Big Brother News Watch
Who Pays $24 Million to Protect Mark Zuckerberg? + More
Who Pays $24 Million to Protect Mark Zuckerberg?
Shareholders do. And that’s just one example of how COVID-19 hasn’t stopped the corporate-perk parade …
The bigger boon to the security industry … were Facebook executives Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg, whose safety cost the company $24 million and $7.6 million in 2020, respectively. The company said that the expenses were elevated in 2020 due to “costs relating to security protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic, increased security coverage during the 2020 U.S. elections and market increases in the cost of security personnel.”
A spokesman for Facebook added that “Mr. Zuckerberg is one of the most-recognized executives in the world in large part as a result of the size of our user base and our continued exposure to global media, legislative and regulatory attention.”
Physicians, Surgeons Call on Universities to Reverse COVID Vaccine Mandates
The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) is calling on U.S. colleges and universities to allow students to attend in-person classes without requiring them to be vaccinated for COVID.
In an open letter, AAPS listed 15 reasons universities should reconsider vaccine mandates.
“Although, at first glance, the policy may seem prudent, it coerces students into bearing unneeded and unknown risk and is at heart contrary to the bedrock medical principle of informed consent,” the letter stated.
According to its website, AAPS is a non-partisan professional association of physicians in all types of practices and specialties across the country. The organization was founded in 1943 to preserve “the sanctity of the patient-physician relationship and the practice of private medicine.”
TSA Extends Mask Mandate Aboard Flights Through Summer as Travel Increases
Wearing a face mask will continue to be a requirement at airports, aboard commercial flights and on other public transportation across the country through the summer.
The federal mask mandate, which was set to expire on May 11, will remain in effect through Sept. 13, according to updated guidance issued by the Transportation Security Administration on Friday.
The rule, which also applies to buses and rail systems, was first put in place by President Biden shortly after he took office in January.
A Tech Company Tried to Limit What Employees Talk About at Work. It Didn’t Go Well.
The Wall Street Journal reported:
When leaders of the project management and communication software company Basecamp announced last week that it would curb political conversations at work, fallout came fast.
Tech employees, workplace consultants and politicians alike assailed the decision on Twitter and LinkedIn, though other company leaders called it a courageous move. Some employees publicly threatened to quit. Ultimately, the Chicago-based company offered buyouts to its staff of about 50. A significant number of employees decided to leave.
Some Schools Skip Student Quarantines
“We have had students who had to quarantine three times,” said Miller, of Lakota Local Schools, among Ohio’s larger school systems with 17,000 students.
But that has changed. In the continuing struggle to strike a balance between safety and classroom learning, Ohio joined a handful of states that have now remade their rules to cut back on student quarantines. Many point to lower than expected spread of the virus inside schools and note that school leaders say there are few infections among students who get quarantined.
In Ohio’s case, quarantines are no longer required for potential classroom exposures as long as students were masked and other safeguards were in place.
China’s Big Brother ‘Social Credit System’ Now Tracks People in North America Too With Video Surveillance
China is covertly conducting surveillance and even tracking people’s movements in North America using what’s called “a social credit system,” trying to advance its totalitarian authority all over the world even in free nations.
The Gatestone Institute, a non-partisan, not-for-profit international policy council, and think tank, reports seven years ago, China’s State Council issued guidelines for the establishment of a national “social credit system” by 2020, with the feeds from about 626 million surveillance cameras and smartphone scanners and with data from a multitude of sources.
California Appeals Court Rules Amazon Can Be Held Liable for Third-Party Sellers’ Faulty Products
A new chapter unfolded this week in Amazon’s years-long legal battle over selling exploding hoverboards. A California appeals court has ruled that the e-commerce giant is responsible for the safety of third-party products sold on its platform, according to the Los Angeles Times …
Initially, a California judge sided with Amazon, which argues that it only connects customers with sellers and shouldn’t be held liable for safety issues that result from those transactions.
However, an appeals court ruled this week that Amazon is a “direct link in the vertical chain of distribution under California’s strict liability doctrine, acting as a powerful intermediary between the third party seller and the consumer.” You can check out the full ruling here.
Facebook Oversight Board to Rule on Suspended Trump Account on May 5
Former President Donald Trump will find out this week whether he gets to return to Facebook.
