Keyword: commerce

NY Times: Police Are Using Phone Tracking as a Routine Tool

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NY Times: Police Are Using Phone Tracking as a Routine Tool

From the article: “The practice has become big business for cellphone companies, too, with a handful of carriers marketing a catalog of “surveillance fees” to police departments to determine a suspect’s location, trace phone calls and texts or provide other services. Some departments log dozens of traces a month for both emergencies and routine investigations.”

commerce | identity | security | surveillance | youth

The Informational is Spatial: Understanding the Geoeconomics of Cybersecurity in Youth Environments

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On Tuesday, 02/28/2012 @ 4PM, I’ll be presenting “The Informational is Spatial” at the Association of American Geographers’ paper session on “Geographies of Surveillance and Security 3: Data, Discourses, and Affects” (session organized by David Murakami Wood and Steve Graham). … Continue reading →

NY Times: How Companies Learn Your Secrets

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NY Times: How Companies Learn Your Secrets

From the article: “The reason Target can snoop on our shopping habits is that, over the past two decades, the science of habit formation has become a major field of research in neurology and psychology departments at hundreds of major medical centers and universities, as well as inside extremely well financed corporate labs. “It’s like an arms race to hire statisticians nowadays,” said Andreas Weigend, the former chief scientist at Amazon.com.”

censorship | commerce | governance | participation | property | surveillance

Understanding the Architectures of SOPA & PIPA

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Two controversial pieces of legislation that would significantly alter the architecture of the internet are currently being debated in congress: the Stop Online Privacy Act (SOPA) in the U.S. House of Representatives, and the Protect IP Act (PIPA) in the … Continue reading →

Betabeat: As Banks Start Nosing Around Facebook and Twitter, the Wrong Friends Might Sink Your Credit

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Betabeat: As Banks Start Nosing Around Facebook and Twitter, the Wrong Friends Might Sink Your Credit

From the article: “A new wave of startups is working on algorithms gathering data for banks from the web of associations on the internet known as “the social graph,” in which people are “nodes” connected to each other by “edges.” Banks are already using social media to befriend their customers, and increasingly, their customers’ friends. The specifics are still shaking out, but the gist is that eventually, social media will account for at least the tippy-top of the mountain of data banks keep on their customers.”

WSJ: Surveillance Company Says It Sent Fake iTunes, Flash Updates

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WSJ: Surveillance Company Says It Sent Fake iTunes, Flash Updates

From the article: “The Wall Street Journal unveiled on Saturday the “Surveillance Catalog” – an online database containing highlights from surveillance industry marketing documents. The documents show dozens of companies making and selling everything from “massive intercept” gear that can gather all Internet communications in a country to “hacking” tools that allow governments to break into people’s computers.”

British Foreign Secretary On E-Commerce and Blurred Geographies

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From British Foreign Secretary William Hague’s 10/18/2011 guest editorial in Spiegel :

Web-based industry has already become a critical part of our economies. The UK’s industry is already worth £100 billion, accounting for 8% of our total GDP, and is forecast to grow at 10 percent over the next four years. Globally, e-commerce sees $8 trillion change hands each year …

Our reliance on cyber blurs geographical boundaries, breaks down traditional cultural and religious divides, brings families and friends closer together and enables contact between those who share common interests or concerns.

commerce | governance | privacy | quotes | surveillance

Google CEO on Privacy, and Natural Surveillance

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Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher recently interviewed Google CEO Eric Schmidt at D9. The whole thing is worth a watch, but two statements by Schmidt were truly exceptional. The first is his definition of privacy, the second is his framing … Continue reading →

commerce | governance | participation | privacy | property

Informationell Deutschland

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In preparation for the 2011 Graduate Center-Humboldt University Summer Seminar that I’ll be participating in, I thought it would useful to take stock of some of the recent informational happenings in Germany: Germany is now the largest market for video … Continue reading →