Wisconsin court ruling addresses a different aspect of privacy and personal e-mails

A Wisconsin state supreme court ruling issued last week adds another dimension to the current debate over employee expectations of privacy in personal communications using employer-provided means. In this case, a group of teachers in the…

New HITECH privacy provision hints at adversarial relationship between individuals and health care plans

Among the privacy and security provisions mandated by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act included in the new proposed rules issued last week by the Office of the National Coordinator is…

Security and privacy rules and regulations insufficient to engender public trust in HIEs

A lawsuit filed last month by the Rhode Island chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) against the state Department of Health charges that the rules the state issued regarding its planned health information exchange…

ONC focus on NHIN governance presents opportunity to establish acceptable security and privacy standards

According to an article yesterday from Government Health IT, the Office of the National Coordinator is getting ready to address a more complete set of rules of behavior and other requirements for participation in the Nationwide…

Trust mitigates privacy concerns, even with marketers

A research report released by the Direct Marketing Association (a U.K.-based entity) in cooperation with fast.MAP confirms that privacy concerns related to disclosing personal information continue to weigh on consumers’ minds, but also suggests that consumers…

Agencies receive new guidance, privacy requirements on use of third-party websites

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) today released a new memo to all heads of executive departments and agencies, “Guidance for Agency Use of Third-Party Websites and Applications,” that lays out a set of general…

Supreme Court rules search of police officer’s text messages legal, opts not to try to resolve reasonable expectation of privacy issue

The U.S. Supreme Court handed down a unanimous ruling in Ontario v. Quon, reversing the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals and finding that the City of Ontario (Calif.) Police Department (OPD) did not violate the 4th…