to Protect Your Data
Wired – “Voyeurs. Sabotaged accounts. Backdoor schemes. For years, the retail giant has handled your information less carefully than it handles your packages…According to internal documents reviewed by Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting and WIRED, Amazon’s vast empire of customer data—its metastasizing record of what you search for, what you buy, what shows… Continue Reading
Why so many people undercharge for their work
Vox: “How much is this worth?” It seems like a simple enough question. If the question is about a product, it likely comes with a price tag; if it’s a service, chances are it has an accompanying rate. As a customer, you either think it’s worth the price listed or not. When a customer answers… Continue Reading
Best services for selling your old gear
PCWorld: “Replacing an old device is straightforward—you just pick out a new one and hand over some cash. Getting money for your moderately older or unused tech can be that easy, too. Instead of using online marketplaces to sell your tech, you can turn to a buyback service instead. They provide a quote based on… Continue Reading
How to duck spam and data breaches with throwaway numbers, email addresses and credit cards
Washington Post – “At the Help Desk, we’ve recommended “burners” — or prepaid phones not tied to your name — as a last-ditch option for the privacy conscious. But you can also spin up virtual burner email addresses, phone numbers and credit card numbers online to stop companies from collecting and sharing your real information.… Continue Reading
Malicious shopping websites surge in number in advance of Black Friday
Tech Republic – More than 5,300 malicious websites have popped up each week, the highest since the start of 2021, says Check Point Research. “The 2021 holiday season is a busy time for people as they get ready to shop, both at physical stores and at online sites. But of course, this is also a… Continue Reading
Mozilla guide to help you shop for safe, secure connected products
CNET – “Santa isn’t alone in keeping an eye on you this holiday season. Nearly a third of the 151 popular connected gifts analyzed by the Mozilla Foundation as part of its annual “Privacy Not Included” shopping guide didn’t meet basic standards for digital security and privacy, the digital rights group said Tuesday. Among the… Continue Reading
You Are the Object of a Secret Extraction Operation
New York Times Opinion, Dr. Shoshana Zuboff, professor emeritus at Harvard Business School and the author of The Age of Surveillance Capitalism – “Facebook is not just any corporation. It reached trillion-dollar status in a single decade by applying the logic of what I call surveillance capitalism — an economic system built on the secret… Continue Reading
Bipartisan bill would force Big Tech to offer algorithm-free feeds, search results
Ars Technica: “A bipartisan group of lawmakers in the House of Representatives introduced a bill that would force social media platforms to allow people to use the site without algorithms that filter or prioritize the content that users see. The bill joins a similar act proposed in the Senate, and together, the bills suggest that… Continue Reading
10 Privacy Settings Every Amazon User Should Enable Right Now
Lifehacker – “Amazon is so deeply entrenched in our lives that we all have a ton of info connected with the company. Even if you somehow haven’t directly used Amazon for shopping, you probably have used a Kindle, an Echo, or simply asked Alexa a question or two. If you’ve had a brush with Amazon… Continue Reading
LLRX Articles and Columns for October 2021
Articles and Columns for October 2021 Employing My Law Librarian Skills on an Uncertain Road – As we all navigate through the era of Covid, it is critical to learn from the myriad other medical challenges that many Americans, as well as our professional colleagues, are facing separate from the pandemic. Taryn L. Rucinski, Supervisory… Continue Reading
Amazon Puts Its Own “Brands” First Above Better-Rated Products
New on LLRX – Amazon Puts Its Own “Brands” First Above Better-Rated Products – Investigative Reporter Adrianne Jeffries and Investigative Data Journalist Leon Yin document how the online giant gives a leg up to hundreds of house brand and exclusive products that most people don’t know are connected to Amazon. Continue Reading
