How App Companies Are Turning Privacy into a Commodity

How App Companies Are Turning Privacy into a Commodity

Omlet is a new app that the writer says is part of an emerging "privacy economy". The app is an instant-messaging platform that doesn't centralize user data, rather allowing the user to control where it is stored. It seems to be part of the monetization of premium privacy devices/apps. The writer takes a pretty strong stance against this direction, arguing that any amount (however nominal) is too much because it makes privacy a "privilege".

Dianne Feinstein Publicly Calls Out the CIA

Earlier on today, Dianne Feinstein, the chairwoman of the Senate intelligence committee (SIC) accused the CIA of a host activities that are potentially criminal and unconstitutional. These activities relate to the cover-ups and intimidation aimed at senate investigators looking into CIA post 9/11 detention and interrogation programs. This incident in its very public nature is an indicator of the tensions between the SIC and the CIA. After the Snowdon revelations and this incident, I wonder if we will be seeing some changes in terms of increased government oversight of intelligence.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/mar/11/feinstein-accuses-cia-intimidation-torture-report

You can watch the speech at the New York Times websites.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/12/us/cia-accused-of-illegally-searching-computers-used-by-senate-committee.html?hp&_r=0

Assignment: Abstract

The next assignment is to write an abstract for your paper. I know your paper is not completed yet, but it can be helpful to have an abstract as an elevator pitch for people who are curious.

A good guide to writing abstracts is online here, courtesy of UNC Chapel Hill. You can find others kicking around. The book by Volokh (recommended for you as you continue your legal career) contains a section on writing abstracts.

Format:

Single page, consisting of:

• Heading, with your name, date and course title
• Abstract, consisting of 200 words (max) that describe your paper.

Due date is March 19th. 

Assignment: Bibliography

Hi all,

Sorry for the delay, as I was without internet for much of last week, and then taken out with jet lag coming back.

Michael mentioned that you should hand in a bibliography pertaining to your essay. The purpose of this assignment is really to keep you on track, making sure that you are putting sufficient effort into research at this stage of the game.

The format is simple: a PDF with your name, the date, the course number, as well as a list of references that you are using in your paper.

I would aim for 15-20 for this. It does not have to cover every reference used in your paper, nor does it have to be in McGill guide format. What is most important is that you have a list of references that show that you have been doing some research.

Try to hand it in to us by Wednesday the 12th. If you are late a few days, that is perfectly fine.

US Military and Sex Offenders

Really interesting application of in-class discussion...

Last week we all spoke about the pros and cons, or at least the privacy interests affected by, creating a list of registered sex offenders that would make their names and home addresses more publicly accessible. Canada has not yet passed any such legislation, but we know that such a thing exists in the United States. On that note, the US creates distinction between the privacy interests of the accused civilian sex offenders and those in an authoritative military position.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/military-sexual-assault-bill-heads-senate-vote-22795087?utm_source=Daily+Skimm&utm_campaign=730e5357ab-daily_skimm&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_74efee6205-730e5357ab-24227589

Summary: The US Senate blocked a change to legislation that would have stripped commanders of their military authority to prosecute rapes and various other crimes. The proposed bill called for reform by instead bringing these charges before a military courts-martial, to be handled by military trial lawyers. This which would have allowed the charges to be decided upon in a manner that is independent of the military chain on command

Context: This is obviously taking place in the US, which means that it isn’t directly applicable to Canadian law. However, this is still an interesting question about the Canadian theme of balancing privacy interests against widespread social impact or social good.

Relevance to privacy: Essentially, individuals involved in the military who are convicted of some sexual offence are still subject to the same sex-registry rules as normal offenders. However, the process by which charges are laid against them is markedly different, and there is speculation that this has a negative effect on how many charges are actually brought forward. In dealing with these issues internally, privacy interests of individuals in a military position are supposedly protected from the consequence of losing their authority upon accusation, since if these issues are dealt with in an independent court, the case would be more publicly-available and aspersions could be cast on their character regardless of whether they are convicted. Authority and respect are arguably essential to their position in the military.

The main problem: Stricter privacy interests seem to be afforded to these military authorities than a civilian sex offender (at least until conviction, after which they would indeed added to the sex offender registry like any other convicted sex offender, and be stripped of their military standing). More worrisome is that the victims of these kinds of assaults are often reluctant to bring these claims forward because the chain of command is the very thing that has led to the violation of their trust. Therefore, the question hinges in the balance between the privacy interests of accused military authorities (by resorting to the military chain of command to hear claims of sexual assaults, rather than an external system) against the security of the supposed victims 

Questions to consider: When safety/security rights are being weighed against the privacy interests of others, should it matter whether the latter category is in a position of authority that is considered important for the safety of society in general? Is it ‘fair’ to provide these military authorities with greater initial privacy interests on the basis that their authority is an important constituent for continued public safety? 

Publishing Privacy Articles

If you are interested in publishing some of your work, consider sending it to the Ontario Bar Association's privacy newsletter:

"Call for Articles

Dear Privacy Law Section Member,

The OBA Privacy Law newsletter editor invites Privacy Law Section members and their colleagues to submit contributions to the newsletter. Contributions should be relevant to the practice of privacy law in Ontario. Contributions can take various forms, including, for example, reviews of legislation/case law, commentaries, discussions of recent developments, reviews of CLE events, and practice tips.
Please send contribution ideas or materials to editor, Bonnie Freedman.

Regards,

Bonnie Freedman | Privacy Law Section Newsletter Editor"

Omlet - an app free of data monetization

I found an article discussing how Stanford Ph.D. students have created an app called "Omlet" that allows for social networking without monetization of personal information. The app is a "distributed semantic file system" that decentralizes storage of information, minimizing control over the information by one party. This app was created as an alternative to Facebook and Whatsapp, who are known for monetizing data. This app seems pretty accessible in terms of cost and availability. Pursuant to our conversation last week on privacy as a luxury good and people paying money to protect their privacy, developments such as this one make me wonder if the public will happily embrace this app. It would allow for privacy without having to give up social connection. I'm interested in seeing where this app goes.

http://news.stanford.edu/news/2014/march/privacy-economy-app-031014.html