Wireless medical devices need greater security than, say, an internet-connected fridge. We need to ensure that information provided by the devices is safeguarded and that control of the devices – implantable or otherwise – is not compromised. Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration must learn to deal with software and cybersecurity, rather than simply bits of metal and plastic. Read More
Upcoming Event in Brisbane – Attacks on Encryption: Privacy, Civil Society and the Surveillance State
Join the Australian Privacy Foundation, Digital Rights Watch Australia, Future Wise, and the QUT Crime and Justice Research Centre at ThoughtWorks Brisbane office for a critical conversation about surveillance politics, international dimensions of privacy law, the contested moral legitimacy of encryption backdoors, encryption for journalists and current civil society campaigns in this area. Read More
Police want to read encrypted messages, but they already have significant power to access our data
Many Australians are unaware of current police and intelligence powers when it comes to accessing our data. As the government lobbies for new levels of access, that needs to change. Read More
Poisoned water holes: the legal dangers of dark web policing
As police operations move into online environments, new rules for digital evidence collection and exchange must be developed to assist prosecutions while preserving due process and human rights. Without proper checks, police could have significantly expanded scope to search homes and computers around the world. Read More
Indian Supreme Court rules that individual privacy is a fundamental right. Another jurisdiction acknowledges a right to privacy… but still not Australia
The Indian Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision of Justice K S Puttaswamy (Retd) & anor v Union of India & ors, has today found that individual privacy is a fundamental right. It is a comprehensive decision running to 547 pages and 5 years in gestation. Even so India has recognised such a right ahead of Australia. Read More
Privacy and the postal plebiscite: Can the Australian Bureau of Statistics be trusted with voters’ data?
On 9 August it was announced that the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) would run a non-binding and voluntary postal survey on the issue of same-sex marriage. By putting the Australian Bureau of Statistics in charge of the upcoming same-sex marriage postal survey, the Australian Government is failing to learn from its previous privacy blunders. Read More
Privacy Climate Change
Privacy storms have increased in frequency and intensity, and it’s getting worse.
“Privacy underpins people’s lives. It’s not going away. Technology continues to heap threats on it. Organisations keep on blindly applying those technologies. People are getting fed up with these things. It’s increasingly costing business money, and government agencies trust”. Read More
The Australian government is importing spyware – Is that legal?
An Australian Tax Office (ATO) staffer recently leaked on LinkedIn a step-by-step guide to hacking a smartphone.
The documents, which have since been removed, indicate that the ATO has access to Universal Forensic Extraction software made by the Israeli company Cellebrite. This technology is part of a commercial industry that profits from bypassing the security features of devices to gain access to private data. Read More
APF Newsletter 2 July 2017
Dear APF members,This announcement is primarily about the recent changes on the APF board, and some upcoming events. 1. Recent changesOver the past year, the ongoing renewal of Board composition and appointments has continued. Chair Kat Lane, Vice-Chair David Lindsay, long-standing Secretary/Treasurer Mark Walkom, and a couple of other members retired, and (Prof) Deborah Upton… Read More
Advocates from five nations demand their governments respect strong encryption
Today, 83 organisations and individuals from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and the USA sent letters to their respective governments insisting that government officials defend strong encryption. The letter comes on the heels of a meeting of the “Five Eyes” ministerial meeting in Ottawa, Canada earlier this week. Read More