The social network’s quasi-independent Oversight Board says it will announce its decision Wednesday on a case concerning the former president.
Trump’s account was suspended for inciting violence that led to the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riots.
Canada Will Require Vaccine Passport for Entry
Canada Will Require Using A Vaccine Passport for Entry
Canadian Health Minister Patty Hajdu says her government supports the idea of a “vaccine passport” and will come up with a form of vaccine certification to allow vaccinated Canadians to travel internationally.
Nearly eight in 10 Canadians (78%) agree (including 56% who strongly agree) that all travelers entering Canada should be required to have a vaccine passport, according to a new Ipsos survey. Comparatively, a smaller majority of Americans (71%) agree that travelers should be required to show a vaccine passport before entering the United States.
Vaccine Passports vs. Basic Civil Liberties
The media is covering “about half the story” about vaccine passports “and it’s the wrong half,” according to Wayne Rohde, host of the “Right on Point” podcast.
Rohde interviewed Mary Holland, president and general counsel of Children’s Health Defense, about vaccine passports and their potential to infringe on basic civil liberties. Holland pointed out how Jacobson v. Massachusetts, the 100-year-old landmark Supreme Court case used to justify vaccine mandates, is being “stretched beyond recognition,” and how some of today’s Supreme Court justices are pushing back.
‘It’s Just the Beginning’: COVID Push to Digital Boosts Big Tech Profits
Big tech is on a roll. In every minute of the first three months of 2021, Apple, Google owner Alphabet, Amazon, Facebook and Microsoft sold products and services worth about $2.5m (£1.8m) combined. Profits before tax for the period came in at $88bn – more than $1bn of profit for every working day.
After a year of shifting to online work and leisure across the global economy, financial results published this week by most of U.S. tech’s biggest names were bound to be strong. But even more bullish analysts on Wall Street were surprised by how fast they raked in money in the quarter, auguring even greater profits in the years ahead.
Montana Is About to Become the Most Dangerous Place in America to Protest Fossil Fuels
This week, the Montana legislature passed what is among the most, if not the most, extreme anti-pipeline protest laws in the country. Gov. Greg Gianforte, a man best known for assaulting a reporter and killing wolves, is expected to sign a bill into law that would criminalize protesting fossil fuel infrastructure. It would foist up to $150,000 in fines and 30 years in prison on individuals convicted of protest-related “vandalism” and $1.5 million in costs on any organizations charged as “conspirators.” Republicans legislators that have backed the bill have also singled out Indigenous-led protests as a reason for the bill, citing falsehoods to pass a bill to protect fossil fuel interests.
“What they see in the past few years is how important Native Americans’ voice is,” said Keaton Sunchild, the political director of Western Native Voice, referring to the legislators who passed the bill. “If we’re not able to protest these types of projects, then there’s not a dissenting voice. They’re able to silence a large chunk of activists and say, ‘look, there’s no opposition to this project,’ when in reality, there’s a huge opposition.”
U.S. Space Force Chief Scientist: ‘Human Augmentation’ Is Now Necessary
The chief scientist for the newly created U.S. Space Force has said he thinks ‘human augmentation’ will be here sooner rather than later.
Dr. Joel Mozer, speaking at an event at the Airforce Research Laboratory, said that it is ‘imperative’ that the US outdo its adversaries by leading in ‘human augmentation’ in military technology.
‘In the last century, Western civilization transformed from an industrial-based society to an information-based society, but today we’re on the brink of a new age: the age of human augmentation,’ said Mozer.
‘In our business of national defense, it’s imperative that we embrace this new age, lest we fall behind our strategic competitors.’
New EU Law Makes Tech Companies Delete ‘Terrorist Content’ Within 1 Hour + More
The EU Adopted a Law Making Tech Companies Delete ‘Terrorist Content’ Within One Hour
The EU has adopted a new, controversial law that requires tech companies to delete what authorities deem “terrorist content” within an hour, or risk a fine.
The European Parliament formally adopted the law on Wednesday even as lawmakers and experts warned that it would not be practical to implement and could harm people’s privacy and free-speech rights.
