ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom. Sign up for The Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox . Following the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade, advocates for privacy and reproductive health have expressed fears that data from period-tracking apps could be used to find people who’ve had abortions. They have a point. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, the federal patient privacy law known as HIPAA, does not apply to most apps that track menstrual cycles, just as it doesn’t apply to many health care apps and at-home test kits. In 2015, ProPublica reported how HIPAA, passed in 1996, has not kept up with changes in technology and does not cover at-home paternity tests, fitness trackers, or health apps. The story featured a woman who purchased an at-home paternity test at a local pharmacy and went online to get the results. A part of the lab’s website address caught her attention as … [Read more...] about Federal patient privacy law doesn’t cover most period-tracking apps
Interns run to deliver supreme court decision
End-to-end encryption’s central role in modern self-defense
A number of course-altering US Supreme Court decisions last month—including the reversal of a constitutional right to abortion and the overturning of a century-old limit on certain firearms permits—have activists and average Americans around the country anticipating the fallout for rights and privacy as abortion “trigger laws,” expanded access to concealed carry permits, and other regulations are expected to take effect in some states. And as people seeking abortions scramble to protect their digital privacy and researchers plumb the relationship between abortion speech and tech regulations , encryption proponents have a clear message: Access to end-to-end encrypted services in the US is more important than ever. Studies, including those commissioned by tech giants like Meta, have repeatedly and definitively shown that access to encrypted communications is a human rights issue in the digital age. End-to-end encryption makes your messages, phone calls, and video chats … [Read more...] about End-to-end encryption’s central role in modern self-defense
‘Them’s The Breaks’ – Boris Blames ‘Westminster Herd Instinct’ for Ouster
Announcing his resignation in a speech from Downing Street on Thursday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson attempted to blame his removal from office on the “Westminster Herd Instinct” rather than his own failings as a leader. Despite desperate attempts to cling onto power, Mr Johnson was forced to resign after a record 59 government aids and cabinet ministers resigned following the sexual impropriety scandal involving the PM’s former deputy chief whip Christopher Pincher, whom Johnson had promoted to the role despite previously being informed of sex pest allegations made against the then-Tory MP. Yet in defiant fashion, Mr Johnson cast blame to the political system in London. “As we have seen at Westminster, the herd instinct is powerful and when the herd moves, it moves. And my friends, in politics, no one is even remotely indispensable,” Johnson declared. “I know that there will be many people who are relieved, and perhaps quite a few will be disappointed. And I want you to know … [Read more...] about ‘Them’s The Breaks’ – Boris Blames ‘Westminster Herd Instinct’ for Ouster
Shutdown of US government websites appears bafflingly arbitrary
At midnight ET on Tuesday morning, the American federal government shut down operations as a result of the Congressional budget impasse. Currently there's no immediate end in sight, so a mish-mash of government agencies are open and closed. National parks and museums are off, but mail is still being delivered to American households. On Saturday, Ars took a quick look at which US government agency websites would be going dark during the shutdown. Those included the Federal Trade Commission, the Library of Congress, and the National Park Service sites. They all planned to go dark and have done so. The federal court system is remaining open , as it has a financial reserve that should last around two weeks. Similarly, the United States Patent and Trademark Office could stay open for approximately four weeks. However, we have now conducted a more thorough examination of 50-plus different .gov websites. In the chart below, we have highlighted whether they are up or down, and … [Read more...] about Shutdown of US government websites appears bafflingly arbitrary