Twitter Under Fire Over Deletion of Critical COVID Tweets in India

The Guardian reported:

The removal of dozens of tweets seen to be critical of the Indian government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic is putting people’s health at risk and quashing dissent, according to lawmakers and human rights activists.

Twitter withheld some tweets after a legal request by the Indian government, a company spokesperson told Reuters on Saturday. These included tweets from a lawmaker, a minister in the state of West Bengal, and a film-maker.

“Suppression of information and criticism of government is not only dangerous for India but it is putting people around the world at risk,” said Mirza Saaib Beg, a lawyer whose tweets were among those withheld.

The Ease of Tracking Mobile Phones of U.S. Soldiers in Hot Spots

The Wall Street Journal reported:

In 2016, a U.S. defense contractor named PlanetRisk Inc. was working on a software prototype when its employees discovered they could track U.S. military operations through the data generated by the apps on the mobile phones of American soldiers.

At the time, the company was using location data drawn from apps such as weather, games and dating services to build a surveillance tool that could monitor the travel of refugees from Syria to Europe and the U.S., according to interviews with former employees. The company’s goal was to sell the tool to U.S. counterterrorism and intelligence officials.

But buried in the data was evidence of sensitive U.S. military operations by American special-operations forces in Syria. The company’s analysts could see phones that had come from military facilities in the U.S., traveled through countries like Canada or Turkey and were clustered at the abandoned Lafarge Cement Factory in northern Syria, a staging area at the time for U.S. special-operations and allied forces.

This Researcher Says AI Is Neither Artificial nor Intelligent

Wired reported:

Technology companies like to portray  artificial intelligence as a precise and powerful tool for good. Kate Crawford says that mythology is flawed. In her book Atlas of AI, she visits a lithium mine, an Amazon warehouse, and a 19th-century phrenological skull archive to illustrate the natural resources, human sweat, and bad science underpinning some versions of the technology. Crawford, a professor at the University of Southern California and researcher at Microsoft, says many applications and side effects of AI are in urgent need of regulation.

Despite Virus, Global Military Spending Grew In 2020, Led by U.S.

Al Jezeera reported:

Global military expenditure rose by 2.6 percent to $1.98 trillion last year even as some countries reallocated their defence funds to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said in a report issued on Monday.

The five biggest spenders in 2020, which together accounted for 62 percent of military spending worldwide, were the United States, China, India, Russia and the United Kingdom, in that order, according to the Sweden-based body.

Apple and Google ‘Hold Data Hostage’ and Stifle Competition, Senate Told

The Guardian reported:

Apple and Google “hold data hostage” from small apps and force competitors to pay high commissions, stifling their ability to compete, a number of companies said in a US Senate hearing on Wednesday.

The hearing before the Senate antitrust committee offered a rare opportunity for smaller competitors – including Spotify, Tile and Match – to air their grievances against the tech behemoths before lawmakers. Representatives for the companies spoke about their experiences within Google and Apple’s app stores, where they claim to be subjected to high fees and copycat behavior.

The hearing came just a day after Apple introduced AirTags, a device that users can attach to items and track using an iPhone’s “Find My” software. AirTags has largely been seen as a direct copy of Samsung’s SmartTag and Tile Bluetooth trackers, which were founded 10 years ago.

WEBINAR: Cell Phone Brain Tumor Litigation — Legislation, Barriers and Opportunities

The Defender reported:

The Defender reported last week on a new lawsuit filed by the family of a Louisiana pastor alleging cell phone use caused the man’s fatal glioblastoma brain tumor. This is not the first case of its kind — there are more than 70 cell phone brain tumor cases in the U.S. Courts.

As the complaint filed last week demonstrates, there is ample evidence showing cell phones cause brain tumors, and that the telecommunications industry has misled the public to believe that cell phones are safe.

Attorney Hunter Lundy, one of the leading personal injury lawyers in the U.S. and who has been at the forefront of this litigation, and attorney Dafna Tachover, Children’s Health Defense’s (CHD) 5G and Wireless Harms Projectdirector, will shed light on the cell phone brain tumor litigation during a webinar Wednesday, April 28 at 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT. Register below.

