Privacy Watch: Ring's Warrantless Disclosures, AI Data Traps, and Quantum Threats

Amazon Letter Confirms Ring Shared Footage With Police Without Warrants

Amazon confirmed in a July 2022 letter to Senator Ed Markey that Ring disclosed user footage to law enforcement without a warrant or owner consent eleven times that year. The company said each disclosure was based on its own internal, unreviewed determination that an emergency existed. No judge or independent party reviewed these decisions before the footage was handed over.

Amazon’s Own Letter Confirms Ring Gave Police Your Footage Without a Warrant →

Amgen Data Breach Exposes Patient Health Information in Cloud Systems

Biotechnology company Amgen disclosed a data breach in which threat actors stole corporate data and patient information from multiple cloud systems operated by third-party service providers. The company detected the unauthorized activity in July 2026 and launched an investigation with independent forensic experts. In an SEC filing, Amgen stated that proprietary data, patient protected health information, and other information had been exfiltrated.

Amgen says cloud data breach exposed patient health, proprietary info →

NY School District Pauses AI Robot Teaching Assistant Over Privacy Concerns

The Salamanca City Central School District in rural New York paused its pilot program for an AI-driven robot teaching assistant named Sally while reviewing student data privacy concerns. The district’s board had approved the nearly $60,000 purchase from Realbotix. The 5’2” humanoid robot was designed to tutor students, remember previous interactions, and tailor responses to each student’s learning history.

NY school district pauses AI robot teaching assistant rollout amid controversies about manufacturer →

Homematic IP Launches Six Cameras With Free Encrypted Cloud Storage

Homematic IP, the smart home brand of German electronics group eQ-3, launched six security cameras featuring encrypted cloud event video storage on servers in Germany with no monthly fee. The lineup includes indoor, outdoor, and video doorbell models priced from €79.95 to €229.95. All cameras connect over 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi and are managed through the free Homematic IP app.

Homematic IP Enters Camera Market With Free Cloud Storage, No Monthly Fee →

Claude for Teachers Raises Student Privacy Red Flags for Educators

Anthropic released Claude for Teachers, making a free version of Claude with advanced technical capacities available to any U.S. K-12 educator who applies with a school email address. The tool can generate lessons aligned to state standards and draws on curricula including OpenSciEd and Illustrative Mathematics. Anthropic’s marketing encourages teachers to upload rosters, diagnostics, attendance, and teacher notes, stating that users control what is shared and nothing is used in model training.

Why Claude for Teachers Might Be a Student Privacy Trap for Educators →

Google Gemini Spark Now Uses Saved Chrome Passwords for Tasks

Google’s Gemini Spark agent can now open Chrome, use logged-in accounts and saved passwords, and start tasks like flight bookings. The feature, called Chrome auto browse, was connected to Chrome a day before Google published the July edition of Gemini Drops. With user permission, Spark can use saved passwords to handle tasks such as scheduling apartment viewings or researching flights.

Google Gemini Spark now uses your saved Chrome passwords - Notebookcheck News →

DOGE Privacy Lawsuit Survives Dismissal, Discovery May Force Data Reckoning

A federal judge in Virginia refused to throw out a privacy lawsuit against the Office of Personnel Management and the Department of Treasury, allowing the case to proceed to discovery. U.S. District Judge Rossie D. Alston Jr. denied the Trump administration’s motion to dismiss in a case brought by EPIC, Democracy Forward, and the Kaplan Law Firm. The complaint alleges violations of the Privacy Act, the Internal Revenue Code’s confidentiality provisions, FISMA, and the Fifth Amendment right to informational privacy.

DOGE Privacy Lawsuit Survives Dismissal: Discovery May Force Data Reckoning →

AI Companies Can Legally Buy and Destroy Books for Training Data

A book-metadata company called ISBNdb removed its AI training-data sourcing pages and posted a denial after an investigation exposed its marketing of bulk physical book sales to AI companies. The reversal occurred nine days after the initial report, with no government or regulatory intervention. The underlying legal market for purchasing, scanning, and destroying physical books for AI training remains intact.

AI Companies Can Legally Buy and Destroy Books: ISBNdb Reversal Changed Nothing →

Unwanted AI Images Are Freaking Out Users Across Tinder, Reddit, and Amazon

Tinder suspended its experimental Photo Enhance feature after users reported the app automatically edited their profile photos to make them clearer, brighter, or alter physical features. One user described that her profile picture was given someone else’s teeth. Users were told their photo had been enhanced and could undo the action, but only after the photos were already live.

From Tinder and Reddit to Amazon, unwanted AI images are freaking people out →

Pope Leo’s Prayer App Exposes Data of Over 700,000 Devotees

Pope Leo’s prayer app, Click to Pray, the official app of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, exposed the personal details of over 700,000 devotees. The exposure stemmed from an IDOR vulnerability that remained unpatched for six months. Cybersecurity researcher BobDaHacker discovered the vulnerability, which allowed an attacker to change an account or ticket number without proper credential checks.

Even God Won’t Help: Pope Leo’s Prayer App Suffers Devastating Data Breach →

Italy Fines TIM $10.9M for Spoofed Calls That Laundered Illicit Leads

Italy’s data protection authority fined Telecom Italia €9,516,000 (approximately $10.9 million USD) for a scheme in which unauthorized call centers used spoofed telephone numbers to contact Italian consumers. The investigation reconstructed the scheme from approximately 7,000 complaints filed in 2025 by consumers registered on the national opt-out list. The scheme involved spoofed calls, fake callback pages, and ROC-registered numbers to create the appearance of lawful consent.

Italy Fines TIM $10.9M for Spoofed Calls That Laundered Illicit Leads Into Fake Consent →

Meta’s Smart Glasses Face Privacy Backlash and Pervert Glasses Label

Meta’s AI-powered smart glasses have faced privacy controversies throughout 2026 and are increasingly referred to online as pervert glasses. Critics say the devices can record people and collect personal data without consent, leading to lawsuits, government investigations, and public criticism. In January, a BBC investigation found women were secretly filmed with the glasses, with videos posted to TikTok without consent.

What’s the Deal With Meta’s ‘Pervert Glasses’? →

Quantum Computing Race Threatens $470 Billion in Exposed Bitcoin

Roughly 7 million Bitcoin, worth about $470 billion, sit in addresses that have already exposed their public key on-chain, according to a March 2026 estimate by Galaxy Digital. Glassnode estimated 6.04 million Bitcoin, or 30.2% of supply, are exposed. Exposure is not theft; it becomes theft only when a machine can reverse the math, and no such machine exists in mid-2026.

‘That Is The End Of Bitcoin’—The Quantum Race For $470 Billion →

US States Move to Repeal Data Center Tax Breaks, Costs Set to Rise

Data center construction costs are expected to rise as U.S. states move to repeal tax breaks for the industry. The tax incentives, which have historically encouraged data center development, are being reconsidered by state legislatures. The repeal of these breaks is projected to increase costs for data center projects.

Exclusive: Data Center Costs Set to Rise as U.S. States Move to Repeal Tax Breaks →

What to Do When Neighbour’s CCTV or Doorbell Camera Is Pointed at Your Property

A neighbour’s CCTV or smart doorbell is not automatically unlawful just because part of your property appears in shot. The Information Commissioner’s Office says households can use such devices for home security, but data protection responsibilities are more likely to apply if footage extends beyond the property boundary. This matters in Scotland because many homes share spaces such as tenement closes and common stairs.

What to do when neighbour’s CCTV or doorbell camera is pointed at your property →