Whitney Merrill
@wbm312.bsky.social
I nudge people to care about privacy and security. CPO/DPO. Privacy/infosec lawyer. Hacker. Fighting for privacy, digital civil liberties & the users. Ex @EA @FTC |my views are my own. I used to post on Twitter at @wbm312.
Pinned
Reposted by Whitney Merrill
When Ohio voters protected the rights "to make reproductive decisions and travel for healthcare, they didn’t intend for their state to subsidize the very surveillance tools that can criminalize those choices,” EFF’s @tsnvaa.bsky.social told @clevelandscene.bsky.social.
Ohio State Highway Patrol Has Contract With Flock, Firm That Tracked Abortion Patient - Cleveland Scene
Flock Safety has received criticism for tracking a Texan who drove to Illinois to flee the state's forced-birth laws. Despite 2023's Ohio Issue 1 decision, Ohio's state highway patrol gave the firm te...
www.clevescene.com
November 13, 2025 at 9:51 PM
When Ohio voters protected the rights "to make reproductive decisions and travel for healthcare, they didn’t intend for their state to subsidize the very surveillance tools that can criminalize those choices,” EFF’s @tsnvaa.bsky.social told @clevelandscene.bsky.social.
I’ve decided there are too many ways to reach me. Too many platforms that allow people to send messages.
November 13, 2025 at 6:42 AM
I’ve decided there are too many ways to reach me. Too many platforms that allow people to send messages.
Reposted by Whitney Merrill
Tucked away deep in the Settings app on Android are all sorts of privacy and security features you may have never seen. It’s time to get to know those settings. ssd.eff.org/module/how-...
How to: Get to Know Android Privacy and Security Settings
Open up your Android phone’s Settings app and you’ll find dozens of different options with little guidance on what those options do. Some of these settings have a serious impact on your privacy and security, altering what data gets shared automatically with apps, data brokers, and Google itself.
What sorts...
ssd.eff.org
November 12, 2025 at 11:04 PM
Tucked away deep in the Settings app on Android are all sorts of privacy and security features you may have never seen. It’s time to get to know those settings. ssd.eff.org/module/how-...
They decided to stop making the penny?!
November 13, 2025 at 6:30 AM
They decided to stop making the penny?!
Reposted by Whitney Merrill
This is a damn shame to see. @brianhofer.bsky.social has been such a driving force not just in keeping this city on track and protecting its citizens' privacy, but in creating a standard for the rest of the country. Thanks for all you've done, Brian.
oaklandside.org/2025/11/12/o...
oaklandside.org/2025/11/12/o...
2 Oakland privacy commissioners resign: ‘I felt like nothing I was doing mattered’
Brian Hofer and Sean Everhart don’t think the city is doing enough to ensure residents’ privacy rights and protect itself from lawsuits.
oaklandside.org
November 13, 2025 at 5:27 AM
This is a damn shame to see. @brianhofer.bsky.social has been such a driving force not just in keeping this city on track and protecting its citizens' privacy, but in creating a standard for the rest of the country. Thanks for all you've done, Brian.
oaklandside.org/2025/11/12/o...
oaklandside.org/2025/11/12/o...
The password to the Louvre’s video surveillance system was “Louvre,” according to a museum employee
Password to Louvre’s video surveillance system was 'Louvre', according to employee
According to an employee with knowledge of the system, the password to the Louvre's video surveillance system was simply "Louvre" at the time of the robbery last month.
abcnews.go.com
November 6, 2025 at 11:56 PM
Appreciate the cynical responses… and don’t disagree.
No consequences, no compliance.
No consequences, no compliance.
Do large retailers just not care about PCI compliance anymore? I am shocked at how many big and established retailers collect credit card details via a credit card authorization form over email.
October 31, 2025 at 4:29 AM
Appreciate the cynical responses… and don’t disagree.
No consequences, no compliance.
No consequences, no compliance.
Do large retailers just not care about PCI compliance anymore? I am shocked at how many big and established retailers collect credit card details via a credit card authorization form over email.
