Could 2018 finally be the watershed year, when the narrative shifts against the surveillance economy?Image credit: Daniel von AppenOur computers and smart devices don’t leak our personal data. It’s sucked out of them by an infestation of parasite…

Stories abound of people who mentioned a subject while their phone was sitting idle, then got bombarded with online ads about that subject.Image credit: Alexandre GodreauIt may seem like an urban myth, but plenty of people are convinced that Facebook…

So-called “session replay scripts” not only record everything you type, they track every mouse movement, and even what you’re looking at on the web — including personal information.Image credit: Glenn Carstens-PetersSometimes privacy fears are…

A new Crikey series, edited by technology writer Stilgherrian.Image credit: Andrew GuanBefore she’s even awake, Susan is under surveillance.Her sleep tracker recorded a restless night, the third in a row. In a database, somewhere, she’s flagged as…

How do websites and apps make you buy or sign up for things that you didn't mean to? It’s duplicitous, but all too easy.Online businesses want your personal data, and they’ll deploy every scam they know to trick you into handing it over — and keep…

And unfortunately, we're not learning from our mistakes.“Now, my friends, the internet is the most transformative piece of infrastructure ever created. It has changed the world, it has changed history, it has changed us,” said Prime Minister Malcolm…

Cutting-edge intelligence analysis and document discovery software made the Panama Papers possible. The Panama Papers may have been the biggest cross-border investigative journalism project in history, but it’s only the beginning. Investigations like…

Startups, much like traditional businesses, can and do create systems of discrimination. The collaborative economy’s poster children, Uber and Airbnb, are megastars right now. There are so many start-ups describing themselves as “an Uber, but for X”…

In a week when we’ve learned that the Australian government is spending taxpayers’ money on pseudo-science, based on little more than half a dozen feelpinions and talkback radio, it’s worth remembering that some of the planet’s best and brightest are…

It seems the government has a permanent ace up its sleeve, provided by the Telecommunications Act, with regard to policing the internet. There’s an enchanted hammer buried in the depths of the Telecommunications Act 1997, which gives its wielder, the…

What tweets do we have in store if even our national broadcasters won't defend our freedom-of-political speech? The sacking of SBS presenter Scott McIntyre over five ill-judged tweets late on Anzac Day raises an increasingly important question: just…

Wednesday’s Federal Court decision in the Dallas Buyers Club LLC (DBC) case sets a new precedent, forcing iiNet and several other internet service providers (ISPs) to hand over the identities of customers who allegedly infringed the company’s…

The world's largest manufacturer of PCs and laptops has left its customers wide open to attacks by hackers. Lenovo is so screwed. The world’s largest manufacturer of PCs and laptops has been caught pre-installing software that completely subverts…

If Uber wants to be anything more than a top-end service for the digital elite, there are a lot of changes it needs to make. As the Sydney CBD went into lockdown yesterday, the computers at honestly-not-a-taxi-service Uber Technologies Inc observed…

Should you have the "right to be forgotten"? No one can agree what the EU's landmark case means -- or should mean -- for Australia. The so-called right to be forgotten remains controversial. Should individuals be able to have certain data about them…

Watch out, Apple and Samsung -- Chinese smartphone manufacturer Huawei has a very smart entrant into the Australian market. Huawei launched its new flagship smartphone in Sydney last night, the Ascend Mate7. It’s a nice bit of kit. This Chinese…

Congratulations, iPhone and iPad users, you too can start worrying about malicious software. A nasty piece of malware dubbed WireLurker has surfaced in China. “We believe that this malware family heralds a new era in malware across Apple’s desktop…

Your digital breadcrumbs are very easy to trace, with even moderately skilled hackers (or companies, or governments) easily able to figure out where you live and track your movements in real time. When a business or government reassures you that the…

“All major roads from the Blue Mountains into the city are closed,” said the newsreader at the end of ABC Radio’s flagship 7.45am news bulletin on 702 Sydney this morning. Except that for most Blue Mountains residents, and certainly most commuters,…

The Apple rumour mill is working overtime to keep up with speculation about the imminent release of the iPhone 6. At some point, the obsession with increasingly invasive tech will have to wane...right? Of all the tech industry’s promotional rituals,…