How to become a scammer…

https://threatpost.com/google-voice-authentication-scam/177421/

Google Voice Authentication Scam Leaves Victims on the Hook

The FBI is seeing so much activity around malicious Google Voice activity, where victims are associated with fraudulent virtual phone numbers, that it sent out an alert this week.

Fluffy is missing.

You post your lost pet’s photo online, hoping that some good Samaritan will find Fluffy, listing your phone number and crossing your fingers.

You get a text or email from somebody who thinks they’ve found Fluffy – or, say, somebody who wants to buy that scruffy old couch you posted for sale on Craigslist.

The purported lost-pet-finder/old-couch-aficionado tells you they don’t want to get scammed, though. They’ve heard about fake online listings and want to verify that you’re a real person and not a bot, or they might say that they want to verify that you’re the pet’s true owner.

So they tell you they will send you a Google authentication code in the form of a voice call or a text message, and then ask you to repeat the number back to them to prove you’re real.

In reality, they’re setting up a Google Voice account in your name, using your phone number, and the “authentication” code is actually the two-step verification code needed to complete the set-up process.

There are a growing number of scammers are rolling out this Google Voice scam — to the point where the FBI was moved to issue a warning about them this week.

Helping to define the minimum acceptable level of computer security? Do this if you want us to assume any of the risk.

https://www.databreaches.net/why-canadian-cyber-insurance-companies-are-requiring-businesses-to-use-multi-factor-authentication/

Why Canadian cyber insurance companies are requiring businesses to use multi-factor authentication

Alyssa DiSabatino reports:

Canadian cyber insurance companies are now requiring businesses to offer multi-factor authentication (MFA) and have cybercrime/data breach response plans in place before qualifying for coverage.

Prudent, since cybercrimes and ransomware attacks are on the rise – Canadians have lost $4.9 billion to ransomware attacks in the last year.

Read more at Canadian Underwriter.

Could the US dictate an “opt-out button” on every website?

https://thehackernews.com/2022/01/france-fines-google-facebook-210.html

France Fines Google, Facebook €210 Million Over Privacy Violating Tracking Cookies

The Commission nationale de l'informatique et des libertés (CNIL), France's data protection watchdog, has slapped Facebook (now Meta Platforms) and Google with fines of €150 million ($170 million) and €60 million ($68 million) for violating E.U. privacy rules by failing to provide users with an easy option to reject cookie tracking technology.

"The websites facebook.com, google.fr and youtube.com offer a button allowing the user to immediately accept cookies," the authority said. "However, they do not provide an equivalent solution (button or other) enabling the Internet user to easily refuse the deposit of these cookies."

More than GDPR?

https://www.huntonprivacyblog.com/2022/01/06/indias-draft-data-protection-bill-moves-closer-to-passage/

India’s Draft Data Protection Bill Moves Closer to Passage

Stephen Mathias from Kochhar & Co. reports that on December 16, 2021, the Indian Joint Parliamentary Committee (the “JPC”) submitted its report on India’s draft Data Protection Bill (the “Bill”). The Bill is now likely to be passed by Parliament in its next session, beginning in February 2022, and likely will enter into force in the first half of 2022.

… One key change relates to notification to the DPA within 72 hours of discovery of a data breach, which the Bill makes mandatory for every breach affecting Indian data subjects. Following notification, the DPA would decide whether data subjects would need to be notified of the data breach.

… Additionally, data localization requirements remain unchanged in the Bill. “Critical data” must be processed locally in India. “Sensitive personal data” (including biometric information, government identifiers and financial information) may be transferred out of India, but a copy of the data must be stored in India.

… Overall, the Bill goes beyond the GDPR in certain respects and will present new compliance considerations for many businesses subject to the law.

Another angle of the ‘public’ information argument?

https://www.pogowasright.org/background-reports-protected-by-section-230-dennis-v-mylife/

Background Reports Protected by Section 230–Dennis v. MyLife

Eric Goldman writes:

Plaintiffs sued MyLife for selling background reports about them and furnishing “public reputation scores.” MyLife aggregates its data from third-party sources, but the plaintiffs “seek to hold Defendant liable for packaging and re-publishing this information on its website without their permission.”

Article III Standing. The plaintiffs have standing because “both Plaintiffs have pleaded a concrete harm under a disclosure theory, as they allege that MyLife disseminated private and/or inaccurate information about them to third parties through their website.”

Section 230. The case fails due to Section 230.

