- Data Privacy Week: Take Control of Your Data
Happy Data Privacy Week! This global celebration commemorates the first legally binding international treaty on data protection, established by the European Council in 1981.
This week and every week, DuckDuckGo makes it easy to take back your privacy online. Why not take a few minutes and make sure you're following these simple steps to protect yourself? (Hint: downloading the DuckDuckGo browser is a great start.) Already using our browser? Consider adding our optional three-in-one subscription service, Privacy Pro. It helps you limit data brokers’ access to your personal information and secures your internet connection with our VPN — all in one place. Sign up at duckduckgo.com/pro
In the news...
- Google Privacy Settings You Should Change Right Now [consumerreports.org]
Still using Google? (It's okay, we forgive you.) "The vast majority of [Google's] money comes from ads, and it’s built an empire by collecting data on its users. That information doesn’t just get used for marketing; your data is harnessed to improve algorithms, build new services, train artificial intelligence, and a lot more. Completely avoiding the company’s data collection machinery may not be possible, but it’s easy to place some limits on how Google gathers and uses your data." Consumer Reports breaks down exactly how to fine-tune your settings, from location history to ad personalization and more.
- Talking Data 2025: A Series of Conversations About How to Keep Your Data Private and Safe! [staysafeonline.org]
Want to celebrate Data Privacy Week with the professionals? The nonprofit National Cybersecurity Alliance is hosting a series of free online talks every day this week. Today's talk will help viewers make sense of all the privacy legislation you've seen in the news. Previous sessions, available on demand, cover privacy and AI, digging into the privacy settings on your apps, and more.
- Online Privacy Policies Can Be 90,000 Words Long. Here Are 3 Ways to Simplify Them [theconversation.com]
"Think about the last app you downloaded. Did you read every word of the associated privacy policy? If so, did you fully understand it?" If you said “no” to either of these questions...don’t blame yourself too much. Privacy policies are often long...and hard to understand. And there may be hundreds that apply to the average internet user. (One for each website, app, device, or even car you use)." The Conversation has some ideas for companies who want to do things differently, including shorter, visuals-based privacy policies and ethics reviews to weed out policies that were "misleading, lacked transparency, or simply failed to offer users meaningful options."
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