October 30, 2025 at 6:43 PM
Do large retailers just not care about PCI compliance anymore? I am shocked at how many big and established retailers collect credit card details via a credit card authorization form over email.
Reposted by Whitney Merrill
“We should have banned government use of face recognition when we had the chance because it is dangerous, invasive, and an inherent threat to civil liberties,” EFF’s @MGuariglia.bsky.social told @404Media.co. www.404media.co/ice-and-cbp...
ICE and CBP Agents Are Scanning Peoples’ Faces on the Street To Verify Citizenship
Videos on social media show officers from ICE and CBP using facial recognition technology on people in the field. One expert described the practice as “pure dystopian creep.”
www.404media.co
October 29, 2025 at 8:03 PM
“We should have banned government use of face recognition when we had the chance because it is dangerous, invasive, and an inherent threat to civil liberties,” EFF’s @MGuariglia.bsky.social told @404Media.co. www.404media.co/ice-and-cbp...
No? Just me?
Anyone else getting non stop “Invesco QQQ” spam calls? Maybe 5-6 a day at this point.
October 29, 2025 at 1:41 AM
No? Just me?
Anyone else getting non stop “Invesco QQQ” spam calls? Maybe 5-6 a day at this point.
October 29, 2025 at 1:00 AM
Anyone else getting non stop “Invesco QQQ” spam calls? Maybe 5-6 a day at this point.
This is why I always, always opt out of the use of these when asked by a nurse or doctor.
October 26, 2025 at 5:48 AM
This is why I always, always opt out of the use of these when asked by a nurse or doctor.
Reposted by Whitney Merrill
@wbm312.bsky.social gave me this payphone pin @shmoocon.bsky.social one time and it’s the coolest pin I’ve ever seen, and I kept thinking I needed to save it for special occasions but it’s too cool not to display, so it’s on the bag now next to the pirate jelly (that I made).
October 25, 2025 at 1:57 AM
@wbm312.bsky.social gave me this payphone pin @shmoocon.bsky.social one time and it’s the coolest pin I’ve ever seen, and I kept thinking I needed to save it for special occasions but it’s too cool not to display, so it’s on the bag now next to the pirate jelly (that I made).
Ok it’s Friday! Tell me about all the good things that happened this week.
October 24, 2025 at 11:15 PM
Ok it’s Friday! Tell me about all the good things that happened this week.
Reposted by Whitney Merrill
The New York Times publishes a handy guide to which federal forces are terrorizing us at any moment. This is America, 2025.
October 24, 2025 at 11:51 AM
The New York Times publishes a handy guide to which federal forces are terrorizing us at any moment. This is America, 2025.
If I had a spare $100k (or if any hundred millionaire or billionaire is feeling generous), I definitely would be participating in this auction.
I want a fraggle! www.juliensauctions.com/en/auctions/...
I want a fraggle! www.juliensauctions.com/en/auctions/...
The Jim Henson Company 70th Anniversary Auction
Julien’s Auctions is proud to present The Jim Henson Company 70th Anniversary Auction.
Over the course of its 70-year history, The Jim Henson Com...
www.juliensauctions.com
October 24, 2025 at 12:47 AM
If I had a spare $100k (or if any hundred millionaire or billionaire is feeling generous), I definitely would be participating in this auction.
I want a fraggle! www.juliensauctions.com/en/auctions/...
I want a fraggle! www.juliensauctions.com/en/auctions/...
Reposted by Whitney Merrill
“Ring’s new partnership with Flock shows that the company is more interested in contributing to mounting authoritarianism than servicing the specific needs of their customers,” EFF’s @MGuariglia.bsky.social told @ArsTechnica.com. arstechnica.com/gadgets/202...