Read Goldman’s explanation as to why at Technology & Marketing Law Blog.

Case citation: Dennis v. MyLife.com, Inc., 2021 WL 6049830 (D.N.J. Dec. 20, 2021)

Not exactly ‘we can, therefore we must’ but more like ‘no doubt everyone will want to implement this option so lets make that assumption for them.’

https://krebsonsecurity.com/2022/01/norton-360-now-comes-with-a-cryptominer/

Norton 360 Now Comes With a Cryptominer

Norton 360, one of the most popular antivirus products on the market today, has installed a cryptocurrency mining program on its customers’ computers. Norton’s parent firm says the cloud-based service that activates the program and allows customers to profit from the scheme — in which the company keeps 15 percent of any currencies mined — is “opt-in,” meaning users have to agree to enable it. But many Norton users complain the mining program is difficult to remove, and reactions from longtime customers have ranged from unease and disbelief to, “Dude, where’s my crypto?”

For me and my students…

https://www.bespacific.com/how-to-get-free-microsoft-office-for-students/

How to Get Free Microsoft Office for Students

Make Use Of: “Microsoft Office is the most widely used suite of office tools. It includes a word processor, a spreadsheet program, a presentation program, and several other tools. The company also sells different plans designed for non-profit, business, or personal usage. If you are a school administrator, teacher, or student, you might be eligible for a free Microsoft 365 subscription. The Microsoft Office student package is great for students on a budget, especially those who don’t want to or can’t pay the full price for the Office Suite…”

Tools & Techniques.

https://lifehacker.com/how-to-find-anyone-on-the-internet-for-free-1848312948

How to Find Anyone on the Internet for Free

We live in the most connected time in history. We can collaborate with people who live thousands of miles away, virtually visit places without leaving the comfort of our homes, and we can—with varying results—express our every thought to the entire world.

And yet, in some ways, we’re more isolated than ever. It’s become increasingly difficult to find people, simply due to the sheer size of our modern networks. It’s one thing to find someone still living in your neighborhood, but the task can be pretty daunting the wider you have to look.

But sometimes you need to find someone, and the good news is that most of us have a digital presence. Whether it’s idle curiosity about how an old friend is doing, or a customer or business associate whose details you’ve lost, we all sometimes need to find someone, and just popping a name into a search engine won’t always work.

Tools and Techniques.

https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/freemypdf-unlock-restricted-pd/

How to Use FreeMyPDF to Unlock Restricted PDF Files

FreeMyPDF makes accessing a restricted PDF document simple. With this web app, you'll never find yourself locked out of a PDF again.

Sounds like a serious threat. Are they trying to establish a precedent? Is it enforceable? Is it legal?

https://www.theregister.com/2022/01/05/ftc_log4j_fix/

You better have patched those Log4j holes or we'll see what a judge has to say – FTC

Apply fixes responsibly in a timely manner or face the wrath of Lina Khan

The US Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday warned companies that vulnerable Log4j software needs to be patched … or else.

In case any system administrators last month somehow missed the widespread alarm over vulnerabilities (CVE-2021-44228, CVE-2021-45046, CVE-2021-44832 ) in the Java logging package, the trade watchdog said Log4j continues to be exploited by a growing number of attackers and urged organizations to act now before it's too late.

The FTC is advising companies to consult the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency's (CISA) guidance on dealing with the Log4j flaws. If companies fail to fix their code and lose customer data, the FTC says it may just see what a judge thinks about that.

"The duty to take reasonable steps to mitigate known software vulnerabilities implicates laws including, among others, the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Gramm Leach Bliley Act," the commission said. "It is critical that companies and their vendors relying on Log4j act now, in order to reduce the likelihood of harm to consumers, and to avoid FTC legal action."

Think of my digital avatar which I can copy and hire out to multiple digital bosses…

https://www.computerworld.com/article/3646234/the-rise-of-ai-based-managers-they-now-play-a-big-role-in-hiring-training-and-firing.html

The rise of digital bosses: They can hire you — and fire you

Automated software programs that help hire employees and monitor their work are becoming more popular as companies grapple with how to manage a disparate, remote workforce.

… A recent report from research firm IDC predicts that by 2024, 80% of Global 2000 companies will use AI/ML-enabled "Digital Managers" to hire, fire, and train workers in jobs measured by continuous improvement — but only one in five companies will get any real value from the move without human engagement.

