April Fools! Even though today is a day for jokes and pranks, today’s newsletter is anything but that. This month’s news roundup contains interesting stories. Even though this is a newsletter that focuses on online privacy, it’s important to also be aware of privacy issues that are happening offline as well. Here’s all the privacy-related news that I came across in March, both online and offline.
1.) Proton now has hide-my-alias for mail - Link
2.) New Twitter/X feature may leak your IP address - Link
3.) Proton will offer FREE VPN in countries with histories of censorship before elections - Link
4.) Spain temporarily blocks Sam Altman's Worldcoin due to privacy concerns - Link / Additional Link
5.) Apple, Meta, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and TikTok must now comply with EU's DMA law - Link
6.) Meta urged by U.S. states to crackdown on scammers - Link
7.) Signal's President Meredith Whittaker on anti-encryption efforts - Link
8.) Flo Health App Lawsuit that says they shared user data will face Canadian Court - Link
9.) Microsoft confirms "Midnight Blizzard" stole code and secrets - Link
10.) Apple will not allow third-party app store updates if you leave the EU for over a month - Link
11.) Data Brokers are selling health information, including reproductive health and children’s data - Link
12.) Ad-tracking industry faces another setback in the EU - Link
13.) Your car maybe selling you out to data brokers and insurance companies - Link / Additional Link
14.) Tuta Mail now supports quantum-resistant encryption - Link
15.) Airbnb bans indoor cameras - Link
16.) EU watchdog declares that European Commission's use of Microsoft services breached privacy laws - Link
17.) Nijta, a French startup, wants to protect voice privacy from AI - Link
18.) Proton is not facing a ban in India despite media reports - Link / Link to Original Story
19.) U.S. Tiktok ban: Lawmakers should pass strong federal privacy laws instead - Link
20.) FTC is investigating Reddit in regards to AI deal - Link
21.) Apple is reportedly making an AI deal with Google - Link
22.) Kate Middleton's medical records might have been breached - Link
23.) France Travail, a French employment service, had a data breach and affected 43 million people - Link / Additional Link
24.) Glassdoor now add real names to profiles without users consent - Link
25.) U.S. federal authorities ordered Google to hand over some YouTube user data - Link
26.) Apple, Meta, and Google under investigation in regards to the E.U. DMA law - Link
27.) The Big Issue, a U.K. street newspaper supporting the homeless, gets attacked by a ransomware group - Link
28.) Meta reportedly spied on Snapchat to see how the site worked - Link
29.) Lego mugshots leads to questions on privacy and policing - Link
30.) Mozilla to drop Onerep partnership due to provider's ties with people search sites - Link
31.) San Jose is training AI to detect homeless encampments - Link
32.) California to deploy 480 new surveillance cameras in Oakland and surrounding freeways - Link
33.) CEO of OneRep, a data removal company, has a history of founding people search services - Link
34.) AT&T looking into a leak that lead to millions of customers data being exposed on the dark web - Link
35.) Maryland is set on passing a data privacy law that focuses on data minimization - Link
36.) Security vulnerabilities in Dormakaba locks, which are used in hotel rooms, can be hacked - Link
37.) Florida Governor DeSantis signs bill banning social media for individuals that are under 14 - Link / Additional Link
38.) The Tor project new WebTunnel bridge to evade censorship - Link
If you have any other privacy related news that you saw in March, feel free to leave them in the comments.
Until Next Time,
Monique 📰
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