Big Brother News Watch
Republican Sen. Eric Schmitt Vows to ‘End COVID Tyranny’ of CDC and NIH + More
Republican Sen. Eric Schmitt Vows to ‘End COVID Tyranny’ of CDC and NIH
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) introduced a bill Thursday that would give Congress greater oversight of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) following the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a copy of the measure exclusively obtained by The Post.
The bill, known as the “End COVID Tyranny Act,” would mandate congressional appointment and term limits for the directors of both agencies, as well as require a majority vote by both chambers to approve a public health emergency lasting longer than 90 days.
An advisory committee for the CDC director would also be appointed by Congress and with the approval of the U.S. Comptroller General. The measure would further mandate foreign research labs that receive U.S. government funding to pass quarterly inspections on animal welfare and cleanliness standards.
Many controversial COVID-era policies bypassed legislative approval, with federal and state authorities unilaterally imposing lockdowns, mask mandates and vaccine passports — only to face criticism and reverse course later.
Much of the frustration focused on conflicting public health advice from figures like NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci, who pushed for strict COVID mandates while downplaying theories that the virus had leaked from a lab in Wuhan, China that was engaging in risky gain-of-function research funded by NIH.
Texas AG Paxton Suing Pfizer for Attempted Censorship, ‘Misrepresenting’ COVID Vaccination
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) announced Thursday he is suing the pharmaceutical company Pfizer, alleging the company “misrepresented” the effectiveness of its widely administered COVID-19 vaccine.
In his announcement, Paxton accused Pfizer of violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act by making “false, deceptive, and misleading acts and practices by making unsupported claims regarding the company’s COVID-19 vaccine.”
The lawsuit alleges that Pfizer gave the impression its vaccine would end the COVID-19 pandemic and that the company’s claims of its shot being 95% effective were misleading. “We are pursuing justice for the people of Texas, many of whom were coerced by tyrannical vaccine mandates to take a defective product sold by lies,” Paxton said in a statement.
“The facts are clear. Pfizer did not tell the truth about their COVID-19 vaccines,” he added. “Whereas the Biden Administration weaponized the pandemic to force illegal public health decrees on the public and enrich pharmaceutical companies, I will use every tool I have to protect our citizens who were misled and harmed by Pfizer’s actions.”
It also accuses Pfizer of using social media to “intimidate” and “silence prominent truth-tellers,” specifically singling out former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, who sits on Pfizer’s board of directors and became a prominent voice on immunization practices during the pandemic.
Jim Jordan Subpoenas Ex-White House Censorship Chief Rob Flaherty Over ‘Constitutionally Protected’ Expression
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan on Thursday subpoenaed President Biden’s former White House director of digital strategy Rob Flaherty to testify about his actions to pressure digital platforms to censor content — ahead of what is expected to be a landmark Supreme Court case centered on his actions.
Flaherty must sit for committee questions on Jan. 11, Jordan (R-Ohio) wrote in the legally binding demand for testimony, which follows unsuccessful attempts to force the ex-administration official to testify in a state lawsuit brought by Missouri and Louisiana, which the Supreme Court will consider in its coming term.
“The Committee has obtained documents that demonstrate the central role you played in communicating the Biden White House’s censorship efforts to social media companies, including the White House’s demands to censor true information, memes, satire, and other constitutionally protected forms of expression,” Jordan wrote to Flaherty, who left the White House in June for a position with Biden’s 2024 re-election campaign.
Meta Is Struggling to Boot Pedophiles off Facebook and Instagram
The Wall Street Journal reported:
Meta Platforms has spent months trying to fix child-safety problems on Instagram and Facebook, but it is struggling to prevent its own systems from enabling and even promoting a vast network of pedophile accounts.
The social media giant set up a child-safety task force in June after The Wall Street Journal and researchers at Stanford University and the University of Massachusetts Amherst revealed that Instagram’s algorithms connected a web of accounts devoted to the creation, purchasing and trading of underage sex content.