Technology tends to go from expensive, one-off to cheap, generic.

https://www.ft.com/content/aef5901e-4b9c-4561-a559-a6b7197bafe1

Low-cost warfare: US military battles with ‘Costco drones’

… Frank McKenzie, the four-star Marine Corps general who commands US troops in the Middle East, says that despite a big push the US still remains under equipped for the drone threat, which first emerged as a serious concern in 2016.

“Right now, generally, the advantage lies with the attackers,” McKenzie told the Financial Times in an interview in December, saying cheap, small drones were easy to modify into lethal weapons and hard to distinguish from other airborne objects.

Why not a cheerful study for a change?

https://www.cpomagazine.com/cyber-security/cybercriminals-can-breach-93-of-company-networks-and-trigger-unacceptable-events-in-under-a-month-study-finds/

Cybercriminals Can Breach 93% Of Company Networks and Trigger Unacceptable Events in Under a Month, Study Finds

A new study by Positive Technologies found that cybercriminals could breach 93% of company networks and trigger 71% of unacceptable events within a month.

The tractor as Terminator? Worth reading carefully.

https://www.wired.com/story/john-deere-self-driving-tractor-stirs-debate-ai-farming/

John Deere's Self-Driving Tractor Stirs Debate on AI in Farming

The automation, and control of the resulting data, raise questions about the role of human farmers.

DEERE & CO. helped mechanize agriculture in 1837 with the first commercially successful steel plow. On Tuesday, the company unveiled a machine that could prove just as transformative: a fully autonomous tractor.

John Deere’s new 8R tractor uses six pairs of stereo cameras and advanced artificial intelligence to perceive its environment and navigate. It can find its way to a field on its own when given a route and coordinates, then plow the soil or sow seeds without instructions, avoiding obstacles as it goes. A farmer can give the machine new orders using a smartphone app.

… “It's a monumental shift,” says Jahmy Hindman, Deere’s chief technology officer, of the new machine, revealed at the 2022 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. “I think it's every bit as big as the transition from horse to tractor.”

… Hindman says the system will gather data about the soil as it toils away. That information will be used to tweak its algorithms, helping to improve performance and provide farmers with new insights on how to best work their land.

That troubles some farmer advocates and students of agriculture. Christopher Kitts, a professor who runs a field robotics program at Santa Clara University and studies agricultural automation, says the data collected by autonomous tractors could be so useful to farmers that Deere could charge extra to access it. It might also make it harder for rivals to compete.

… Ultimately, Kenney says, Deere may not even need farmers, dispatching autonomous tractors to manage large-scale “robotic farms.”

… But Hindman agrees that the farmer is no longer inextricably tied to his equipment. “We've now figured out how to decouple the labor from the machine,” he says. Unlike in the days of the plow, the farmer is not even strictly necessary.

What regulation is useful, what regulation is impossible…

https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3162099/china-rolls-out-new-regulation-rein-algorithms-used-apps-beijing

China rolls out new regulation to rein in algorithms used on apps as Beijing continues to clip wings of Big Tech firms

China is rolling out a new regulation to rein in algorithms used on apps to recommend what consumers would like to read, watch, play and buy online, marking Beijing’s latest effort to bring the country’s Big Tech sector firmly in line with state policies.

The regulation, which was published on Tuesday, will take effect on March 1. It was jointly drawn up by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security and the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR).

App operators who extensively use algorithm recommendation in their platforms – including e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding, social media and video gaming market leader Tencent Holdings, TikTok owner ByteDance and on-demand delivery services provider Meituan – are directed by the new regulation to “promote positive energy” and allow consumers to decline personalised recommendations generated by their services. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.

Interesting but unlikely?

https://bdtechtalks.com/2022/01/04/individual-artificial-intelligence/

Individual artificial intelligence: A new technology that will change our world

“Our consciousness is everything. You become what you think about.” Buddha

In the few minutes that you are reading this article, I will tell you about a completely new type of artificial intelligence, I will name the design features and advantages, I will outline the immediate prospects and possible long-term consequences of the introduction of this technology into real life. Together we will touch the future.

I feel lazy, I’ve only read one of these.

https://www.businessinsider.com/5-books-mit-says-you-have-to-read-from-2021-2021-12

5 books published in 2021 that MIT says you must read if you want to understand the world better

MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) has compiled a small list of the top books published in 2021.

The institute recommends these books for anyone who wants a better understanding of how the world has changed in the last two years, and what the future may look like.

