News & Commentary
Lawsuits Alleges U.S. Cellphone Carriers Sold Customer Location Data
New class-action lawsuits have been filed against major US cellphone carriers AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint in US District Court in Maryland. Each suit alleges violation of Section 222 of the US Communications Act in mostly identical terms via (in the words of the AT&T suit) the real-time “collection of geolocation data…
Read MoreLegislation Emerging to Curb Violent Posts on Social Media
Social media has accumulated remarkable power. Large companies like Facebook have aggressively expanded into new territories, further fueling growth and revenue – Facebook has a staggering 2.38 billion monthly active users as of March 31, 2019. But growth at all costs has come at a price. Facebook has taken its share of…
Read MoreQuandary Peak Research is coming to KCBS
After years of growing steadily in Tinseltown, Quandary Peak Research is finally ready for our closeup! We’re excited to announce that we will be featured on This is LA, a locally-produced TV show about notable companies in Los Angeles. George was interviewed by host Adam Kruger about the work we do and…
Read MoreResearchers Questioning Amazon’s Facial Recognition Technology
Artificial Intelligence technology is transforming previously unfathomable ideas into concrete realities on a daily basis. One flagship application is facial recognition technology, which has been embraced by law enforcement for identifying suspects – a development that has its detractors but remains touted for its crime prevention potential. For all its potential, however,…
Read MoreInside the Obscure Practice of “Cybersquatting”
The ‘wild west’ days of the internet may be over, but the current infrastructure is by no means devoid of controversy. Net neutrality, copyright issues, privacy concerns, and others remain hot-button issues. Less publicized, but still of major concern, is the issue of cybersquatting. In this post, we’ll take a closer look…
Read MoreHuawei vs. US Government: A Primer
The race for 5G technological supremacy is on. US technology companies are competing against Chinese counterparts – namely telecom giant Huawei – for dominance of the next wave of wireless network technology. That competition has led to a United States government crusade against Huawei that continues to grow in intensity. Keeping tabs…
Read MoreInternational Cyberwarfare Raising Questions About US Contractor Relationships
Espionage is a time-honored tradition – after all, there have always been secrets for others to uncover. The advent of digital technology and the rise of the internet have opened intelligence efforts to new frontiers, and cyberwarfare is increasingly common. Hacking is a necessary weapon in the digital age, prompting governments to…
Read MoreThe Net Neutrality Battle Continues
The battle over net neutrality has been marked by breakneck momentum shifts, plenty of legal action, but little in the way of permanence. Now, the most notable of several lawsuits challenging the 2017 FCC repeal is having its day in court, which could put an end to the uncertainty surrounding the issue.…
Read MoreACLU vs. Government: Should There Be Rules Governing Hacking?
The rise of mobile technology means we are rarely disconnected from a vast ecosystem of services and content. With more people online sharing more than ever, personal data has become currency, and entire business models are predicated on harvesting and deriving insight from that information. But technology companies have lost the benefit…
Read MoreLegal Troubles Don’t Mean Diminished Ambitions for Big Tech
Big Tech took some unprecedented hits in 2018. For the first time in memory, previously unassailable companies found themselves squarely in government and public crosshairs alike, answering for a series of (often data-centric) misdeeds. But even as questions loom and skepticism increases, these issues – and the ensuing public backlash – remain…
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