Take Action: Stop the EU Green Pass

The Defender reported:

The European Parliament will vote next week on a digital “Green Pass” that people would be required to present as proof they have been vaccinated or tested negative for COVID.

The pass would be required for travel between EU countries. Anyone traveling from outside the EU could also be required to present an equivalent pass.

Children’s Health Defense (CHD) is asking people in the U.S and EU to call EU Members of Parliament (MEP) and ask them to reject the Green Pass.

Postal Service Monitoring Americans’ Social Media Posts, Internal Document Reveals

The Defender reported:

“The federal government’s sprawling and clandestine surveillance apparatus manifests in a new way,” tweeted progressive activist Jordan Uhl. “These breaches of civil liberties largely go unchecked because, again, it targets right-wingers on Parler, but ultimately threatens everyone in the long run.”

Jana Winter of Yahoo News reported that the USPIS surveillance effort “involves having analysts trawl through social media sites to look for what the document describes as ‘inflammatory’ postings and then sharing that information across government agencies.”

‘Vaccine Passports Must Be Voluntary, Temporary & COVID-Focused’: Aviation Leaders Tell Lawmakers

The Sociable reported:

“We support a digital health certificate, so it’s uniform, and I can flash-up on my iPhone and show — to someplace or some country that has a requirement — that I have been vaccinated or tested of my own accord,” he said.

“Like Sara said, this needs to be a voluntary program, it needs to be time-limited, but if for someone who travels a lot, like I do, it could be a great convenience and ease my way of travel, and provide countries that are requiring these things an easier way to make sure that the information is verifiable.

Vaccine Passports And Big Tech: Why Your Privacy Is At Serious Risk

Forbes reported:

And there’s the rub: You’d be leaving a rich data trial of where you’ve been and what you’ve been doing. These days no one would believe that this data would be protected from hackers or from being sold.

Moreover, power-hungry politicians and public health officials would be quick to use pretexts to expand the app’s use, including to track what foods you buy. After all, obesity is a big health crisis, and, lest you forget, remember that a former New York City mayor wanted to ban big bottles of soda to fight it!

The Postal Service Is Running A ‘Covert Operations Program’ That Monitors Americans’ Social Media Posts

Yahoo News reported:

The law enforcement arm of the U.S. Postal Service has been quietly running a program that tracks and collects Americans’ social media posts, including those about planned protests, according to a document obtained by Yahoo News.

The details of the surveillance effort, known as iCOP, or Internet Covert Operations Program, have not previously been made public. The work involves having analysts trawl through social media sites to look for what the document describes as “inflammatory” postings and then sharing that information across government agencies.

The Global Race to Regulate AI

Axios reported:

Acting FTC chairwoman Rebecca Slaughter told Axios: “I am pleased that the European Commission shares the FTC’s concerns about the risks posed by artificial intelligence… I look forward to reviewing the EC’s proposal as we learn from each other in pursuit of transparency, fairness, and accountability in algorithmic decision making.”

Why it matters: Artificial intelligence is no longer in its infancy and already has wide uses. Global governments are trying to wrap their arms around it, often taking different approaches.

Golden Knights’ Robin Lehner Says NHL Lied, Forced Players to Get COVID-19 Vaccine, League Disputes His Claim

CBS reported:

On Wednesday, Vegas Golden Knights goalie Robin Lehner called out the NHL, saying the league is not staying true to previous promises surrounding COVID-19 vaccinations. Lehner claims the league told players if they got vaccinated restrictions would be loosened, but says that hasn’t been the case.

Lehner says the NHL forced the players to get the coronavirus vaccine and they were misled by what changes would be made if they agreed.

Following Lehner’s comments, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told ESPN that no such promises were made to the league’s players.

Trudeau Minister Says Internet Censorship Bill Will Make Canadians ‘Safer’

Post Millenial reported:

“My job is to ensure the safety and security of the Canadian population,” said the minister.

