The Morning Briefing: Consumer privacy and tech firms

"The Morning Briefing" is SmartPlanet's daily roundup of must-reads from the web. This morning we're reading about consumer privacy concerns and technology companies.

1.) FTC report shows businesses how the wind blows on consumer privacy. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) this week released its report on consumer privacy for businesses. Protecting Consumer Privacy in an Era of Rapid Change is a report that creates a 'privacy framework' that shifts the privacy protection burden away from individual consumers and on to businesses.

2.) Tech firms' data gathering worries most Californians, poll finds. Trust is low even for the most widely used Internet and smartphone companies, such as Google, Facebook, Twitter and Apple.

3.) Yahoo plans support for 'Do Not Track' web privacy tool. Yahoo has announced it will soon support the Do Not Track privacy header across its sprawling network of websites. Supporting Do Not Track means you will soon be able to easily tell Yahoo to stop tracking your movements around the web.

4.) Privacy a scarce commodity in a digital world. The fear of being watched, once the domain of conspiracy theorists and tinfoil milliners, is transcending mere paranoia to become a valid post-millennial concern. The stark difference is that now, it's less a question of whether we’re being tracked but rather how, and by whom.

5.) Google's clever move to calm privacy fears. Recently, Google announced a new Account Activity feature intended to 'let people in' on the secret, which is, what it has learned about them, and how they can use it to fight against identity theft.

Bonus: 'Girls Around Me' developer defends app after Foursquare dismissal.

Image credit: Rachel Johnson

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This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com