Cybersecurity issues and advice steal the Techshow

May 1, 2016 1:40 AM CDT

Ex-cop is jailed until he reveals computer passwords; appeal claims Fifth Amendment violation

A former Philadelphia police officer is arguing a federal magistrate had no authority to send him to prison for refusing to reveal passwords to two encrypted computer hard drives. The former officer, Francis Rawls, has not been charged with a crime. He has been held in jail for seven months…

Apr 29, 2016 2:12 PM CDT

Law authorizing garbage inspections for composting scofflaws violates privacy rights, judge rules

A judge in Washington state has enjoined garbage-inspection provisions of a Seattle ordinance that bars residents from placing food waste or compostable paper in garbage containers. Judge Beth Andrus of King County ruled (PDF) on Wednesday, report the Associated Press and the Seattle Times. Andrus said provisions authorizing inspections of…

Apr 28, 2016 9:34 AM CDT

SCOTUS considers laws that make it a crime to refuse blood-alcohol tests

During oral arguments on Wednesday, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. appeared to be firmly on the side of states that make it a crime for drivers to refuse to submit to warrantless blood-alcohol tests. But several U.S. Supreme Court justices questioned why officers couldn’t get a warrant before conducting the…

Apr 21, 2016 9:57 AM CDT

Lawyers accused of using paralegal to friend litigant on Facebook are facing ethics probe

Ethics regulators may pursue a case against two lawyers accused of using a paralegal to friend a litigant and access nonpublic Facebook pages, the New Jersey Supreme Court has ruled in a decision on the power of the Office of Attorney Ethics. The supreme court ruled that the ethics office…

Apr 20, 2016 7:45 AM CDT

Monitoring of my Twitter account showed racial bias, state lawyer says in labor complaint

A lawyer with the Oregon Department of Justice claims he was the victim of racial bias when co-workers investigated his tweets that used the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter. Erious Johnson Jr. has filed a civil-rights complaint with the state labor department, along with a notice of intent to sue. Johnson is civil…

Apr 18, 2016 8:59 AM CDT

Can hacked data support fraud suit against Ashley Madison? Plaintiffs want to cite lawyer emails

Plaintiffs are seeking to cite hacked documents—including lawyer emails—to allege that the Ashley Madison dating website defrauded the public by creating fake female profiles to interest potential male clients. Plaintiffs in the multidistrict security-breach litigation contend they are entitled to refer to lawyer communications as a result of the crime-fraud…

Apr 18, 2016 5:45 AM CDT

Microsoft sues over law used to keep government access of customer emails a secret

Microsoft has filed a lawsuit challenging a law that creates a low standard for banning disclosure of search warrants seeking its customers’ digital information. Microsoft sued the Justice Department on Thursday in Seattle federal court, report the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.), Reuters, the Washington Post and the Seattle Times.…

Apr 15, 2016 7:55 AM CDT

Facebook capture of medical info from web searches by users violates HIPAA and other laws, suit says

Updated: A 2012 federal lawsuit over Facebook tracking of users filed by attorney Paul Kiesel was dismissed last year, with leave to refile. U.S. District Judge Edward Davila said the plaintiffs in the San Jose, California, case didn’t make clear how they suffered “a realistic economic harm or loss” due…

Apr 13, 2016 1:15 PM CDT

FBI’s use of cell-site data didn’t violate the Fourth Amendment, 6th Circuit says

A federal appeals court has found no Fourth Amendment violation in the government’s use of cell-site records to establish that two suspects used their cell phones close to the locations of armed robberies in the Detroit area. The Cincinnati-based 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld use of the evidence…

Apr 13, 2016 12:08 PM CDT

Two hidden recording devices are discovered at Harvard Law School

Harvard University police are investigating the discovery of two hidden recording devices at the law school. The group Reclaim Harvard Law says it found one device last week in a lounge its members have occupied since February, report the Harvard Crimson, the Boston Herald and the Boston Globe. The device…

Apr 13, 2016 8:03 AM CDT

FBI paid professional hackers to help unlock San Bernardino shooter’s iPhone

The FBI managed to unlock the iPhone of the San Bernardino shooter by paying professional hackers who discovered a security flaw, sources say. The unidentified sources told the Washington Post that the information was used to create hardware to unlock the phone without triggering a feature that erases phone data…

Apr 13, 2016 7:06 AM CDT

Does facial recognition technology incorporate racial bias?

Police departments across the country are using facial recognition software to match images captured by their surveillance cameras with photos of fugitives or mug shot databases. But are police failing to account for the possibility of mismatches and failed matches that could affect blacks more than whites? Police in Chicago,…

Apr 13, 2016 6:15 AM CDT

Judge orders Apple to help FBI unlock another iPhone; will issue reach the Supreme Court?

A federal magistrate judge in Boston has issued an order requiring Apple to help the FBI access a locked iPhone to get potential evidence for a gang case. Unsealed Friday at the request of the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, documents in the case of alleged Columbia Point Dawgs…

Apr 11, 2016 10:00 AM CDT

Did mom violate wiretap law by recording coach’s locker-room speech? Top Texas court to decide

A Texas mom who secretly recorded a coach’s locker-room comments to students is asking Texas’ top criminal court to rule she didn’t violate the state’s wiretap law. The mom, Wendee Long, had suspected the girls’ basketball coach at Argyle High School north of Fort Worth was verbally abusing students, the…

Apr 7, 2016 9:28 AM CDT