The Office of the Privacy Commissioner wants to get in front of the looming tech trends, from wearable devices to AI to drones. But is that the best approach? Following a series of tech-related privacy workshops, the OPC is having second thoughts - maybe it's time to take a step back and tackle a few basics? In this post for IITP's Techblog, our Policy and Technology Team Policy Adviser, Tim Henwood, takes a look at our current thinking.

Apps can be convenient and fun to use. It is a world of incredible choice but one that also sets off privacy alarm bells. When a New Zealand news media organisation upgraded its app for Android phones earlier this year, one person was concerned enough to contact us.

Google Play recently made a change to the way it handles permissions when you download a new app. Permissions, in app speak, show you what parts of your Android phone the app will have access to. Whether it’s data - like your phone numbers; or hardware - like being able to play sound through your speakers, or access your GPS location, these permissions are generally necessary to help the app run.

Yo - an app so deceptively simple it is regularly dismissed as stupid or pointless - has been headlining the web’s tech news pages recently. For those that aren’t up to speed, Yo allows you to send a one-word message to friends who you have added on Yo. (Guess what that one word message is!)