Five months later, tests conducted by the Journal as well as by the Canadian Centre for Child Protection show that Meta’s recommendation systems still promote such content. The company has taken down hashtags related to pedophilia, but its systems sometimes recommend new ones with minor variations. Even when Meta is alerted to problem accounts and user groups, it has been spotty in removing them.
The tests show that the problem extends beyond Instagram to encompass the much broader universe of Facebook Groups, including large groups explicitly centered on sexualizing children. Facebook, which counts more than three billion monthly users worldwide, promotes its groups feature as a way to connect users with similar interests.
The Stanford Internet Observatory, which has been examining internet platforms’ handling of child-sex content, credited Meta in a September report with some progress, but said of the connection among pedophiles on Instagram that “the overall ecosystem remains active, with significant room for improvement in content enforcement.”
Meta Must Clarify Measures Against Child Sexual Abuse by Dec. 22, EU Says
Meta Platforms (META.O) was told by EU tech regulators on Friday to provide more details on measures taken to tackle child sexual abuse material on its photo and video sharing app Instagram by Dec. 22 or risk a formal investigation under new EU online content rules.
The European Commission in October sent a first request for information on measures taken to counter the spread of terrorist and violent content, and a second last month on measures to protect minors. “Information is also requested about Instagram’s recommender system and amplification of potentially harmful content,” the European Commission said in a statement on its latest query.
The request for information was done under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), new tech rules requiring Big Tech to do more to police illegal and harmful content on their platforms. Failure to comply with such requests can lead to a formal probe and even fines.
Chinese conglomerate ByteDance’s TikTok and Elon Musk‘s X have also received similar requests for information.
U.S. Judge Blocks Montana From Banning TikTok Use in State
A U.S. judge late on Thursday blocked Montana’s first-of-its-kind state ban on the use of short-video sharing app TikTok from taking effect on Jan. 1, saying it violated the free speech rights of users.
U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy issued a preliminary injunction to block the ban on the Chinese-owned app, saying the state ban “violates the Constitution in more ways than one” and “oversteps state power.”
TikTok, owned by China’s ByteDance, sued Montana in May, seeking to block the U.S. state ban on several grounds, arguing that it violates the First Amendment free speech rights of the company and users.
TikTok users in Montana also filed suit to block the ban approved by the state legislature which cited concerns about the personal data of Montana users and potential Chinese spying.
White House Worked With YouTube to Censor COVID & Vaccine ‘Misinformation’: House Judiciary Committee + More
White House Worked With YouTube to Censor COVID & Vaccine ‘Misinformation’: House Judiciary Committee
The Biden administration worked together with employees of Google-owned YouTube in 2021 to target alleged “misinformation” relating to the COVID-19 virus and its vaccinations, according to documents obtained by FOX Business.
The documents, acquired through a source close to the House Judiciary Committee, reveal a level of correspondence previously unknown to the American public, as President Biden and his aides sought to promote coronavirus vaccinations in efforts to quell the raging pandemic.
Former White House Director of Digital Strategy Rob Flaherty emailed Google team members in April 2021 to “connect […] about the work you’re doing to combat vaccine hesitancy, but also crack down on vaccine misinformation,” according to the documents. Flaherty continued, asking for trends surrounding vaccine misinformation on the website while offering government assistance in the form of COVID experts at the White House to partner in product work with YouTube.
A week later, Google acknowledged that they sent the White House the total amount of videos removed for COVID vaccine misinformation while discussing the government’s desire for even more data.
The revelations of the documents between the White House and Google come roughly a year after the original Twitter Files were released, sparking a national debate about freedom of speech online.
Meta, X, TikTok, Snap and Discord CEOs Will Testify Before the Senate Over Online Child Safety
Social media’s negative impact on children’s and young adults’ mental health has been a growing cause of concern for parents and lawmakers. Now, the CEOs of Meta, TikTok, Snap, Discord and X are set to testify in front of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee on “their failure to protect children online.”
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew are willing participants. Snap CEO Evan Spiegel, Discord CEO Jason Citron and X CEO Linda Yaccarino are testifying after being subpoenaed.
