Sounds like an education issue. NO ONE should ignore a potential security breach. (You have to make some changes to the system to get an ATM to screw up like this...)

http://www.pogowasright.org/article.php?story=20071224065017673

Ca: ATM spits out private info

Monday, December 24 2007 @ 06:50 AM EST Contributed by: PrivacyNews News Section: Older News Stories

An Edmonton man was shocked when an ATM [at the Manning Crossing branch of the Royal Bank ] he was using started spitting out personal financial information on 25 other customers, including account numbers and corresponding account balances.

... The couple alerted the branch manager but were told the information couldn't be used for anything since each account number was missing five digits.

The girlfriend didn't buy it.

"That's not true. I used to work for Royal Bank. I know that these numbers are account numbers," she said, adding that she and Kostiuk felt the bank didn't take their concerns seriously.

Source - Edmonton Sun

...because

http://www.pogowasright.org/article.php?story=20071224065320633

Data “Dysprotection:” breaches reported last week

Monday, December 24 2007 @ 06:53 AM EST Contributed by: PrivacyNews News Section: Breaches

A recap of incidents or privacy breaches reported last week for those who enjoy shaking their head and muttering to themselves with their morning coffee. Source - Chronicles of Dissent

Observing is not seeing Yogi Berra? Just because you deal in information, does not mean you can connect the dots...

http://www.veryshortlist.com/vsl/daily.cfm/review/346/Website/newseum-again-lewiston-tribune/

DECEMBER 20, 2007

Professor Moriarty probably didn’t get his start this way

Here at Very Short List, we pride ourselves on being ahead of the curve. But sometimes we’re downright prescient.

On December 14, we pointed you to the website for the Newseum, a real-time collection of the front pages from nearly 600 daily newspapers from across the country and around the world. Had you gone on the site that very day to look at the front page of the Lewiston Tribune (of Lewiston, Idaho, population 31,293), you too could have played the role of an armchair Sherlock Holmes.

That morning, page 1A ran two substantial photos: In one, a husky man in a black-and-blue checkered coat is seen hanging Christmas decorations in a shop window. In the other, a surveillance camera shows a convenience-store customer’s unattended wallet being swiped by

. . . a husky man in a black-and-blue checkered coat. Local police noticed the similarities, and quickly arrested the hapless criminal mastermind for felony second-degree theft. If the charges stick, we’ll gladly take the credit for the collar.

What's next?

http://www.wbay.com/Global/story.asp?s=2776926

Police Begin Fingerprinting on Traffic Stops

By Sarah Thomsen

If you're ticketed by Green Bay police, you'll get more than a fine. You'll get fingerprinted, too. It's a new way police are cracking down on crime.

If you're caught speeding or playing your music too loud, or other crimes for which you might receive a citation, Green Bay police officers will ask for your drivers license and your finger. You'll be fingerprinted right there on the spot. The fingerprint appears right next to the amount of the fine.

... Police say they want to prevent the identity theft problem that Milwaukee has, where 13 percent of all violators give a false name.

... Citizens do have the right to say no. "They could say no and not have to worry about getting arrested," defense attorney Jackson Main said. "On the other hand, I'm like everybody else. When a police officer tells me to do something, I'm going to do it whether I have the right to say no or not."

The cost of repair would shoot up due to the increase in liability. If a $15 per hour techie can't figure out what's wrong, he just starts replacing parts until something works. If you got the parts back and someone else could prove there was nothing wrong with them...

http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/12/24/0131228&from=rss

Should Apple Give Back Replaced Disks?

Posted by kdawson on Sunday December 23, @11:53PM from the consider-it-a-trade-in dept. Privacy

theodp writes "As if having to pay $160 to replace a failed 80-GB drive wasn't bad enough, Dave Winer learned to his dismay that Apple had no intention of giving him back the disk he paid them to replace. Since it contained sensitive data like source code and account info, Dave rightly worries about what happens if the drive falls into the wrong hands. Which raises an important question: In an age of identity theft and other confidentiality concerns, is it time for Apple — and other computer manufacturers — to start following the practice of auto mechanics and give you the option of getting back disks that are replaced?"

Learn like Pres. Bush! Seriously, there seems to be a recognition that the Internet has changed the way people educate themselves. Perhaps Universities will be reduced to proctoring the final exams...

http://insidehighered.com/news/2007/12/12/openyale

Dec. 12

Open Courses Open Wider

For those inclined to dig through university Web sites, it’s long been possible to browse scattered lecture notes and PowerPoint slides intended for enrolled students. A handful of colleges intentionally make course materials available to anyone with an Internet connection, and now a major name may redefine expectations for online learning. Following its announcement last year, Yale University on Tuesday launched its free, online archive of popular undergraduate courses — including not only syllabi, problem sets and course materials, but videos and audio files of the lectures themselves.

Dubbed Open Yale Courses, the Web site’s creators hope the archive will serve as a resource for students abroad or even as support for lecturers at other institutions who need to supplement their own material. In the spirit of keeping information freely available, the lectures are protected under a Creative Commons legal license that allows users to download, share and remix the material in any way they see fit, as long as their purposes aren’t commercial and they credit Yale.

...because it is so easy to share information.

http://www.killerstartups.com/User-Gen-Content/SlideStarde---Learn-Something/

SlideStar.de - Learn Something

SlideStar is an open educational platform akin to your local college or library but in cyberspace. The SlideStar community is made up of mainly students and academics who can exchange any educational content and material they find useful. Publishers of content are free to define their own terms of use. If agreed upon, materials can be used and furthered for your own studies or research. Your Slideware (content) can come in any number of formats such as the almighty PowerPoint slide, an audio file, video, PDFs, Word, of course, and plenty of other mediums to suit your learning pleasure. Profs can share their e-lectures with just their students, or the whole world if they so choose. This is a community and like any online community these days, members can pick and choose their favorite Slideware by ratings and votes. Organizations, aptly called Slidespots in SlideStar lingo, can register and let others view what they have to offer. A world map shows each registered SlideSpot for easy comparison. Anyone can become a SlideStar. Even you.

http://www.slidestar.de/main.html

Every try searching for something on Craig's List? You have to do a separate search in each city, right? Well not any more... (Tested by one of my research associates who was looking for a 1972 Volvo for his collection.)

http://www.crazedlist.org/

crazedlist.org

search craigslist like a madman