Covid-19, Privacy, and You

Hospitalized fox in Australia. Photo by ABC: James Glenday

 

PANDEMICS AND PRIVACY

We want to start out by saying that we sincerely hope that none of you have been affected by the current global pandemic. If you have in any way, our hearts do go out to you and yours. 

By now, you’ve likely heard about the privacy mess that is Zoom, after millions more users flooded onto the platform, whether to work via conference or just chat with your friends ‘face to face.’  The company is rolling out new privacy standards after facing immense pressure, but risks do still remain.

However, video chat and conferencing services aren’t the only privacy concern that has arisen.  Google and Apple are preparing to team up on surveillance tech to help track the spread of Covid-19, prompting the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) to raise alarm over the privacy and security risks that may come along with any potential contact tracing tech which the Google/Apple (Gapple? Goople? Aggle?) pairing may put forward.

Certainly a story to keep an eye on! In the mean time, stay safe, wash those hands, and do something amazing for a medical worker,  grocery employee garbage collector, and all other essential workers who don’t have a choice but to be exposed to this pandemic in order to keep the rest of us healthy, fed, and happy.