Events and Conferences

Dec 15 2015

WPF Keynote in China

WPF’s Executive Director Pam Dixon has been in Beijing, China this week giving a seminar and keynote on predictive analytics and scoring to the CCRC and other institutions, as well as journalists. In her keynote, Dixon discussed WPF’s Scoring of America report and ongoing research in the area. “Scoring in China is a topic of

Oct 01 2015

Fall 2015 Calendar Updates: WPF events and activities

Events and Conferences

WPF has a busy fall line-up of publications and presentations. Here are some highlights of upcoming events where WPF is presenting: 15 September, Washington DC: WPF is a panelist at the Biometrics Institute forum discussion on facial recognition. More here. 26 October, Amsterdam, The Netherlands: WPF is a commenter at the Privacy Law Scholar’s Conference.

Sep 21 2015

All Things Privacy and Biometrics (Panel discussion highlights)

I spoke on a panel recently on the topic of all things privacy and biometrics. The Biometrics Institute hosted the discussion at the Australian Embassy in Washington, DC. The panel discussion was subject to Chatham House rules, and, in order to foster open dialogue, the audience did not include any members of the press. The

Jul 27 2015

WPF to present domestic violence privacy and safety training workshop this week

WPF Executive Director Pam Dixon will be presenting a two hour technology and privacy training at the National Network to End Domestic Violence Tech Summit. The training will be geared to professionals who work with survivors of domestic violence, stalking, and related issues. The workshop will cover the key emerging aspects of social media safety

Apr 22 2015

Medical identity theft and electronic health care records: risks and solutions

Executive Director Pam Dixon will be speaking this Friday at the National Association of Healthcare Journalists about electronic records, and the risk of medical identity theft and other risks that arise from data breaches of medical records. Dixon’s talk will cover new research, as well as discuss potential solutions to the problems. Details: When: Friday,

National IDs Around the World — Interactive map

About this Data Visualization: This interactive map displays the presence...
Report: From the Filing Cabinet to the Cloud: Updating the Privacy Act of 1974

This comprehensive report and proposed bill text is focused on the Privacy Act of 1974, an important and early Federal privacy law that applies to the government sector and some contractors. The Privacy Act was written for the 1970s information era -- an era that was characterized by the use of mainframe computers and filing cabinets. Today's digital information era looks much different than the '70s: smart phones are smarter than the old mainframes, and documents are now routinely digitized and stored and perhaps even analyzed in the cloud, among many other changes. The report focuses on why the Privacy Act needs an update that will bring it into this century, and how that could look and work. This work was written by Robert Gellman, and informed by a two-year multi-stakeholder process.
COVID-19 and HIPAA: HHS’s Troubled Approach to Waiving Privacy and Security Rules for the Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic strained the U.S. health ecosystem in numerous ways, including putting pressure on the HIPAA privacy and security rules. The Department of Health and Human Services adjusted the privacy and security rules for the pandemic through the use of statutory and administrative HIPAA waivers. While some of the adjustments are appropriate for the emergency circumstances, there are also some meaningful and potentially unwelcome privacy and security consequences. At an appropriate time, the use of HIPAA waivers as a response to health care emergencies needs a thorough review. This report sets out the facts, identifies the issues, and proposes a roadmap for change.