The senators further shared a feeling of hypocrisy at these platforms wanting a say in policy but fighting against getting involved in discussions. “When we held our first hearing on protecting children online with experts and advocates earlier this year, Big Tech griped about not getting an invitation. We promised them that their time would come,” Durbin and Graham stated.
“We’ve known from the beginning that our efforts to protect children online would be met with hesitation from Big Tech. They finally are being forced to acknowledge their failures when it comes to protecting kids. Now that all five companies are cooperating, we look forward to hearing from their CEOs. Parents and kids demand action.”
The hearing with the CEOs from the five tech giants was originally set for December but will now take place on January 31, 2024, at 10 a.m. ET.
Senators Introduce Bipartisan Legislation Ending Involuntary Facial Recognition Screening
Sens. John Kennedy (R-La.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) introduced bipartisan legislation on Wednesday to end involuntary facial recognition screening at airports.
The pair of senators are aiming to repeal the authorization of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to use facial recognition screening at airports, saying that the Travelers’ Privacy Protection Act (TPPA) would prevent the agency from “further exploiting the technology and storing traveler’s biodata.” The senators added that most Americans are unaware that they can opt out of the screening.
“Every day, TSA scans thousands of Americans’ faces without their permission and without making it clear that travelers can opt out of the invasive screening. The Traveler Privacy Protection Act would protect every American from Big Brother’s intrusion by ending the facial recognition program,” Kennedy said in a statement.
The proposed legislation would ban the TSA from expanding its program and require the agency to receive congressional authorization to use the technology in the future. It would also require the TSA to dispose of the facial biometrics.
Indiana Judge Dismisses State’s Lawsuit Against TikTok That Alleged Child Safety, Privacy Concerns
An Indiana county judge on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit filed by the state accusing TikTok of deceiving its users about the level of inappropriate content for children on its platform and the security of its consumers’ personal information.
A pair of lawsuits filed in December 2022 accused the app of misleading its viewers — particularly children. They alleged the app contains “salacious and inappropriate content” despite the company claiming it is safe for children 13 years and under. In the second complaint, the state argued that the app deceives consumers into believing their sensitive and personal information is secure. The lawsuits have since been consolidated. The latest hearing on the motion to dismiss was held in October.
The dismissal is an apparent national first with similar lawsuits pending in Arkansas and Utah.
In her ruling, Judge Jennifer L. DeGroote of the Allen County Superior Court in Fort Wayne said the court lacked personal jurisdiction over the case and reaffirmed a previous court ruling that found downloading a free app does not count as a consumer transaction under the Indiana Deceptive Consumer Sales Act.
Meta Files Suit to Kneecap the FTC
Meta is suing the Federal Trade Commission, challenging the constitutionality of its in-house enforcement powers in a bid to stop the agency from unilaterally changing the terms of a 2020 privacy settlement.
The tech giant argued in its suit filed late Wednesday that the agency has “structurally unconstitutional authority” in how it enforces cases against companies through its in-house administrative court.
On Monday, Meta lost a bid to bar the FTC from reopening a 2020 enforcement order against the company, in which the agency accused Meta of privacy violations against children. Meta filed an appeal to that decision on Tuesday. Meta is also seeking to pause the FTC’s case while its lawsuit and appeal play out.
As part of its 2020 settlement Meta paid a $5 billion fine and agreed to make major changes to its privacy practices.
The COVID Kids Starting School Unable to Speak
When five-year-old Cali said the word “spider”, her mother, Cara, had tears in her eyes. Cali had always found it difficult to form sounds and words, but when she turned two during the COVID lockdown and her parents tried to find her help, it was nearly impossible to access NHS speech therapy services.
Data from health visitor checks in England for 2022-2023 shows nearly 15% of children aged 24 to 30 months were below the expected level in communication skills, a rise from 11% in 2018.
At the age of five, children with speech and language difficulties are six times less likely to achieve expected targets in English, and 11 times less likely to achieve maths targets by the end of primary school.
During the pandemic, Allie Biddle, director of speech and language at the University of Reading speech therapy unit, says accessing speech and language development services became increasingly challenging for parents whose children were struggling as many places closed down.
