The Census will be #privacyfail whether the ABS’s systems collapse or continue.
That is a sweeping statement. I’d would just love to see you try to justify that.
Oops. That’s blown today’s profits.
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It’s reported the Pegasus spyware can capture a user’s keystrokes, intercept communications, track their device and tap into their camera and microphone
A key point that is often lost in this sort of article is:
The initial hack can involve a crafted SMS or iMessage that provides a link to a website. If clicked, this link delivers malicious software that compromises the device.
Vulnerabilities.
The whole Pegasus software product relies on a stream of vulnerabilities that they know about but which the manufacturer (e.g. Apple or Google) does not know about. In a typical smartphone environment, malicious software does not and cannot just randomly compromise the device. It relies on a vulnerability to exploit.
If the vulnerability is there to exploit, once it is exploited then all bets are off.
So if you discover a security vulnerability, you have two options:
- Engage in the “responsible disclosure process”, wherein you notify the manufacturer, and give them e.g. 6 months to fix the problem, and then go public - gaining kudos, glory and hopefully some extra business if you are a commercial entity.
- You can sell the vulnerability to companies like Pegasus or to (evil) governments. You can sell it on the black market to the highest bidder, who could be absolutely anyone.
Governments could probably do a few things to improve this situation. Unfortunately the Australian government is part of the problem.
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An article warning regarding strangers getting your contact details from your pet’s name tag.
What a creep.
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Also warns about posting photos online of your pet if the collar is not adequately blurred - although I don’t know why any sane person would post photos for strangers.
I don’t know that the original message was that “creepy” and maybe it would have been better handled if the recipient of the original message had politely declined rather than ignoring it.
Maybe trade the dog in for a cat. Problem solved. 
Also note: US story. It is unclear whether this is an actual problem in Australia - but forewarned is forearmed.
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I have just finished completing our Census online.
It was a piece of cake. No problems whatsoever.
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With the benefit of hindsight, I think that I may have completed our Census too hurriedly.
I automatically ticked “None” which is the top box for religion without bothering to scroll through the list.
Perhaps I should have selected “The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster” instead.
They may well be the No 1 religion when the results are released and everyone wants to be with a winner.
In the past people used to put ‘jedi’, or ‘Pastafarian’.
The census just consigns those things to ‘none’.
Sorry @Fred123, they do think about these things.
Jedi is not a religion, it is a way of life. And these are not the 'droids you are looking for.
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This should put a cat amongst the pidgeons or a tiger amongst the paedophiles.
Apple just went up several notches in my opinion.
I don’t use any app anymore that demands I give my email address and name. OH well perhaps the odd one (eg the app that goes with my cpap machine) But there are so many apps now which have zero need to know anything about you in order to function, excepting that you cant use them without…. so be it. delete!
While the reason for scanning user content on Apple devices may be justified, it sets a precedence potentially allowing them to scan anything they believe is objectionable… and raises a question if who owns the device and information stored on them…should such scans only be done lawfully at request of enforcement agencies rather than decisions made by big tech?
Google and Facebook are similar in taking on their own regulator type roll where they block whole user accounts based on information in these accounts. They do this based on their own opinion of the content and with reflection of their own service T&C’s.
Usual judicial processes are being thrown out the window, along with their ‘checks and balances’ and rights.
Should big tech become big brother? The principles behind recent actions are a concern, especially where there is no legal basis driving these actions…but decisions within big tech.
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The other day, I bought pet food and the cashier asked whether I was in their loyalty club. I wasn’t but, why not? So I gave my details.
The firm sent me an email which linked to an app. The permissions it demands are ridiculous. Nope!
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I’m in Petstock and Petbarn, both of which wanted name and phone number but didnt demand email or app download (then again that wasnt really a thing when I first joined). Now they dont even need a card or anything, they just ask what your phone number is… seems thats what your member number is.
Also in Petcircle but thats online so they do need more info. Havent had any spam from them in 4-5 months of using them.
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No. Just a quick link.
BCF ask for your mobile number and then say your name to you.
I can’t go into specifics without doxxing myself, but I know some businesses use email as a unique identifier to ensure people don’t have multiple accounts. Additionally many companies have multiple branches of their business (eg Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp) and may use email to match up your accounts. Personally, I always am happy to give my email when setting up accounts provided the privacy policy doesn’t allow it to be sold (almost no legitimate businesses do)
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To come back to this … yes, the Census as of 2016 is #privacyfail due to the changes that were announced then and widely discussed and widely objected to but of course all objections ignored and nothing changed. So I think we will find that the Census is on an ongoing basis #privacyfail …
until the day that the surveillance state is so all-encompassing that the Census itself is redundant. They will already know everything. So then they can kill it and save the taxpayer funds.
Apple just went down several notches in my opinion.
It used to be that you could count on Apple some of the time taking up the fight to the government and defending your privacy. It seems as if Apple has thrown in the towel. (Google is irrelevant in this context because Google’s business model is to shaft your privacy, and if you buy Google, that should be your expectation.)
Scanning private photos that are on your phone is an outrageous breach of your privacy.
Of course there are pedos in the world, and pedos may have illegal images on their phone, but what about the 99.99% of us who are not pedos?
Say what now? An email address is a unique identifier but it does not ensure that people don’t have multiple accounts - because you can have as many email addresses as you like. (I intentionally do this so that if an email address leaks then I know which business got hacked or sold me out …)
That day will only come when the Australian Constitution sections 24 and 51 are changed by referendum, and the law established over one hundred years ago to collect census data is repealed.