It includes essays on investment, remote working, artificial intelligence, and vaccines — the authors are mostly university professors, researchers, and economists.

For the serious music nerd? Music in the public domain.

https://www.freetech4teachers.com/2022/01/the-national-jukebox-16000-early-music.html

The National Jukebox - 16,000+ Early Music Recordings

The Library of Congress offers many interesting collections of digital archives including one called the National Jukebox. I first wrote about it more than a decade ago. Since then the size of the collection has expanded because more recordings have entered the public domain and because the Library of Congress has digitized more recordings. The collection now offers more than 16,000 recordings made between the years of 1900 and 1925. Nearly all of the recordings were originally done on wax cylinders through the acoustical recording process.

The recordings in the National Jukebox can be searched and listened to on your computer. You can search the archives by recording date, recording type, language, and target audience. The National Jukebox has also arranged playlists that you can listen to in a continuous stream. You can also embed the recordings player into your blog or website as I have done below. Watch this short video to see the National Jukebox in action.

Remembering every transaction we make.

https://www.cpomagazine.com/data-privacy/proposed-digital-rupee-cbdc-from-indias-central-bank-raises-privacy-concerns/

Proposed “Digital Rupee” CBDC From India’s Central Bank Raises Privacy Concerns

A proposed central bank digital currency (CBDC) from India’s central bank, which could get a test run in 2022, has some concerned about the implications for privacy as national governments begin making concrete moves into the digital currency space.

The “digital rupee” pilot could launch as early as April, but many important details have yet to be put into place. It remains unclear what the government’s plans are for centralizing the technology and using intermediaries, and there is currently no privacy law governing the proposal.

… China’s CBDC project, the first serious effort backed by a central bank and with a planned launch in early 2022, has come under fire from privacy advocates for its proposed concept of “controllable anonymity.” User identity can be made anonymous to the retailers and service providers that payments are exchanged with, but not to the government. The government touted its plans to monitor the currency in real time to police criminal activity. [And all other activity… Bob]

Another ‘We can, therefore we must?” Do we really need cameras that do all these things?

https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/nextbase-iq-dash-cam-ai-cloud-adas/

Nextbase iQ is an AI-powered, cloud-connected smart dash cam

More than just a dash cam, the iQ series uses its always-on data connection and onboard artificial intelligence to boost safety and security.

… The new iQ models boost safety and security with the addition of 4G LTE connectivity, but can also help prevent accidents in the first place, thanks to an evolving suite of AI-powered, advanced driver-assistance technologies.

… There are two cameras integrated into the unit's housing, one pointed forward that captures in 1080p, 1440p or 4K resolution and another monitoring the cabin in either 1080p or 1440p. There is also an optional third wired remote camera that points out the rear window, capturing at 1440p.

The compact iQ is designed to be discrete and low-distraction, so it doesn't feature a screen. Instead, users will interact with the device using voice commands that allow them to capture clips or activate the new Witness Mode, which notifies your chosen emergency contacts and activates a real-time stream of video to the cloud during "vulnerable road situations" like road rage or police stops.

Witness Mode is powered by the iQ's built-in 4G LTE and Wi-Fi connectivity. This always-on data connection also powers what I reckon is the iQ's most important new feature, Emergency SOS Response. If an impact is detected and the driver is incapacitated or unresponsive, the smart dash cam can send precise location and heading information directly to emergency responders, along with optional medical information like blood type.

4G also enables the Valet mode, if the vehicle exceeds a certain speed or leaves its location boundaries, and the Live View mode that lets users check in on a live video stream from their car while it's parked, via the new Nextbase iQ app, and even broadcast their voice to the car using the iQ's built-in speaker. Users can also receive alerts when their parked vehicle is bumped or if the onboard AI detects would-be intruders looking into or loitering around their car.

How the Privacy Foundation was funded…

https://www.insideprivacy.com/united-states/litigation/ninth-circuit-affirms-approval-of-injunctive-relief-and-cy-pres-settlement-of-google-street-view-privacy-claims/

Ninth Circuit Affirms Approval of Injunctive Relief and Cy Pres Settlement of Google Street View Privacy Claims

Last week, in a decision that confirms the viability of cy pres settlements in privacy class action cases, the Ninth Circuit affirmed approval of a class action injunctive relief and cy pres-only settlement in In re Google Inc. Street View Electronic Communications Litigation, No. 20-15616, 2021 WL 6111383. The case featured Wiretap Act claims based on Google Street View vehicles’ collection of “payload data,” including emails, passwords, and documents that Internet users transmitted over unencrypted Wi-Fi networks.

