All articles tagged with #data harvesting
A security firm uncovered that the Urban VPN Proxy Chrome extension, with over six million users, secretly intercepts and sells users' AI chat conversations, including sensitive data, to third parties, despite its claims of privacy. Users are advised to uninstall such extensions and review privacy policies to protect their data.
Research reveals that four popular browser extensions, including Urban VPN Proxy, have been secretly harvesting and transmitting users' AI chat conversations to third parties, despite privacy claims. These extensions inject scripts into AI platforms like ChatGPT and Meta AI, capturing and sending chat data without user consent, raising significant privacy concerns. Users are advised to uninstall these extensions immediately to protect their data.
A study by Mozilla's *Privacy Not Included project reveals that AI romantic chatbots, including popular apps like Replika and Chai, harvest highly personal information and almost all of them sell or share the data they collect. These chatbots violate privacy in "disturbing new ways," collecting details such as sexual health information and medication use. Additionally, they use an average of 2,663 trackers per minute, with one app calling a whopping 24,354 trackers in just one minute of use. The apps also make questionable claims about improving mental health, despite distancing themselves from providing healthcare or medical services in their terms and services.
The Mozilla Foundation has assessed the privacy policies and practices of 25 automakers and found that all of them failed its consumer privacy tests. The foundation warned that car manufacturers may collect and exploit deeply personal data, such as sexual activity, immigration status, race, facial expressions, weight, health, and genetic information. Some automakers may share or sell this information to third parties, including the government or law enforcement. Nissan was highlighted as one of the worst offenders, as it claims it can infer drivers' intelligence and sell that assessment to third parties. Mozilla urged consumers to stay away from Nissan's cars, apps, and connected services.
The European Union's highest court has upheld a decision by German antitrust regulators that Meta (formerly Facebook) abused its dominance in social media by harvesting user data for personalized ads. The ruling allows Germany's top antitrust enforcer to block Meta from combining data collected across its platforms without explicit user permission, undermining Meta's business model. The decision sets a precedent for tougher regulation of Big Tech and gives EU authorities a legal basis to examine data-collection practices that could undermine competition. The ruling is expected to influence other antitrust authorities in the EU and has implications for other online platforms that collect data for digital advertising. Meta is evaluating the decision and will need to make changes to comply with the ruling in Germany.