Ring cameras are about to get increasingly chummy with law enforcement
Amazon’s Ring partners with company whose tech has reportedly been used by ICE.
arstechnica.com
October 21, 2025 at 6:02 PM
“Ring’s new partnership with Flock shows that the company is more interested in contributing to mounting authoritarianism than servicing the specific needs of their customers,” EFF’s @MGuariglia.bsky.social told @ArsTechnica.com. arstechnica.com/gadgets/202...
I feel like every day I'm unsubscribing from a new type of LinkedIn email or notification...
October 21, 2025 at 3:49 AM
I feel like every day I'm unsubscribing from a new type of LinkedIn email or notification...
I’ve lost faith in our courts and our legal system. Not really sure where we go from here.
No one seems to be doing their job or holding anyone accountable.
No one seems to be doing their job or holding anyone accountable.
By a 2-1 opinion, the Ninth Circuit just held that the president can federalize the National Guard forces and deploy them when protesters shine flashlights in the eyes of ICE officers. It’s one of the most dangerous and legally flawed court decisions I’ve seen this year. 1/23
October 21, 2025 at 3:12 AM
I’ve lost faith in our courts and our legal system. Not really sure where we go from here.
No one seems to be doing their job or holding anyone accountable.
No one seems to be doing their job or holding anyone accountable.
I will die on this hill. Because we need and have other internets besides the Internet.
The Internet is a proper noun.
October 21, 2025 at 12:46 AM
I will die on this hill. Because we need and have other internets besides the Internet.
Let today be a reminder that competition and diversity in the tech industry is extremely important.
October 20, 2025 at 9:09 PM
Let today be a reminder that competition and diversity in the tech industry is extremely important.
The billionaire to fascist pipeline is remarkably strong lately.
October 17, 2025 at 11:11 AM
The billionaire to fascist pipeline is remarkably strong lately.
Reposted by Whitney Merrill
New: hackers just doxed hundreds of DHS, ICE, FBI, and DOJ officials. I went through the data. In many cases does look legitimate, sometimes includes residential addresses.
“Mexican Cartels hmu [hit me up] we dropping all the doxes wheres my 1m [1 million].”
www.404media.co/hackers-dox-...
“Mexican Cartels hmu [hit me up] we dropping all the doxes wheres my 1m [1 million].”
www.404media.co/hackers-dox-...
Hackers Dox Hundreds of DHS, ICE, FBI, and DOJ Officials
Scattered LAPSUS$ Hunters—one of the latest amalgamations of typically young, reckless, and English-speaking hackers—posted the apparent phone numbers and addresses of hundreds of government officials...
www.404media.co
October 17, 2025 at 2:36 AM
New: hackers just doxed hundreds of DHS, ICE, FBI, and DOJ officials. I went through the data. In many cases does look legitimate, sometimes includes residential addresses.
“Mexican Cartels hmu [hit me up] we dropping all the doxes wheres my 1m [1 million].”
www.404media.co/hackers-dox-...
“Mexican Cartels hmu [hit me up] we dropping all the doxes wheres my 1m [1 million].”
www.404media.co/hackers-dox-...
Reposted by Whitney Merrill
Flock is preparing to roll out a new feature: Its gunshot detection devices will begin listening for voices in “distress.” www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...
Flock’s Gunshot Detection Microphones Will Start Listening for Human
Flock Safety, the police technology company most notable for their extensive network of automated license plate readers spread throughout the United States, is rolling out a new and troubling product
www.eff.org
October 9, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Flock is preparing to roll out a new feature: Its gunshot detection devices will begin listening for voices in “distress.” www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...
Reposted by Whitney Merrill
A sheriff told the media that his team searched a license plate reader database because they were worried about a woman's safety. Records show it was an abortion investigation. www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...
Flock Safety and Texas Sheriff Claimed License Plate Search Was for a
New documents and court records obtained by EFF show that Texas deputies queried Flock Safety's surveillance data in an abortion investigation, contradicting the narrative promoted by the company and
www.eff.org
October 9, 2025 at 6:58 PM
A sheriff told the media that his team searched a license plate reader database because they were worried about a woman's safety. Records show it was an abortion investigation. www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...