Interesting.

https://spectrum.ieee.org/ai-worst-case-scenarios

AI’s 6 Worst-Case Scenarios

Who needs Terminators when you have precision clickbait and ultra-deepfakes?

… as Malcolm Murdock, machine-learning engineer and author of the 2019 novel The Quantum Price, puts it, “AI doesn’t have to be sentient to kill us all. There are plenty of other scenarios that will wipe us out before sentient AI becomes a problem.”

Are we wrong to ask AI to explain its decisions?

https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/opinion/article-691456

Are we outsourcing our brains? - opinion

… There are countless more examples where learning models have proven to impact real-world systems in a very positive way. But are there some “side effects” that should concern us? Two possible risks are highlighted below.

The first is that, for the most part, learning models are not designed and built to provide an exact, easy to comprehend “formula” to explain the results they reach. No wonder scientists often refer to the inner “works” of such models as “neural networks.” Just as we are unable to understand exactly how a human brain, containing over one hundred billion neurons, reaches a certain conclusion, or why two people presented with identical data may reach different conclusions, we cannot really figure out a learning models’ outcomes. They resemble a “black box” guaranteeing, with a certain level of confidence, that if one feeds it with data that is like those it was trained on, the outcomes will continue to serve us well time after time.

… Second, as more and more professions are served by learning models, we may see professionals working in these areas give up trying to apply their own brain to the challenges ahead of them, as they succumb to the temptation to “outsource” this effort to virtual machines that do a fantastic job time and again. Rather than carefully reading each new case and trying to understand the human aspects involved, a judge may delegate this work to the model that will do it for him. A family doctor who used to talk to her patients, look at them while attempting to translate what their words and body language are telling her, may now prefer to let a model do the diagnosis in no time and with a much smaller probability of making a mistake.

Perspective.

https://insidebigdata.com/2022/01/03/2022-trends-in-intelligent-bots-knowledge-worker-empowerment/

2022 Trends in Intelligent Bots: Knowledge Worker Empowerment

… “Over the next one to two years we’ll see tens of thousands more knowledge workers deploy digital assistants to reduce complexity, achieve error-free work, help their customers by drastically reducing their ‘on-hold’ times and, most importantly, eliminate the frustration that arises from performing repetitive, manual tasks,” presaged Automation Anywhere CTO Prince Kohli.

Perspective.

https://insights.dice.com/2022/01/04/what-tech-jobs-demand-a-i-and-machine-learning-skills-in-2022/

What Tech Jobs Demand A.I. and Machine Learning Skills in 2022?

… According to Emsi Burning Glass, which collects and analyzes millions of job postings from across the country, the number of job postings requesting A.I. skills will increase 297 percent over the next two years. Over the past 12 months, some 142,346 job postings asked for A.I. skills; the median salary for jobs with a heavy A.I. component stands at $103,168.

But which tech jobs will see the strongest demand for A.I. skills? Based on job-posting data, it seems like data scientists, computer scientists/researchers, and data architects will see the most A.I.-related requests from employers. Check out the chart:

What does it mean when AI is mentioned in Vogue?

https://www.vogue.com/article/lior-cole-model-ai-technology-robo-rabbi

Lior Cole Is the Model Combining Artificial Intelligence With Religion

The value of privacy? $60M / 15M = $4 per victim (minus $3.99 to the lawyers?)

https://www.databreaches.net/morgan-stanley-to-pay-60-million-to-resolve-data-security-lawsuit/

Morgan Stanley to pay $60 million to resolve data security lawsuit

Jonathan Stempel reports:

Morgan Stanley agreed to pay $60 million to settle a lawsuit by customers who said the Wall Street bank exposed their personal data when it twice failed to properly retire some of its older information technology.

A preliminary settlement of the proposed class action on behalf of about 15 million customers was filed on Friday night in Manhattan federal court, and requires approval by U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres.

Read more from Reuters at WTVB.

“It’s for the children!” What if we define an “incident” as poor teaching?

https://www.pogowasright.org/proposed-bill-would-allow-video-audio-recording-in-florida-classrooms/

Proposed bill would allow video & audio recording in Florida classrooms

Evan Donovan reports:

A new bill filed in the Florida Legislature would allow video and audio recordings in school classrooms, forcing teachers to wear microphones and allowing parents to review video of any ‘incidents.’

