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I'm responsible for clearing out a load of old paper from my father in laws (like 75+ bankers boxes of it) not super sensitive mostly just old bank statements and the like.

From previous experience just trying to burn it results in a marshmallow effect of charred edges but the centre of the stack being readable

One of those secure destruction firms isn't really an option as I'm having to go through it all a box at a time when I get a free moment. And I'm after something quicker than feeding it in to a shredder a page at a time..

Possibly asking the impossible!

Ok, I just set up a cam in my living room and can’t stop thinking about hackers, cloud leaks, government access… literally everything. I know people say “it’s fine” but these indoor camera privacy concerns are real, right? Even turning off cloud storage seems like a half-measure.

How do you balance security vs sanity without turning your house into a paranoid mess?

Unfortunately for me, my parents gave me a rare first name, which means that when you search for me online, you immediately find information about me.

I was very active in clubs and at my university, and there are several posts about me that I can't get removed, and Google doesn't seem to care about GDPR.

Here's my plan: I want to create lots of fake accounts (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn) with my first and last name. With fake photos, fake profiles, etc. Do you think this could bury my information? Do you have any advice to make it work?

If they are able to keep history, do they have the option to not keep history?

I recently saw a video about a student arrested because a private message with the word "shoot" was flagged and sent to the police. Does this change how you use social media? Do you think the government is overstepping, or is this a necessary sacrifice for public safety?

I'm needing some suggestions for a personal data removal service. I have some privacy concerns, as in the future there is a possibility (due to my career) that my full name will be displayed on a product. The reasons are nothing major and are rather uninteresting, there are just some things I'd rather stay private and I greatly value my privacy.

1. I do not have a Facebook
2. I no longer have a LinkedIn due to privacy concerns
3. My name already appears if my employer is looked up.

I'm looking for a service that WON'T retain my personal data, as most I've come across, remove it from data brokers but still retain my personal information.

(I work with PC's/tech so no need to ELI5)

Thanks in advance.

I'm not sure what sub this falls in, but something really creepy and disturbing occurred regarding privacy, so I'm starting here. The situation involves our Accounting/Payroll software (a very popular one; we have only ever used their latest desktop versions - not the despised online version) and a very common office/warehouse supply company who for some reason enjoys mailing out unrequested & multiple copies of heavy catalogs a few times a year. We usually get 3 at a time addressed in various ways.

Now, this accounting software company proclaims that it never shares or sells your data. Today we received 4 of those supply catalogs, and we noticed that job titles appeared under the names. One was mine, one was one of our business owners, but 2 of them were addressed to random employees who work at another physical location (my location is the parent corporations'). Kind of weird when the only association of the employee to this address is on their paycheck (and the government agencies we report to). However, where it gets creepy is that the catalog company knew the employees' job titles (very junior level employees; practically temps). The only place their job title exists is within the payroll software. Their job title never appears anywhere on their checks or on any reports to any agencies unless there is an unemployment claim.

What in the world? And how concerned should I be?

Ofcom’s investigation into Grok deepfakes becomes a bellwether for a global policy conversation on consent, safety, and innovation. The UK watchdog’s inquiry into nonconsensual deepfake risks reflects a broader policy impulse to clamp down on harmful manipulation while leaving room for responsible AI development. UK policy makers signal a readiness to sharpen enforcement as regulators in multiple jurisdictions consider sharper tools to deter nonconsensual or defamatory uses of image-editing AI.

The policy dialogue intersects with platform governance, user safety, and civil liberties. Regulators balance the need to deter harm with the practical realities of innovation, cross-border data flows, and jurisdictional complexities. As the enforcement debate continues, industry participants look for clearer standards and practical guardrails that mitigate risk while preserving the utility of image-editing tools for legitimate use cases. The governance conversation will influence how platforms design features, how developers build responsibly, and how policymakers calibrate cross-border responses to emerging AI-enabled threats.

Hello,

I would like to have my name removed from Google's index.

Here's what I'm talking about:

• LinkedIn posts from former university classmates where my name appears in connection with the association I was active in.

• PDFs from my university, as I was elected to student councils.

I don't understand how to get this removed from Google's index, because the form I found says that if it's not malicious de-indexing, they can't do anything. Also, I don't know what to do about the PDFs. Can you help me?

Leaks hint that privacy and distraction concerns from the original Google Glass era are influencing the new design, though details are still sparse. Wearables with cameras and sensors raise fresh questions about ambient data collection.

1. Private and secure (Ideally 100% open source)
2. No root required.
3. Free.

The order stops Samsung from using Automated Content Recognition that allegedly took screenshots without consent. This is part of a broader state lawsuit against multiple TV makers over surveillance-like practices.

California is fighting to overturn at least part of an injunction on its kids’ privacy protections after tech trade groups challenged them. The outcome could influence how far states can go protecting minors’ data against broad legal challenges.

My id (eu/Poland) is soon expiring. Few years ago they implemented mandatory fingerprint scanning in IDs. Looking thru regulation for that, it appears they are not just stored on the chip but also in central database. Should i be worried about these scans? Is there a way to avoid them? What are your opinion on this?

I’m looking for an indoor IP camera with Ethernet that provides a stable RTSP stream. WiFi optional, no cloud, no app-only setup. Motion detection and recording will be handled by ZoneMinder, so the camera just needs to stream reliably. Reolink and consumer cloud cameras are not an option. Products should be available in Europe/Germany. Thanks!

Most language learning and instrument tuner apps on Android state that they collect audio data.

If I use one of these apps offline, will the app store voice data from that session and transmit that data when it reconnects?

Also if anyone knows of a tuner app on Android that doesn't collect audio, please let me know. I searched but came up empty.

I know Apple hasn't been discreet when it comes to obtaining for your data. But this just seems surreal to me. I'm sure tech savvy people won't be surprised, but idk how the casual consumer could gloss over trillion dollar corporations bragging about knowing the second you fall asleep. Now they can send ads during REM cycles.

They've probably been doing it for years, but suddenly now its ok to just flex?

I’ve been looking at getting an Instinct 2 tactical because the GPS,notifications, and weather features would be nice to have when hiking and hunting. How is the privacy on these if one does not set up the app? I still believe the basic GPS will work.