Category «United States Law»

COVID-19 masks FAQs: How can cloth stop a tiny virus? What’s the best fabric? Do they protect the wearer?

Face masks reduce the spread of viruses passed on from respiratory secretions. While cloth masks are imperfect, widespread use of an imperfect mask has the potential to make a big difference in transmission of the virus. Professors Catherine Clase, Edouard Fu and Juan Jesus Carrero started reading the research on cloth masks and face coverings at the start of the pandemic, looking for ways to protect our vulnerable dialysis patients and our dialysis staff. We found a total of 25 studies, advocated for mask use and summarized our findings in a peer-reviewed publication. We also created an evidence-based, plain-language website to help people navigate this area. Although mask use has been widely adopted, many people still have questions about them, and we provide answers in this guide.

Subjects: Education, Health, Healthcare, KM

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, October 25, 2020

Privacy and security issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the increasingly complex and wide ranging ways technology is used to compromise and diminish our privacy and security, often without our situational awareness. Four highlights from this week: Trump Administration Develops Governmentwide Office Reopening Guidelines, With Contractor Help; USPS looks to monetize its mapping data; Amazon Faces Allegations It Harvested Sensitive Voice Data; and Google: Chinese Hackers Are Posing as McAfee to Install Malware.

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Communications, Congress, Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Data Mining, Government Resources, Health, Healthcare, Legal Research, Legislative, Privacy, Social Media, United States Law

Increased ebook lending popularity leaves publishers worried, librarians still dissatisfied

Chris Meadows was Editor and Senior Staff Writer at TeleRead, a site focusing on e-book and library news. It is with sadness that I share one of his last articles – he passed away last week after a hit and run accident. Chris was an expert on all facets of digital content issues, and the son of two librarians. I have included more information in my editor’s note at the end of the article. He will be missed. My deepest condolences to his family.

Subjects: Copyright, E-Books, Education, Gadgets/Gizmos, Health, Healthcare, Libraries & Librarians, Library Marketing, Library Software & Technology, Publishing & Publishers (Legal), Technology Trends

Until a coronavirus vaccine is ready, pneumonia vaccines may reduce deaths from COVID-19

Prof. Robert Root-Bernstein is an immunologist and physiologist interested in the effects of combined infections on immunity vaccines. Two vaccines – pneumococcal vaccine and the Hib vaccine – protect against bacterial pneumonias. These bacteria complicate both influenza and COVID-19, often leading to death. Root-Bernstein’s examination of disease trends and vaccination rates leads him to believe that broader use of the pneumococcal and Hib vaccines could guard against the worst effects of a COVID-19 illness.

Subjects: Health, Healthcare, Medical Research

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, October 18, 2020

Privacy and security issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the increasingly complex and wide ranging ways technology is used to compromise and diminish our privacy and security, often without our situational awareness. Four highlights from this week: Amazon’s Latest Gimmicks Are Pushing the Limits of Privacy; Data Security: Recent K-12 Data Breaches Show That Students Are Vulnerable to Harm; How to Implement implement zero trust without impacting productivity; and ‘So hard to prove you exist’: Flawed fraud protections deny unemployment to millions.

Subjects: Congress, Criminal Law, Cybercrime, Cyberlaw, Cybersecurity, E-Commerce, Education, Email Security, Encryption, Legal Research, Legal Technology, Privacy, Telecommuting

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, October 10, 2020

Privacy and security issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the increasingly complex and wide ranging ways technology is used to compromise and diminish our privacy and security, often without our situational awareness. Four highlights from this week: Google is giving data to police based on search keywords; IRS under investigation for buying Americans’ smartphone location data; Why You Should Stop This ‘Hidden’ Location Tracking On Your iPhone; and Privacy of biometric data in DHS hands in doubt, inspector general says.

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Criminal Law, Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Financial System, Health, Legal Research, Privacy, Search Engines

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, October 3, 2020

Privacy and security issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the increasingly complex and wide ranging ways technology is used to compromise and diminish our privacy and security, often without our situational awareness. Four highlights from this week: CISA Releases Telework Essentials Toolkit; A New Tool for Detecting Deepfakes Looks for What Isn’t There: an Invisible Pulse; Collection and Use of Biometrics by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services; and What to do when someone steals your identity.

Subjects: AI, Big Data, Civil Liberties, Computer Security, Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Financial System, Government Resources, KM, Legal Research, Privacy, Technology Trends, Telecommuting

RSS Feeds, PACER, and the Fight for Access to Federal Docket Information

What is RSS and how do federal courts use it? Rebecca Fordon informs us that courts vary in the types of documents they provide via RSS feeds – only about 70% of bankruptcy courts and 50% of district courts provide full feeds. The effort urging courts to fully enable RSS feeds has many advocates and would have a significant positive impact for legal researchers in all sectors.

Subjects: Court Resources, Courts & Technology, Freedom of Information, Government Resources, Legal Technology, Public Records, RSS Newsfeeds, United States Law

How to Identify a Phishing Attempt and Thwart It

There has been a huge surge in phishing attacks and swindles during the COVID-19 pandemic as more people are working remotely. The attacks and scams have been perpetrated against businesses and individuals alike. Catherine Sanders Reach talks about the increased importance for lawyers and their teams in the office or working from home to understand the threats, and how to actively engage in efforts to reduce both individual and enterprise wide exposure.

Subjects: Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Email, Email Security, Law Firm Security, Privacy

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, September 26, 2020

Privacy and security issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the increasingly complex and wide ranging ways technology is used to compromise and diminish our privacy and security, often without our situational awareness. Four highlights from this week: The High Privacy Cost of a “Free” Website; Think Twice Before Using Facebook, Google, or Apple to Sign In Everywhere; Cybercrime and the Law: Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and the 116th Congress; and FinCEN Files Show How Criminals Use Big-Name Banks To Manage Global Financial Corruption.

Subjects: Business Research, Competitive Intelligence, CRS Reports, Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Economy, Government Resources, Intellectual Property, Legal Research, Privacy, Search Engines, Social Media, United States Law