An anonymous reader quotes a report from CNET: A group of U.S. senators on Monday introduced a bill to regulate contact-tracing apps, aiming to protect user privacy as technology is used to track the spread of the novel coronavirus. The proposal is called the Exposure Notification Privacy Act and seeks to ensure that people couldn’t be forced to use the technology….
Tag: Civil Rights
Tech Companies Urges US House to Protect the Privacy of Americans’ Browsing and Search History
While reinstating the PATRIOT Act, the U.S. Senate blocked an amendment which would’ve shielded Americans’ browsing and search histories from warrantless searches. But that fight may not be over, reports TechSpot: [S]everal tech companies including Mozilla, Reddit, Twitter, and Patreon have co-signed a letter asking the House of Representatives to tidy up this mess. The House still needs to pass the…
White Supremacists Built a Website To Doxx Interracial Couples
White supremacists have reportedly built a website that names, shames, and effectively promotes violence against interracial couples and families — “and it’s been circulated in some of the darkest corners of the internet, including in neo-Nazi Discord servers and accelerationist Telegram channels,” reports VICE News. An anonymous reader shares the report: The website was created in April but was taken offline…
White House Blocks CDC Guidance Over Economic and Religious Concerns
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The New York Times: As President Trump rushes to reopen the economy, a battle has erupted between the White House and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention over the agency’s detailed guidelines to help schools, restaurants, churches and other establishments safely reopen. A copy of the C.D.C. guidance obtained by The New York…
Court Finds Algorithm Bias Studies Don’t Violate US Anti-Hacking Law
“A federal court in D.C. has ruled in a lawsuit against Attorney General William Barr that studies aimed at detecting discrimination in online algorithms don’t violate the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act,” reports Engadget:
The government argued that the Act made it illegal to violate a site’s terms of service through some investigative methods (such as submitting false info for research), but…
Bernie Sanders Has an Audacious — and Hugely Expensive — Climate Plan
Senator Bernie Sanders, the front-runner for the Democratic nomination in this year’s presidential election, has put forth the most audacious climate plan among the contenders. But there are doubts about the political and economic feasibility of his sweeping vision, as well as the wisdom of some of his particular technical proposals. From a report: Notably, the plan restricts tools that could…
Cloudflare is Giving Away Its Security Tools To US Political Campaigns
Network security giant Cloudflare said it will provide its security tools and services to U.S. political campaigns for free, as part of its efforts to secure upcoming elections against cyberattacks and election interference. From a report: The company said its new Cloudflare for Campaigns offering will include distributed denial-of-service attack mitigation, load balancing for campaign websites, a website firewall, and anti-bot…
Police Can Keep Ring Camera Video Forever, and Share With Whomever They’d Like
schwit1 shared this new from the Washington Post:
Police officers who download videos captured by homeowners’ Ring doorbell cameras can keep them forever and share them with whomever they’d like without providing evidence of a crime, the Amazon-owned firm told a lawmaker this month… Police in those communities can use Ring software to request up to 12 hours of video from anyone…
Home Depot and Lowe’s Accused of Scanning Millions of Customers Faces
JustAnotherOldGuy tipped us off to this story. The Daily Mail reports: Home Depot and Lowe’s are secretly using facial recognition technology to track customer movement in their stores, violating privacy laws in Illinois, plaintiffs in two class action lawsuits say. The plaintiffs, who are Illinois residents, allege the two big box retailers are using the technology without properly notifying customers or…
Websites Can Discriminate Against You Even If You Don’t Use Them, California Supreme Court Rules
Nearly four years ago, a lone bankruptcy lawyer sued Square, the payment processor run by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, challenging the app’s terms of use — despite never signing up. As of yesterday, the case will proceed, thanks to an opinion issued by the California Supreme Court that could have wide-reaching implications for online businesses. Gizmodo reports: The first thing you…