Topic: Mary Ellen Callahan

Former DHS Chief Privacy Officer Mary Ellen Callahan speaks at a caucus about the "irreparable damage" to the U.S. image in Europe following surveillance revelations. She introduces the "ick factor," suggesting that European citizens and companies now view U.S. tech firms with suspicion. Dvorak counters that most people are "slaves" who will continue using Google regardless of privacy concerns.

A listener provides a firsthand account of a presentation by Mary Ellen Callahan, the Department of Homeland Security's former Chief Privacy Officer. The hosts mock Callahan's focus on training employees not to lose USB drives rather than implementing robust encryption like TrueCrypt. They highlight her dual role at a major law firm as a potential conflict of interest in privacy protection.