The BreakdownCoronavirus

Which Face Masks Actually Work Against COVID-19?

Lots of products advertise protective qualities but not all of them are backed by science

September 29, 2020 8:00 a.m. UTC

Locked Out

Can Algorithms Violate Fair Housing Laws?

Landlords increasingly use screening services to weed out renters. Advocates say both landlords and the algorithms should be accountable when things go wrong

September 24, 2020 8:00 a.m. UTC

Show Your WorkBlacklight

How We Built a Real-time Privacy Inspector

Blacklight catalogs the many ways any website tracks visitors: from cookies to capturing every user keystroke and mouse movement

September 22, 2020 8:00 a.m. UTC

Blacklight

What They Know … Now

The surveillance economy is getting creepier and more personal

September 22, 2020 6:00 a.m. UTC

Blacklight

The High Privacy Cost of a “Free” Website

Trackers piggybacking on website tools leave some site operators in the dark about who is watching or what marketers do with the data

September 22, 2020 6:00 a.m. UTC

The BreakdownBlacklight

I Scanned the Websites I Visit with Blacklight, and It’s Horrifying. Now What?

You should probably switch browsers or add some privacy extensions

September 22, 2020 6:00 a.m. UTC

Banned Bounty

Labeled “Research” Chemicals, Doping Drugs Sold Openly on Amazon.com

Amazon bans injectable drugs, but enforcement failures have led to a swell of listings for unproven performance enhancing peptides

September 17, 2020 8:00 a.m. UTC

The Breakdown

What Are Ghost Kitchens?

You think you just ordered pizza from a mom and pop, but it might be from Chuck E. Cheese

September 15, 2020 8:00 a.m. UTC

The BreakdownElection 2020

Why Do Voting Machines Break on Election Day?

Power outages, paper jams, and ancient technology are more likely culprits than hackers

September 10, 2020 8:00 a.m. UTC

Coronavirus

Schools Are Buying Up Surveillance Technology to Fight COVID-19

But will it actually prevent an outbreak?

September 8, 2020 8:00 a.m. UTC