X
Business

Apple and... PATRIOT Act, China, security and privacy [Government IT Week]

Not only has it been a big week for Apple products, it's been a big week for Apple privacy and government news. On one hand, Apple is promising to protect your privacy, on the other, the "warrant canary" has sung and Apple may be giving into PATRIOT Act demands. There's also more gov news the world over.
Written by David Gewirtz, Senior Contributing Editor

ZDNet's worldwide team provides global 24/7 technology news and analysis. In addition to my own coverage analysis here in the ZDNet Government column and on ZDNet's DIY-IT, every week I'll bring you a selection of the best government-related articles posted by our intrepid reporters and analysts. Here are some of the most interesting from the last week.

Top stories this week

Apple omits 'warrant canary' from latest transparency reports; Patriot Act data demands likely made
A warrant canary stating that Apple has 'never received an order' under the Patriot Act has been removed from its latest reports. That suggests such demands have been made.

Apple hiring law enforcement manager in China to handle 'increasing' demands for data
The decision to hire a "head of law enforcement" comes in response to Apple moving to store some Chinese data to servers based on the country's soil. 

Apple doubles-down on security, shuts out law enforcement from accessing iPhones, iPads
The iPhone and iPad maker is encrypting its services, end-to-end, in a bid to prevent law enforcement (even with a search warrant) from accessing your device data.

Apple protecting customer privacy from government requests
Apple CEO Tim Cook has reassured customers in an updated version of the company's privacy policy that only a small percentage of customer data is disclosed to government information requests, and the rest will remain protected.

Other government coverage around ZDNet

Kim Dotcom's Internet Party bombs out of New Zealand election
Internet Party partner Mana loses its seat while their combined effort was well short of the 5% threshold required for representation in Parliament.

Legislation: To stop the next Snowden, social media security clearance screenings
The Enhanced Security Clearance Act of 2014 (HR 5482) hopes to employ 'social media screening' to flag violent psychopaths, and prevent the next Edward Snowden from getting a clearance.

Huawei, still trying to crack the US market, aims at 'less sensitive industries'
Security concerns raised by US are not an issue for enterprise customers, says Chinese company as it aims at the corporate tech market.

'Right to be forgotten' complaints streamlined by data watchdogs
The European Commission is putting together a toolbox for search engines dealing with complaints about right to be forgotten requests, to make sure there's a common approach across Europe.

Blown-out Australian Defence Force e-health records rolled out
The Australian Defence Force has rolled out a new e-health program for initially 25,000 members at over double the initial budget of AU$55 million.

Vic government protects personal data with new privacy law
The Victorian government has replaced the Information Privacy Act with the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 to address the protection levels of personal information collected and used by public agencies.

Australian authorities seeking more customer data from Apple
The number of requests to Apple for device or account data from Australian law-enforcement agencies went up in the first six months of 2014.

Government finalises datacentre panel suppliers
The Australian government has added the last few suppliers to its datcentre facilities supplies panel.

Singapore security lapses underscore need for risk assessment
Recent security incidents and evolving legislations, including cross-border policies, highlight the need for businesses and consumers to assess potential risks and decide how much they are willing to absorb.

Airbnb to collect 14 percent hotel tax in San Francisco
Airbnb will begin collecting occupancy taxes on behalf of its hosts in San Francisco from October 1, as it works to legitimise its service in the face of pressure by local regulators.

Turnbull reflects on 'killing the dream' of NBN 'fibre fanatics'
A year into the job, Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull says he is worried that some believe every Australian town can be a Silicon Valley with fibre to the premises, as he insists there is no money being saved in the fibre rollout.

Editorial standards