tracking

House Bill Would Require Cellphone Owners Be Notified of Tracking Software

Ina Fried in Mobile on January 30 at 11:50 am PT

The move follows the uproar last year over software from Carrier IQ that collected various information about cellphone usage.

These Boots Are Made for Tracking: GPS Technology Comes to Shoes

Lauren Goode in Commerce on January 30 at 9:03 am PT

The souped-up shoes are aimed at caretakers who need to monitor people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. However, they raise some technical — and legal — questions.

DailyBurn CEO: Fitness-Tracking Devices Aren’t Gimmicks, but They’re Close

Lauren Goode in Commerce on January 26 at 10:47 am PT

Wearable activity-tracking devices — Fitbit, UP, FuelBand — are becoming all the rage. But one skeptical fitness-tech CEO dares to say most of them don’t get the job done.

Google Expands Tracking on Sites

Julia Angwin, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on January 24 at 4:04 pm PT

In a controversial move, Google Inc. said it will track users’ activities across nearly all of its services, and that in many cases, users can’t opt out of the tracking.

Feds Shift Tracking Defense

Jennifer Valentino-DeVries, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on November 3, 2011 at 4:30 am PT

The U.S. Department of Justice now says its use of a cellphone-tracking device in a controversial Arizona case could be considered a “search” under the Fourth Amendment, a tactical move legal experts say is designed to protect the secrecy of the gadgets known as “stingrays.”

Groupon Explains to Congress Why It Wants to Track You

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on August 18, 2011 at 11:36 pm PT

Groupon has faced questions about its controversial accounting practices, and now has to respond to members of Congress about its privacy policies.

Latest in Web Tracking: Stealthy “Supercookies”

Julia Angwin, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on August 18, 2011 at 12:01 am PT

Major websites such as MSN.com and Hulu.com have been tracking people’s online activities using powerful new methods that are almost impossible for computer users to detect, new research shows.

News Byte

Jawbone’s Newest Product: Health-Tracking Wristband Called UP

Kara Swisher in News on July 13, 2011 at 11:34 am PT

Jawbone, the San Francisco consumer electronics start-up that just grabbed another $70 million in funding, has announced its latest gadget called Up. The new product is described as “an intelligent, wearable wristband with an application that combines tracking, analysis, social and motivational elements.” Jawbone, which makes a popular Bluetooth headset and also the Jambox wireless speaker, said Up will track a user’s movement, sleep patterns and nutrition.

Hold the Sports Phone: Ross Levinsohn Not Leaving Yahoo for HBO

Kara Swisher in News on May 6, 2011 at 11:45 am PT

While there has been a report on a boxing news site that Yahoo Americas head Ross Levinsohn was leaving the Internet giant to run HBO’s sports unit, it’s not so. Trust BoomTown on this one–I have all top Yahoo execs embedded with Apple iOS and Google Android location tracking devices.

BoomTown on KQED's "iPhone or iSpy" Radio Show (Audio)

Kara Swisher in News on April 29, 2011 at 9:02 am PT

The Apple iOS and Google Android smartphone location-tracking kerfuffle. Smarty-pants commentators. KQED’s “Forum” radio show with interviewer Michael Krasny yesterday. Go!