OpenAI Inc. is banking on a privacy argument to block a court?s probe into millions of ChatGPT user conversations.

The government?s age restriction on social media platforms, which comes into effect next month, has received its fair share of criticism ? but waiting for the perfect policy risks paralysis when incremental progress is possible.

Even without names, AI tools like ChatGPT can expose student or patient data. Learn why redaction isn?t enough and how to protect privacy under FERPA and HIPAA.

318K likes, 839 comments - entrep.logy on September 2, 2025: "Mom, Dad? those photos you post of me aren?t just memories. They?re data.? ?? That?s the chilling line from a new AI experiment where a digital child speaks directly to her parents. She warns them: ? Photos online can be turned into deepfakes. ? Voices can be cloned. ? Data today can ruin futures tomorrow. The message is simple: what you share online doesn?t disappear ? it compounds. And with AI moving faster than regulators, privacy is no longer optional. It?s leverage. ? Business lesson? The future will be owned by those who understand how digital footprints shape wealth, risk, and identity. Protect your data like you protect your assets ? because in 2025, they?re the same thing. ? #WealthLeverage #DigitalIdentity #AIPrivacy #FutureOfWealth #USABusiness #UKEconomy #AustralianEntrepreneurs #TechAndMoney #AITrends2025 #BusinessMindset".

Anthropic is making some major changes to how it handles user data. Users have until September 28 to take action.

Facial recognition has moved beyond being a future development?it is rapidly becoming a defining feature of modern travel. From biometric boarding gates to keyless hotel check-ins, the technology...

A schoolgirl?s revoked acceptance into a learning camp conducted by a tech company highlights the lack of legal protections for children?s privacy

The Productivity Commission is proposing a path whereby organisations would no longer have to meet the prescribed requirements of the Privacy Act.

? Search engines are one of the main ways children are exposed to online pornography and other potentially harmful material. eSafety?s research ?Accidental, unsolicited and in your face? shows many children?s first exposure to pornography is accidental, and this often occurs via a search engine. A new industry code drafted by industry bodies representing search engines including Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft (owners of Bing) will provide some very important safeguards. The aim of the code is to protect children from exposure to age-inappropriate material which may be harmful to them, including: ? online pornography ? high-impact violence ? eating disorders ? suicide and self-harm. All measures will be in place by 27 June next year. Here?s how it?ll work ? When children are logged into a search account, the search engine will be required (at a minimum) to filter out pornography and high impact violence ? If you?re not logged into an account and your search returns pornographic or extremely violent images, these will be blurred by default. This is to reduce the possibility of children being exposed to them by accident. In addition, if you enter a search relating to eating disorders, suicide or self-harm, any material promoting these harms will be downranked, while reliable health information and support services will be promoted. Users can still follow links that appear in their search, regardless of whether they are downranked or the images are blurred. If you are over 18, you can choose to opt in or out by logging into an account and changing the settings. These steps codify a range of existing practices that have long been practised by major search engines. Making them enforceable provides more protections for users and greater accountability for industry.

Six years on from the start of Australia?s Privacy Act overhaul and there?s still room to send the industry scattering and cast doubt on what will actually land. The Productivity Commission is the latest to throw a curveball on where things may be headed, proposing a fresh ?dual-track? privacy compliance approach for businesses in its interim Harnessing data and digital technology report this week. It?s not the only controversial thing in there: Less redtape around AI, rethinking copyright infringement for feeding the robots and an immediate halt on guardrails for high-risk AI use cases are also in the recommendations list, along with more data accessibility overall. Data Synergies? Peter Leonard sees the privacy take as an example of how privacy reform isn?t really being dictated by consumer privacy needs but by bigger government concerns. While the choice of outcomes-based approaches to using consumer data will appeal to digital marketers, he also warns the flip is even more stringent alternatives from the Privacy Commissioner. ADMA's Andrea Martens points out how privacy progress has "stalled" over the last 18 months, and hopes these latest recommendations will be a "circuit breaker to the unproductive privacy versus business debate". Civic Data?s Chris Brinkworth meanwhile, says the Productivity Commission?s modus operandi is less about privacy and more about the internationally competitive product and AI race Australia must face.  

Earlier this year, the UK government ordered Apple to provide access to encrypted data in the company's cloud storage service, iCloud.

Read the responses to the reform areas we're exploring for Pillar 3: Harnessing data and digital technology.