Guilbeault revealed that the legislation being tabled is the first step in creating a “safer environment for all people online and not just for a handful,” regulating hurtful content beyond what is already covered by the Criminal Code, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.

“With the legislation we will be tabling, it won’t matter whether or not the company is Canadian,” said Guilbeault. “It won’t matter where the company is registered or where their servers are located.”

GOP Lawmaker Ken Buck Urges Colleagues to Stop Taking Big Tech Money

CNBC reported:

The top Republican on the House Judiciary subcommittee on antitrust is leading six of his peers in swearing off campaign donations from Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google and Twitter.

Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., the subcommittee’s ranking member, announced Wednesday the “Pledge for America,” urging his peers to follow his earlier commitment to refuse Big Tech money. Those who sign are pledging not to accept donations from companies that violate the signers’ convictions about “the free market and the free exchange of ideas.”

“The threat posed by these monopolies is a real and present danger to conservatives, libertarians and anyone who does not agree with these corporations’ ultra-liberal points-of-view,” the pledge says.

Facebook-Backed Diem Aims to Launch Digital Currency Pilot Later This Year

CNBC reported:

Facebook wanted to revolutionize finance with a global digital currency — then came the regulators.

First proposed in June 2019 with the name libra, the token was initially intended to be a universal currency tied to a basket of sovereign currencies such as the U.S. dollar and the euro.

But after facing strong opposition from regulators around the world, the organization overseeing the project lost major backers including Visa and Mastercard. The group eventually watered down its plans, opting for multiple “stablecoins” backed one-to-one by different government-backed currencies, as well as one multi-currency coin.

Big Brother Watches as EU Unveils Plan to Control Use of Artificial Intelligence

RFI reported:

The EU is hoping to catch up with the U.S. and China in a sector that includes fields such as voice recognition, health insurance and law enforcement.

The bloc is trying to learn the lessons after missing out on the internet revolution and failing to produce any major competitors to match the giants of Silicon Valley or their Chinese counterparts.

But there have been competing concerns over the plans, with both big tech and civil liberties groups arguing that the EU is either overreaching or is not going far enough.

This Has Just Become a Big Week for AI Regulation

MIT Technology Review reported:

Today the EU released its long-awaited set of AI regulations, an early draft of which leaked last week. The regulations are wide ranging, with restrictions on mass surveillance and the use of AI to manipulate people.

But a statement of intent from the US Federal Trade Commission, outlined in a short blog post by staff lawyer Elisa Jillson on April 19, may have more teeth in the immediate future. According to the post, the FTC plans to go after companies using and selling biased algorithms.

A number of companies will be running scared right now, says Ryan Calo, a professor at the University of Washington, who works on technology and law. “It’s not really just this one blog post,” he says. “This one blog post is a very stark example of what looks to be a sea change.”

Surveillance Helped These Countries Fight COVID. A New Realm of Risks Await.

Politico reported:

During the chaotic first months of the pandemic, countries like Taiwan and South Korean were held up as models for rolling out aggressive tracking to identify everyone who came into contact with infected people to contain coronavirus spread and prevent health systems from being overwhelmed.

The test-trace-isolate protocol worked. But a year later, many human rights activists and lawyers worry the high-tech intervention set a bad precedent. Governments rushed to gather and examine vast data stores without proper consultation, exposing sensitive, private information to the public in the process. 

Lessons learned (or not learned) from the contact-tracing efforts may shape the next big health-tech privacy challenge: vaccine passports.

Coronapas: The Passport Helping Denmark Open Up After COVID

BBC reported:

Digital certificates are seen as Europe’s route out of lockdown, and the EU wants to have its scheme in place across all 27 member states by the end of June.

… Zoos and theme parks were the first to handle Denmark’s corona passports. Copenhagen Zoo is already bustling with families, and you could almost forget there is still a pandemic. 

I watched as a long queue formed outside and entrance staff checked the phones of visitors. “We had to establish these new checkpoints,” says spokesman Jacob Munkholm Hoeck. “We’ve put a lot of resources into this. That’s the downside. But it is running smoothly.”

“It makes you feel more safe,” one parent in the queue told me.