“You had me at hello.”
You probably recognized the quote right away, but if you didn’t, here’s some background: A man (Tom Cruise) shows up at a woman’s (Renee Zellweger) place and proceeds to go on about how she completes him. In return, she responds with “You had me at hello.” It’s enough to make anyone swoon and dream of a romance that sweeps them off their feet.
I don’t think Tinder is what a lot of people have in mind, but hey, you find love where it finds you (and I’m very happy I found mine before getting on the apps). Unfortunately, though, the Internet (and the world) is a scary place, especially for women (cis and trans alike). Even those of us who didn’t use Tinder know all of the tips and warnings for meeting someone for the first time: Go to a public place, carry mace, use your keys like you would brass knuckles if you need to. Call your friends when you get home. If you’re really worried, bring a friend with you and have them sit at a table nearby.It’s exhausting, and I’m not even single.
So, where am I going with all this? Tinder has recently introduced an option to do a criminal background check on your matches. And while I obviously understand why (see above), it begs many questions, the least of which is: Where does data privacy come in? For a company that’s already been investigated by the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, they’ll need to do a lot to keep their consumers physically safe and those users’ data privacy just as intact.
Tinder’s upcoming feature for singles? A criminal background check on potential dates
In an attempt to help users make more informed decisions on who they meet up with in person, Tinder is implementing a background check feature into its app. It’ll use Garbo, a nonprofit that “is on a mission to proactively prevent harm in the digital age through technology, tools, and education.” Read More
California AG issues written opinion on internally generated inferences
On March 10, 2022, the California Attorney General issued an opinion clarifying that internally generated inferences are subject to an access request. In the opinion, the AG states that inferences "appear to be at the heart of the problems that the CCPA seeks to address" and makes it clear that targeted advertising (as well as inferences drawn, transparency issues and potential discriminatory practices) are a priority for the AG office. Read More
Facebook fined €17m for breaching EU data privacy laws
The Irish Data Protection Commission has fined Meta €17m following an investigation into 12 separate data breaches over a six-month period (between June and December of 2018). The commission decided that Facebook (and therefore, Meta) has breached EU data privacy laws. Read More