Does Social Media Raise Teens’ Odds for Drug Use, Risky Sex?
U.S. News & World Report reported:
Teens glued to Instagram, TikTok and other social media are more likely to drink, take drugs, smoke and engage in risky sexual behaviors, a new review warns.
For example, spending at least two hours a day on social media doubled the odds of alcohol consumption, compared with less than two hours daily use, researchers report in the Nov. 29 issue of BMJ.
The results show that teens are particularly susceptible to social media depictions of risky health behaviors like alcohol use or unhealthy eating, the investigators said.
Government-Education Censorship Alliance Is the Greatest Threat to Democracy
Revelations that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) created “disinformation” groups at Stanford University and the University of Washington to censor political speech leading up to the 2020 election should outrage and alarm every American. Free exchange of ideas is the lifeblood of a democracy and the unholy alliance between the government and higher education institutions must be fully exposed and broken up to preserve our Constitutional Republic.
Under this partnership, higher education institutions acted as conduits between the government and Big Tech to remove speech that government officials found unacceptable to achieve their political ends. Researchers would review ‘misinformation’ reports submitted by federal officials, compile lists of offending posts, and then submit them to social media companies with specific recommendations.
These recommendations reduced the post’s discoverability and led to shadow bans and even suspension of accounts. Approximately 35% of the content they flagged was removed from social media platforms.
The effort targeted those who held opinions that went contrary to prevailing narratives, especially regarding corruption allegations against Biden, the integrity of the 2020 election, and COVID mask and vaccine policies. Countless Americans were censored, silenced, and shadow-banned during the 2020 election cycle. It was part of a concerted effort to exert control over our behavior and dictate what We the People are allowed to say, see, and hear. And it worked.
European Consumer Groups Band Together to Fight Meta’s Self-Serving Ad-Free Sub — Branding It ‘Unfair’ and ‘Illegal’
Days after a privacy complaint was lodged against Meta in the European Union over its latest controversial shift of legal basis claimed for processing people’s data for ads, consumer groups across the region are filing their complaints about what the tracking giant is up to.
A coalition of almost 20 consumer protection organizations is united in the view that Meta’s switch to railroading users into agreeing to be tracked and profiled so it can keep profiting from microtargeting them is “unfair” and “illegal” — breaching EU consumer protection law “on several counts.”
Starting this month, EU users of Meta’s social networks, Facebook and Instagram, are being offered the ‘choice’ of agreeing to be tracked and profiled by the behavioral ads business to continue/get free access to its products — or else they must pay it a monthly subscription (of at least €9.99pm) for an ad-free version of its mainstream social networks. So Meta’s updated offer to EU users is either hand over your privacy or hand over your hard-earned cash.
“This is an unfair choice for users, which runs afoul of EU consumer law on several counts and must be stopped,” said the European Consumer Organization (BEUC) in a press release announcing the complaint will be filed with the network of consumer protection authorities (CPC) today.
COVID Lockdowns Linked to Memory, Cognitive Decline: U.K. Study + More
COVID Lockdowns Linked to Memory, Cognitive Decline: U.K. Study
The stringent lockdown measures implemented worldwide during the COVID-19 pandemic have been found to significantly affect the working memory and cognitive function of older individuals, raising concerns about an elevated risk of dementia, according to a comprehensive U.K. study.
Researchers in the U.K. delved into neuropsychology data from over 3,100 individuals aged 50 and above, examining cognitive health trends before and after the first two years of the pandemic. The findings, drawn from the PROTECT study, a longitudinal aging initiative conducted online by the University of Exeter and Kings College London in collaboration with the National Health Service, revealed striking impacts on the cognitive abilities of the participants.
The study, spanning from March 1, 2019 to Feb. 28, 2022, encompassed the tumultuous period marked by the enforcement of social restrictions, including social distancing, quarantine measures, and unprecedented “full societal lockdowns,” which the study noted, “had not previously been experienced in living memory.”
Findings from the study showed a substantial decline in executive function, which refers to higher-level cognitive skills governing control and coordination. Alongside this, the study’s cohort showed a marked decline in working memory, which is crucial for short-term memory storage and various cognitive processes.
