The recent revelations in the media about the collection of personal information from up to 87 million Facebook users by Cambridge Analytica and its use to influence political outcomes (successful or not), should be sending chills down the spines of everyone involved in information security, privacy and governance. That people’s data can be appropriated and…
Like most people with a broad digital footprint I’ve been hacked multiple times, usually in fairly minor ways. Around ten years ago I had my PayPal account hacked through malware in the Amazon site, costing me $300. PayPal staff insisted this was a legitimate payment for goods (which I hadn’t ordered) being delivered to my…
Australian internet usage has just reached a tipping point, with more Aussies accessing the internet via their smartphones and tablets than via laptops and desktop computers. This has been reflected in web usage statistics, with several agencies I talk to reporting that they now receive more of their website traffic from mobile devices than from…
Today Australia’s new Privacy law comes into force, affecting Australian Government agencies, businesses with a turnover of more than $3 million or trading in personal information and all private health service providers. As the first major change in Australian privacy law in 25 years, there’s been numerous changes and updates to reflect the major changes in…
A few days ago LinkedIn launched its latest IOS app, Intro. The app promises to integrate LinkedIn profile content directly into emails, allowing more rapid connections and helping give email recipients access to a range of relevant information about the sender. Given both Apple and LinkedIn are well-known brands, many people are likely to trust…
Earlier this week I gave presentations at Canberra and Adelaide social media conferences from Akolade and at #Socadl – the regular meetup for South Australian social media enthusiasts. I’ve included my two presentations below, and they’re also available in my Slideshare page. Privacy and social media for Australian governments from Craig Thomler Government 2.0 – #socadl…
With the widespread availability of phones in cameras and tablet devices – in fact it is hard to buy one today that doesn’t include a camera – it is inevitable that people will take them out and take a snap of their most – or least favourite – public figures. These photos and video get…
I have had a great deal of respect for the Australian Policy Online (APO), produced by the Australian National University and University of Swinburne. For several years the site has been a fantastic venue for serious discussions of public policy options, and a very useful source for policy resources and research. The site also, without prompting…
Many organisations still haven’t cottoned on to the influence of a number of blogs or how to appropriately approach and engage with them – including PR and advertising agencies who should know better. I was reading an excellent example of this the other week, from The Bloggess, where a PR agency not only approached with…
Rather than posting in my blog today, I am breaking one of the rules of blogging (always pull people back to your own blog) by pointing people to an opinion piece in Mumbrella that I wrote recently after reading a couple of other opinion pieces attacking the basis for allowing anonymous commentary online. Toughen up…
This archive mirrors the original eGov AU blog — Craig’s professional commentary on AI, digital government and technology in public life, running since 2006.
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