HB 1055 is sponsored by Fla. Rep. Bob Rommel (R-Naples).

It would allow school districts to install video cameras in classrooms for the purposes of recording an “incident” — which it defines as abuse or neglect of a student by an employee or another student.

Read more at WFLA.

Perspective.

https://www.cpomagazine.com/data-protection/understanding-the-taxonomy-of-data-in-challenging-jurisdictions/

Understanding the Taxonomy of Data in Challenging Jurisdictions

Most people are familiar with the taxonomy of species. This process classifies animals to organize and understand how they are different and alike. For over a decade, this is also how humans have explored the world of data. The more research conducted into emerging markets, the bigger the reliance on a classification system to understand how users can access the public data collected on a daily basis. This system is simply the Taxonomy of Data.

When looking at the global supply of information required to complete legal, financial and corporate transactions, clear category lines appear. To simplify, let’s focus this discussion on corporate records. Now think of a spectrum: to the far left is the digitized information that is online, centralized and open. To the far right, is the opposite: paper files inside metal cabinets. From the far left to far right includes the spectrum of five different categories.

Some are obvious, number one is certain.

https://www.fastcompany.com/90707807/2022-promises-to-bring-massive-change-to-ai-regulation

2022 promises to bring massive change to AI regulation

… 1. THE U.S. WILL CONTINUE TO PUSH FOR VOLUNTARY STANDARDS AND FRAMEWORKS, DESPITE CLEAR EVIDENCE THAT THEY WON’T WORK.

The evolution of self-driving cars.

https://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/aptiv-machine-learning-radar-ces-2022/

Aptiv’s machine learning-powered radar sees even what you don’t

… Think of a self-driving car as a human being; radars are the eyes and machine learning technology is the brain. Fitting radars to a car’s body allows it to scope out the environment it operates in. It can detect that there’s a car in front of it, that there’s a bike coming the other way, and that there’s a traffic light it needs to stop for. These are fairly straightforward tasks that most self-driving prototypes already perform.

Machine learning takes this feature to the next level by allowing a car to remember the different scenarios and objects it has encountered. In turn, it can plan ahead: it knows that there is, say, a crowded bus stop around the corner that it might need to slow down for.

Learning from the differences?

https://www.hsaj.org/resources/uploads/2021/12/hsaj_V18_SouthoftheBorder_Dec2021v3.pdf

South of the Border: Legal and Privacy Underpinnings of Canadian and U.S. Approaches to Police Video Usage

This article utilizes modern privacy theory to examine the differing approaches of Canadian and U.S. law enforcement to the use of camera technology and advancing video analytics. The article documents the deployment of camera technology in two comparably-sized urban centers in Canada and the U.S. The reception of Canada and the U.S. to policing strategies utilizing sensors like cameras and video analytics tools like license plate and facial recognition are in sharp contrast. The article then offers a summary of Canadian and U.S. legal privacy protections following Alan Westin’s privacy model. This analysis suggests that the differences in the use of technology stem from philosophical and legal assessments of privacy rights. Specifically, protection for privacy concepts like anonymity and reserve explains the differing approaches. Understanding those differences is useful for administrators on either side of the border to plan their use of emerging imaging sensor technology and analytics.

Because I use self-driving tech as a challenge to my students.

https://ideas.repec.org/p/ipt/iptwpa/jrc127051.html

Trustworthy Autonomous Vehicles

This report aims to advance towards a general framework on Trustworthy AI for the specific domain of Autonomous Vehicles (AVs). The implementation and relevance of the assessment list established by the independent High Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence (AI HLEG) as a tool to translate the seven requirements that AI systems should meet in order to be trustworthy, defined in the Ethics Guidelines, are discussed in detail and contextualized for the field of AVs. The general behaviour of an AV depends on a set of multiple, complex, interrelated Artificial Intelligence (AI) based systems, each dealing with problems of different nature. The application context of AVs can intuitively be considered high-risk, and their adoption involves addressing significant technical, political and societal challenges. However, AVs could bring substantial benefits, improving safety, mobility, and the environment. Therefore, although challenging, it seems necessary to deepen the application of the assessment criteria of trustworthy AI for Avs.

Perspective.

https://www.nationalreview.com/2022/01/beware-amoral-humans-not-artificial-intelligence/

Beware Amoral Humans, Not Artificial Intelligence

… A rapidly growing number of people now earnestly wonder: What will AI do to society?

