Coronavirus Pandemic Changes How Your Privacy Is Protected | CNET

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Data protection officials around the world are loosening rules on how your data can be used during the COVID-19 outbreak. Privacy protections around the world are getting lifted during the coronavirus outbreak. As the coronavirus pandemic gets worse, privacy commissioners are lifting data restrictions for health officials to keep track of the outbreak. A review of policy changes around the world shows that data protection agencies are prioritizing lives over privacy, and it could be a sign of what’s to come for the US. In Hong Kong, the city’s privacy…

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Bell, Rogers, Other Telecoms Remove Internet Data Caps Amid COVID-19 | CTV News

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TORONTO — As Canadians grapple with a growing list of cancellations, closures and travel restrictions, several Canadian telecom companies are temporarily removing overage fees on home internet plans amid the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. In a statement issued Saturday, Bell Canada, which owns CTV News, announced it will waive any additional usage fees for residential internet customers, including Bell Aliant, Bell MTS and Virgin Home Internet services, until the end of April. “Any overage fees will be waived automatically, so customers don’t need to make any changes to their accounts,” the…

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Coronavirus Exposes Digital Disparities Between Students | Digital Trends

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With universities across the country closing their campuses, canceling classes, and moving everything online, the coronavirus pandemic has complicated learning for many students and faculty, despite the wide use of technology to keep classes going. Perhaps the most basic issue is what students will do when they do not have reliable high-speed internet access. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) doesn’t have accurate data on how many millions of Americans lack broadband, but Microsoft estimates it is likely far more than the 25 million people the government agency cited in a…

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How Apps Secretly Spy On You With Third-Party Trackers | Digital Trends

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The moment you install an app, it begins scavenging and pestering you for your data. It requests permissions to tap into your phone’s internals, asks you to register a handful of personal information — you know the drill. However, no matter how frugal and vigilant you are at each step, there’s still one way most apps end up covertly mining your data. Every app comes packaged with a range of what are technically called Software Development Kits (SDK). To understand these better, think of an app as a Lego house…

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NSP Ordered To Refund Millions To Customers, But Bills Not Likely To Shrink | CBC News

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Nova Scotia Power was ordered to pay a multi-million dollar refund to customers Friday by regulators who ruled a mega-project once again failed to deliver promised benefits. Ratepayers are on the hook for the $1.57-billion Maritime Link, which was completed on time and on budget in 2017 to bring electricity from the Muskrat Falls hydro project into Nova Scotia via subsea cable across the Cabot Strait. The problem is customers haven’t been getting what they paid for. The Maritime Link has not delivered any electricity from Muskrat Falls. That project…

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Liberals Give Big 3 Wireless Providers Two Years To Cut Prices By 25 Percent | CBC News

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The Liberal government is giving Canada’s big three national wireless providers two years to cut their basic prices for cellphone services by 25 per cent — and telling them it will step in to cut prices if they don’t comply. Innovation, Science and Industry Minister Navdeep Bains issued the ultimatum today along with new spectrum auction rules that could open up Canada’s wireless market to new competition. “Yes, affordability is a challenge and we need to see lower prices,” Bains told CBC news. Bains said the government expects Bell, Telus…

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U.S. Tax Rules Raising The Stakes For Canadian Residents With American Citizenship | CBC News

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Many Canadian residents with U.S. citizenship could risk fines or the closure of their banking or investment accounts in the coming months if they don’t provide financial institutions with U.S. identification numbers, officials warn. Experts say that in some cases, financial institutions may close accounts rather than face fines for not providing U.S. social security or taxpayer identification numbers for clients who could be subject to U.S. income tax, such as dual citizens. That means the stakes are about to get higher for those who haven’t been filing returns and for “accidental Americans” — Canadians…

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RCMP Acknowledges Using Facial Recognition Technology, But Won’t Say Where | CBC News

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The RCMP has for the first time acknowledged using controversial facial recognition technology that has raised privacy concerns, saying it was used in the Mounties’ efforts to crack down on online child sexual abuse. The force said it has used the technology in 15 child exploitation investigations over the past four months, resulting in the identification and rescue of two children. The statement also mentioned that “a few units in the RCMP” are also using it to “enhance criminal investigations,” without providing detail about how widely and where. “We are…

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Canadian Businesses Rush To Plug A Gap In Electric-Vehicle Charging: Don Pittis | CBC News

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The relatively small number of electric vehicles you see on the road today masks what many experts say is a disruptive revolution coming to the business of refuelling our vehicles. With some claiming as many as 80 per cent of conventional gas stations could be driven out of business in 15 years, Canadian companies are at the forefront of figuring out how to profit from the coming transformation of the business model for how we get a fill-up. Read full story here: Canadian Businesses Rush To Plug A Gap In…

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We Bought Dozens Of Products From AliExpress, Amazon, eBay, Walmart And Wish. Over Half Were Suspected Fakes | CBC News

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It’s quick, convenient and ships right to your front door. But a Marketplace investigation found that you can’t always trust what you purchase online — even if the seller, platform or price seems legit. To test how prevalent counterfeits are online, Marketplace purchased dozens of well-known products — ranging from electronics to sportswear to cosmetics — from five popular online retailers: AliExpress, Amazon, eBay, Walmart and Wish. Read full story here: We Bought Dozens Of Products From AliExpress, Amazon, eBay, Walmart And Wish. Over Half Were Suspected Fakes | CBC News

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