PRIVACY + SECURITY BLOG

News, Developments, and Insights

high-tech technology background with eyes on computer display

Off-Campus Cyberbullying and the First Amendment

Cyberbullying

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently upheld a school’s discipline of a student for engaging in off-campus cyberbullying of another student.  In Kowalski v. Berkeley County Schools, — F.3d — (4th Cir. July 27, 2011), a student (Kara Kowalski) created a MySpace profile called “S.A.S.H.,” which she said was short for […]

When Can Public Schools Discipline Students for Off-Campus Speech?

Bull Horn 01

I’ve been spending a lot of time lately focusing on privacy issues at schools.  I find these issues fascinating, and I have been working on them in the trenches, as I created a company last year to provide tools and resources to schools to help them better address privacy problems and to develop a comprehensive […]

NSA Surveillance: There’s More

Phone NSA 01

A while back, it was reported that the Bush Administration authorized the NSA to engage in warrantless wiretapping. Based on the information released so far, the program was likely illegal. Now, it appears that the warrantless wiretapping program (more innocuously renamed the “Terrorist Surveillance Program,” or “TSP”) is just the tip of a larger iceberg.

New Privacy Law Reference Book: Privacy Law Fundamentals

Privacy Law Fundamentals

Professor Paul Schwartz (Berkeley School of Law) and I recently published a new book, PRIVACY LAW FUNDAMENTALS.  This book is a distilled guide to the essential elements of U.S. data privacy law. In an easily-digestible format, the book covers core concepts, key laws, and leading cases.

Nothing to Hide: The False Tradeoff Between Privacy and Security

Nothing to Hide

I’m pleased to announce the publication of my new book, NOTHING TO HIDE: THE FALSE TRADEOFF BETWEEN PRIVACY AND SECURITY (Yale University Press, May 2011).  Here’s the book jacket description:

More Fun with the Airline Screening Playset: Body Imaging X-Ray Edition!

Airline Screening Playset Playmobil Set 01

I’ve been following the recent controversy over the TSA’s body imaging X-ray machines, otherwise known as the “backscatter” or “exhibit-yourself-in-the-nude” devices.  It made me reminisce about an old post I wrote about the Playmobil airline screening playset. I had not used the playset for a while.  Five long years have elapsed since my post, and […]

The SeaWorld Killer Whale Death Video and the Right to Privacy

Orca Sea World

Jessica Bennett at Newsweek brought my attention to a story about the family of the killer whale trainer (Dawn Brancheau) who was killed while training the whale at SeaWorld: Brancheau’s family announced this week that they would seek an injunction to protect the release of the death imagery, captured by SeaWorld’s surveillance cameras on Feb. […]