It’s an evocative, important question. But the answer will depend on the answer to a more important question altogether: Who is building AI? Artificial intelligence will do great evil or great good depending on the beliefs of those who make it. And right now, it is primarily being built by tech leaders with little to no understanding of or respect for the morality, virtues, and wisdom of the Judeo-Christian tradition. The greatest threat with AI isn’t all-powerful robots. It’s amoral people.

Should we debate it now or wait for the AIs to join the debate?

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/sjp.12450

Moral Status and Intelligent Robots

The great technological achievements in the recent past regarding artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and computer science make it very likely, according to many experts in the field, that we will see the advent of intelligent and autonomous robots that either match or supersede human capabilities in the midterm (within the next 50 years) or long term (within the next 100–300 years). Accordingly, this article has two main goals. First, we discuss some of the problems related to ascribing moral status to intelligent robots, and we examine three philosophical approaches—the Kantian approach, the relational approach, and the indirect duties approach—that are currently used in machine ethics to determine the moral status of intelligent robots. Second, we seek to raise broader awareness among moral philosophers of the important debates in machine ethics that will eventually affect how we conceive of key concepts and approaches in ethics and moral philosophy. The effects of intelligent and autonomous robots on our traditional ethical and moral theories and concepts will be substantial and will force us to revise and reconsider many established understandings. Therefore, it is essential to turn attention to debates over machine ethics now so that we can be better prepared to respond to the opportunities and challenges of the future.

Sort of like Donald Trump fighting to keep is “letters” private? (Nope. Not even close.)

https://www.pogowasright.org/the-duchess-and-the-tabloid-the-mail-admits-its-beaten/

The Duchess and the tabloid: The Mail admits it’s beaten

Brian Cathcart writes:

The owners of the Mail on Sunday have finally capitulated in the privacy and breach of copyright case brought by the Duchess of Sussex, abandoning any idea of a further appeal and agreeing to pay an undisclosed sum in settlement.

Following an order [pdf] made by the Court of Appeal which (among other things) required the publication of the front-page admission of defeat that appeared in the newspaper on Sunday, all that remains to be settled is the amount to be paid to the Duchess to reimburse her for her legal costs.

Read more at Inforrm’s Blog.

[From the article:

Most students of law or journalism could have told the editor of the Mail on Sunday that, in publishing large parts of an obviously personal letter from a daughter to her father, he was breaching her rights in ways he could not hope to justify. He too must have known this, and the only viable explanation for his action is that he assumed she would not sue.

He assumed wrongly. She not only sued but really went for the paper – a paper that had lied about her and smeared her for years. And Associated, again blind to reality, decided to fight the case.

Program creep. Will the US start with the vaccine passports?

https://www.cpomagazine.com/data-privacy/proposal-to-link-indias-aadhar-national-identification-system-to-election-system-raises-voter-id-privacy-concerns/

Proposal to Link India’s Aadhar National Identification System to Election System Raises Voter ID, Privacy Concerns

A recent amendment to India’s election laws enables the government to link the “Aadhar” national identification system to voter rolls, raising worries that voter ID may be used for privacy invasion.

The “Unique Identification Authority of India,” Aadhar is essentially a social security tracking system that issues a photo ID card and a 12-digit identifying number to residents of the country. The system is voluntary and technically opt-in, but has been controversial since its inception in 2009 as it has increasingly become linked to a variety of private services such as banking and mobile phone accounts.

… The government says that it wants Aadhar and the voter rolls connected solely for the purpose of checking for voters that have registered more than once by using different polling locations, and to streamline the process of changing the listed residential address after moving. The political opposition, which walked out in protest over the passage of the bill, contends that the end goal is really to expand the Aadhar card to become a required form of voter ID.

You would think they had a definition all could agree to.

https://thenextweb.com/news/scientists-want-call-pluto-planet-again-along-with-150-other-nearby-space-rocks

Scientists want to call Pluto a planet again — along with 150 other nearby space rocks

… Scientists now want to add every Pluto-like rock floating near our sun to the list of official planets.

… Basically, it means any geologically-complex entity in space can meet the team’s proposed requirements for planetary status.

Phillip Metzger, the lead author on the team’s paper, told NBC News that such a definition would leave us with around 150 planets in our solar system.

This means just about every moon in the solar system, including Earth’s moon Luna, which is about 1/3 larger in diameter than Pluto itself, would be considered a planet.