David Choffnes All Experts

Associate Professor of Computer and Information Science

Expertise

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choffnes@ccs.neu.edu

617.373.4239

David Choffnes In the Media

David Choffnes for Northeastern

Facial recognition technology: In our rush to deploy it, are we ignoring the risks?

London has announced that it will install cameras across the city to catch and identify criminal suspects, joining a growing list of cities that have embraced facial recognition technology. David Choffnes, whose research focuses on network security and privacy, cautions that with so much at stake, it’s worth considering the potential risks of public surveillance tools before rushing to deploy them.
- by Khalida Sarwari February 12, 2020
Your smart TV is talking to Netflix about you behind your back

While you were watching the finale of Chernobyl, your smart TV was sending data to technology and advertising companies, according to a new study led by David Choffnes, an associate professor of computer and information science at Northeastern. What isn’t clear is what third-party services actually do with that data and whether they’re misusing it, he says.
- by Khalida Sarwari September 20, 2019
Here’s why it took you so long to load the trailer for the new Star Wars movie on YouTube

A new study by Northeastern professor David Choffnes has found that almost all wireless carriers slow down internet speed for video streaming, even when networks are not overloaded.
- by Khalida Sarwari August 27, 2019
You gave away the rights to your face. The one you use to unlock your phone.

“The obvious privacy concern is it’s your face that is now in the hands of a company that can go and use that face however they want, according to their terms and conditions,” says David Choffnes, an assistant professor at Northeastern’s Khoury College of Computer Sciences who designs solutions to internet security and privacy.
- by Khalida Sarwari July 19, 2019
The new iPhone is here. Is Apple slowing down your old device to make you buy the new one?

The new iPhone XR comes out today, and conspiracy theorists want to know whether Apple will slow down customers’ old iPhones to make them buy new ones. But “when it comes to slow operating speed,” said Northeastern professor David Choffnes, “the biggest culprits are usually apps that run in the background and use up a lot of battery power.”
- by Emily Arntsen October 26, 2018
Is your refrigerator spying on you?

Are smart devices collecting data on us while they’re supposed to be off? That’s what Northeastern assistant professor David Choffnes and his colleagues are studying. And the answer, so far, appears to be yes.
- by Molly Callahan September 25, 2018
New research shows that, post net neutrality, internet providers are slowing down your streaming

YouTube resolution down again? Through a collaboration with another Massachusetts university, this Northeastern team unveils exactly who’s responsible.
- by Aria Bracci and Lia Petronio September 10, 2018
Is your smartphone spying on you?

New research by Northeastern faculty and students shows that popular smartphone apps can secretly take screenshots of your phone activity and send it to third parties without your permission.
- by Bill Ibelle July 6, 2018
Worried about your Facebook data? Read this.

Last weekend, The New York Times revealed that data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica misused data from as many as 50 million Facebook profiles to aid messaging tied to the Trump campaign in the 2016 presidential election. We spoke with assistant professor David Choffnes to see what social media users should learn from this, and what steps they can take to keep themselves safe online.
- by Shannon Nargi March 26, 2018
Cambridge Analytica, Facebook data collection a ‘breach of trust’ not security

Over the weekend, The New York Times reported that voter-profiling company Cambridge Analytica had obtained data on 50 million Facebook users—information it used in the 2016 presidential campaign. We spoke to three computer and information scientists about what exactly happened, and how it’s helping shine a light on some of the murkier areas of data collection.
- by Molly Callahan March 20, 2018

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David Choffnes for Northeastern

Facial recognition technology: In our rush to deploy it, are we ignoring the risks?

Your smart TV is talking to Netflix about you behind your back

Here’s why it took you so long to load the trailer for the new Star Wars movie on YouTube

You gave away the rights to your face. The one you use to unlock your phone.

The new iPhone is here. Is Apple slowing down your old device to make you buy the new one?

Is your refrigerator spying on you?

New research shows that, post net neutrality, internet providers are slowing down your streaming

Is your smartphone spying on you?

Worried about your Facebook data? Read this.

Cambridge Analytica, Facebook data collection a ‘breach of trust’ not security

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