Molly Russell’s Father Calls for End to Algorithms ‘Pushing Out Harmful Content’ Six Years After Her Death
Social media algorithms are still “pushing out harmful content to literally millions of young people” six years after Molly Russell’s death, the schoolgirl’s father has said.
Ian Russell said a new report by the suicide prevention charity set up in his daughter’s honor shows “a fundamental systemic failure” by tech giants “that will continue to cost young lives.” Molly, who took her own life, aged 14, in November 2017 after viewing posts related to suicide, depression and anxiety online, would have been celebrating her 21st birthday this week.
The Molly Rose Foundation said its new research shows the “shocking scale and prevalence” of harmful content on Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest, six years on from her death.
Mr. Russell, who is chair of trustees at the Molly Rose Foundation, said: “This week when we should be celebrating Molly’s 21st birthday, it’s saddening to see the horrifying scale of online harm and how little has changed on social media platforms since Molly’s death.
“The longer tech companies fail to address the preventable harm they cause, the more inexcusable it becomes.”
Misinformation Is Everywhere. Experts Offer Tools to Counter It
U.S. News & World Report reported:
The world is being flooded with internet-driven misinformation, but there are ways to counter fake news with the facts, a new report says. These include aggressive fact-checking, preemptively debunking lies before they take root and nudging people to be more skeptical before sharing information, the American Psychological Association analysis found.
The product of more than a year’s work by a panel of international experts, the report explains why anyone is susceptible to misinformation if it’s presented in an enticing way.
People also are more likely to believe false statements if they appeal to powerful emotions like fear or outrage, or if they paint groups viewed as “others” in a negative light.
And misinformation is viral — people are more likely to believe it the more it is repeated, even if it contradicts their own personal knowledge.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention commissioned the report, which is part of a $2 million grant to develop effective counters to COVID vaccine hesitancy.
Speaker Mike Johnson Is Reportedly Considering Slipping Controversial Warrantless Surveillance Reauthorization (FISA Section 702) Into Defense Bill
The looming expiration of Section 702, a law enabling government agencies’ ability to collect communication data from targeted foreign entities but has consistently been shown to be used against U.S. citizens, has sparked conflict between groups looking to maintain it and privacy activists who view the law as a circumvention of the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirement for searches of American citizens’ communications.
House Speaker Mike Johnson appears to be contemplating the inclusion of a controversial reauthorization of Section 702 into a defense appropriations bill, enabling the controversial warrantless surveillance to continue.
Despite the increased pressure for the curtailing of Section 702’s powers, Johnson may go forward with the measure’s reauthorization via the National Defense Authorization Act.
Keeping Children Safe in a Rapidly Changing Digital Landscape
Twenty years after starting as an intern at an organization to help create a safe media environment for children, Josh Golin is leading the group’s efforts as its executive director.
“When I started doing this work, we were primarily focused on things like television commercials, and junk food marketing to kids and the childhood obesity epidemic,” he told The Hill in a recent interview. Those issues are still a concern, but Golin said the rise of social media was a turning point, specifically pointing to the launch of YouTube Kids in 2015.
“That really precipitated a shift where we started looking at the design of platforms. And not just looking at the effects of the actual advertisements and marketing on children, but really looking at the entire ecosystem and how it was built for advertisers at children’s expense as kind of being the core and key issue,” Golin said.
Golin said a big milestone moment was in 2019, when the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) settled with Google over illegal data collection on YouTube, triggered by a complaint the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood filed along with the Center for Digital Democracy.
The settlement required Google and its subsidiary YouTube to pay $170 million to settle allegations of collecting personal information from children without their parents’ consent, in violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). In response, YouTube also published a blog post about updates to better protect data for children’s content.
Congress to Get Lesson on AI in Healthcare
Healthcare executives will praise the use of artificial intelligence in the industry before Congress today — but the hearing is unlikely to move the needle on regulation, Chelsea reports.
