[ DuckDuckGo Privacy Weekly ] For Oct 22, 2020

• Your Technology Is Tracking You. Take These Steps For Better Online Privacy [npr.org]
  “The more I understood how my info was being collected, shared and sold, the more I wanted to protect my privacy,” says Laurel Wamsley. Her tips:
  • Practice good security hygiene
  • Use a private browser (like DuckDuckGo)
  • Use encrypted messaging apps (like Signal)
• Students Are Rebelling Against Eye-Tracking Exam Surveillance Tools [vice.com]
  “We must do better than subjecting our students to surveillance and violations of their privacy… better than allowing algorithmic policing through biometric surveillance as the new normal.” Why students are rejecting surveillance tools.
• Locking Down Social Media [eff.org]
  This quick course from the EFF teaches you how to protect your privacy on social media. It covers:
  • Identifying what info to protect and changes to make to do so
  • The various ways commonly used social media platforms describe important privacy settings
• Augmented Reality Must Have Augmented Privacy [eff.org]
  “AR is location tracking on steroids.” As augmented reality inches toward becoming an everyday reality, Katitza Rodríguez and Kurt Opsahl urge that strong privacy regulations and privacy-by-design engineering practices are put in place.
• How do you talk online privacy with kids? [tampabay.com]
  In a study of elementary schoolchildren, 20% had given their phone number to strangers online! Pat Craven from the Center for Cyber Safety and Education has tips to help parents & educators instill good privacy habits including:
  • Discuss what personal info is
  • Show interest in tech & games

Our thoughts

A statement from Gabriel Weinberg, our CEO and founder, on the recently announced U.S. Department of Justice antitrust case against Google:

“The US Department of Justice is saying in no uncertain terms that Google used, and continues to use, anti-competitive tactics to maintain its search monopoly. While Google’s anti-competitive practices hurt companies like us, the negative impact on society and democracy wrought by their surveillance business model is far worse. People should be able to opt out in one click.

Historians will hopefully look at this as the beginning of the end of the surveillance economy. But the only way that happens is through action that achieves meaningful results, and we are in support of such efforts by regulators across the globe.”

Proudly Private,



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