But, the American Medical Association has tapped the brakes, recently issuing its principles for AI use in healthcare, calling for certain regulations such as reduced liability for doctors if AI leads them astray. And the hearing comes a month after the Biden administration began to prod at the issue in a broad executive order on AI, directing HHS to develop a framework for the responsible use of AI.
The hearing is the fourth this fall by the committee on AI but the first focused solely on its use in health; other hearings have explored AI in energy and telecommunications.
Why it matters: Some providers already use AI in their practices, patients aren’t sure what to think about it and Congress has yet to make progress on policy around it.
How the Death of a Young Mom Led to the Unraveling of a National Fentanyl Trafficking Network
Police officers couldn’t save Diamond Lynch, who overdosed in her Washington, DC, apartment after taking a pill laced with the powerful and dangerous chemical opiate. But they quickly began investigating how she died, with the help of federal prosecutors and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Starting with some text messages and a handful of pills, authorities unraveled a massive fentanyl distribution network that extended from the D.C. area to California to Mexico. So far, 25 people have been charged. Court documents say the dealers did business largely in the open, largely on Instagram, and smuggled fentanyl-laced pills in candy boxes. The pills were made to look like Percocet and other pharmaceutical opiates.
In an investigation dubbed “Operation Blues Brothers,” after the color of the deadly pills, federal agents benefitted from the carelessness of the accused drug traffickers, who communicated via social media messages that can easily be obtained with warrants. This also showed how, as Anne Milgram, head of the DEA, put it, “social media has become the superhighway of drugs.”
“What we see day in and day out across the United States,” she said, “is that these pills — the fentanyl that’s killing Americans — are being sold on Snapchat, on TikTok, Facebook marketplace, Instagram, openly …”
Slovenia Begins Refunding Thousands of COVID Fines
The Slovenian government is repaying thousands of fines issued to citizens who broke masking and social distancing orders during the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The total amount issued in COVID fines between March 2020 and May 2022 was around €5.7 million. Under legislation put forward by the country’s center-left government, the €1.7 million that had actually been paid in penalties will now be refunded.
All infractions will be redacted from peoples’ official records and proceedings to enforce penalties will be halted.
Among the tens of thousands expecting a refund is a delivery driver who was infamously photographed surrounded by police after lowering his mask to eat a snack while sitting outdoors well away from anyone else. The footage of the man, who was fined €400, rankled many Slovenians who considered the police’s enforcement of lockdown instructions to be excessive.
Moderna Keeps Tabs on ‘High Risk’ Anti-Vaccine Celebs Like Elon Musk, Novak Djokovic, Russell Brand: Report + More
Moderna Keeps Tabs on ‘High Risk’ Anti-Vaccine Celebs Like Elon Musk, Novak Djokovic, Russell Brand: Report
Moderna has hired a former FBI agent to compile internal company reports about “high-risk” celebrities — including tennis star Novak Djokovic, tech mogul Elon Musk and actor Russell Brand — who have been publicly critical of vaccine mandates, according to a report.
The Boston-based pharmaceutical company, which marketed one of the first mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 that was distributed to tens of millions of Americans during the coronavirus pandemic, is said to be employing a team of former law enforcement officials who make up a “disinformation department” that keeps track of anti-vaccine sentiment.
News of the department’s existence and its reports was first revealed by independent journalists Lee Fang and Jack Poulson. The department commissioned one report which was titled “Djokovic Crowned Anti-Vaccine Hero after U.S. Open Win,” according to Fang and Poulson.
Djokovic, the Serbian tennis legend who holds the all-time record for Grand Slam title victories, was not allowed to participate in the 2021 and 2022 U.S. Open tournaments due to his refusal to get the COVID vaccine. He won the grand slam tournament that was held this past September at Flushing Meadows — his 24th overall.
Moderna was concerned about the fact that “vaccine opponents are celebrating” Djokovic’s win, which was made all the more troublesome due to the fact that people on social media “mockingly point out that Moderna is a U.S. Open sponsor,” according to the report.
Amazon Wants Businesses to Use Its Palm-Scanning Tech to Let Employees Into the Office
Amazon is expanding its palm-scanning technology beyond grocery stores and is rolling out a version that’s designed for the business world.
Amazon One Enterprise repackages the company’s palm-based payment system as an authentication tool that lets corporate employees swipe their hands to enter an office or access sensitive information like financial data or human resources records.
Companies already signed up for the biometric technology include IHG Hotels & Resorts, turnstile manufacturer Boon Edam, and Kone, an escalator and elevator provider. Amazon didn’t disclose pricing for the service, which is available in preview in the U.S. starting Monday.
Advocacy groups have criticized the service over privacy and security concerns, contending it leads to increased surveillance. Amazon says palm recognition is more private than other biometric systems “because you can’t determine a person’s identity by looking at an image of their palm.” The company also claims it doesn’t capture purchase data from scans collected by non-Amazon stores.
U.S. Federal Judge Rules Against Meta in Privacy Fight With FTC
Meta Platforms (META.O), which owns WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook, lost the latest round of a court battle over privacy on Monday after a federal judge ruled a U.S. regulator can seek to reduce the amount of money the social media company makes from users under 18.
Judge Timothy Kelly of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia denied a motion filed by Meta for the court to take over the dispute with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
In May, the FTC accused Meta of misleading parents about how much control they had over who their children had contact with in the Messenger Kids app, among other issues.
The FTC proposed changing a settlement reached in 2019 which required Facebook to pay $5 billion. The FTC said it would tighten that to bar Facebook from making money off data collected on users under age 18, including in its virtual reality business. It would also face expanded limitations on using facial recognition technology.
Ron Paul: Big Tech Censorship Is a Problem Created by Big Government
The Orange County Register reported:
Some libertarians dismiss concerns over social media companies’ suppression of news and opinions that contradict select agendas by pointing out that these platforms are private companies, not part of the government. There are two problems with this argument.
First, there is nothing un-libertarian about criticizing private businesses or using peaceful and voluntary means, such as boycotts, to persuade businesses to change their practices.
The second and most significant reason that the “they are private companies” argument does not hold water is the tech companies’ censorship has often been done at the “request” of government officials. The extent of government involvement with online censorship was revealed in emails between the government and employees of various tech companies. In these emails, the government officials addressed employees of these “private companies” as though these employees were the government officials’ subordinates.
Government officials using their authority to silence American citizens is a blatant violation of the First Amendment. Yet some conservative elected officials and writers think the solution to the problem of big tech censorship is giving the government more power over technology companies.
Instead of giving the government more power over social media, defenders of free speech should work to separate tech and state.
Former Google CEO: Companies’ AI Guardrails ‘Aren’t Enough’ to Prevent Harm
Guardrails that AI companies add to their products to prevent them from causing harm “aren’t enough” to control AI capabilities that could endanger humanity within five to ten years, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt told Axios’ Mike Allen on Tuesday.
The big picture: Interviewed at Axios’ AI+ Summit in Washington, DC, Schmidt compared the development of AI to the introduction of nuclear weapons at the end of the Second World War.
The danger, he said, arrives at “the point at which the computer can start to make its own decisions to do things” — when, say, such a system discovers access to weapons, and we can’t be certain the system will tell us the truth. Two years ago, that moment was expected to be 20 years off. Today, Schmidt said, some experts think it’s only two to four years away.
What’s next: Schmidt argued that the best solution is to create a global body akin to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to “feed accurate information to policymakers” so that they understand the urgency and can take action.
Meta EU Ad-Free Subscription: ‘Privacy for the Rich’
Less than a month after its launch, Meta’s ad-free subscription for European users is facing its first privacy troubles in the EU.
Austria-based digital rights group Noyb (stylized as noyb) filed a complaint to the country’s data protection authority on November 28, 2023, warning that such a model will make privacy an exclusive right “for the rich.”
The organization is now urging the Austrian privacy protection body to initiate the procedure to halt what it deemed as an “illegal processing.”
In its official announcement, Meta describes the new subscription model as a way to balance “the requirements of European regulators while giving users choice and allowing Meta to continue serving all people in the EU, EEA and Switzerland.” However, according to noyb, data privacy should be a right accessible to anyone — no matter their bank account.