‘A Perfect Positive Storm’: Bonkers Dollars for Big Tech
The U.S. economy is cranking back from 2020, when it contracted for the first time since the financial crisis. But for the tech giants, the pandemic hit was barely a blip. It’s a fantastic time to be a titan of U.S. technology — as long as you ignore the screaming politicians, the daily headlines about killing free speech or dodging taxes, the gripes from competitors and workers, and the too-many-to-count legal investigations and lawsuits.
America’s technology superpowers aren’t making bonkers dollars in spite of the deadly coronavirus and its ripple effects through the global economy. They have grown even stronger because of the pandemic. It’s both logical and slightly nuts.
A False Facial Recognition Match Sent This Innocent Black Man to Jail
According to a police report obtained by CNN, the evidence presented by the police officers that led to Parks’ arrest was a “high profile comparison” from a facial recognition scan of a photo from what was determined to be a fake ID left at the crime scene that witnesses connected to the suspect. The facial recognition match was enough for prosecutors and a judge to sign off on his arrest.
… While facial recognition technology has become increasingly accurate, research has shown it is drastically more prone to error when trying to match the faces of darker skinned people. And because no federal guidelines exist to limit or standardize the use of facial recognition by law enforcement, states — and, more often, municipalities — are left to decide for themselves what, if anything, to do to control its use. Virginia recently became the fifth state to curtail the use of the facial recognition by police, while Portland, San Francisco, Oakland and Boston are among the cities outlawing it.
‘A Tough Call’: Biden Considering Mandatory COVID Vaccines for U.S. Troops
President Joe Biden said he has not ruled out requiring all U.S. troops to get the coronavirus vaccine after the shots win final clearance from federal regulators, but cautioned that such a decision would be a “tough call.”
“I don’t know. I’m going to leave that to the military,” Biden told NBC News’ Craig Melvin in an interview that aired Friday, in response to a question on whether he would mandate the vaccine for U.S. service members once it is fully approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
EU Says Apple’s App Store Breaks Anti-Trust Rules as Court Showdown With Epic Games Looms
A long-awaited legal showdown between Apple and “Fortnite” maker Epic Games will start May 3, when a federal judge will hear arguments as Epic alleges that Apple’s control of the iOS app store, and the fees it charges developers, makes it an illegal monopoly, the EU’s anti-trust czar Margrethe Vestager (who has a reputation for attacking American tech giants on anti-trust grounds) has just launched a similar crusade of her own.
Via a charge sheet issued Friday, Vestager and the EU have determined that Apple is guilty of antitrust violations for allegedly abusing its control of its app store when it comes to music-streaming apps like Spotify, a European company that competes against Apple’s “Apple Music” with its popular music-and-podcast streaming app, and which complained to Vestager about Apple.
Chicago Looking at ‘Vax Pass’ for Concerts and Other Events + More
Chicago Looking at ‘Vax Pass’ for Concerts and Other Events, Public Health Commissioner Says
Chicago Tribune on MSN News reported:
Chicago’s top public health official on Tuesday said she expects the city to debut a form of a vaccination passport requirement next month for access to events geared toward young adults.
Chicago public health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady gave few details about the initiative, but said it will be dubbed “Vax Pass” and roll out in May as a means to encourage vaccination particularly in younger people in exchange for attendance at concerts or other events as the second pandemic summer begins.
“You get a vaccine, you’ll be able to get into a concert or get into an event,” Arwady said. “(We’re) really thinking, particularly for younger people, how can we make vaccine something that people are excited about getting?”
Connecticut Lawmakers Vote to Repeal Religious Exemptions to Vaccines, Health Freedom Advocates Vow Legal Challenge
Connecticut lawmakers Tuesday voted to repeal the religious exemption for vaccines for all Connecticut students, from daycare through higher education.
House Bill 6423, “An Act Concerning Immunization,” passed by a vote of 22 – 14 after about nine hours of debate. The bill passed almost along party lines, with all but two Democrats in favor of removing the exemption, and all Republicans against. Two lawmakers, both Democrats, abstained.
The bill includes an amendment which allows students who had exemptions on file prior to the bill passing to remain in school. However future Connecticut students of any age will now be required to be fully vaccinated per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommended schedule.
Mass Legal Action Against Google Would ‘Open the Floodgates,’ Supreme Court Told
A billion-pound legal action against Google over claims it secretly tracked millions of iPhone users’ internet activity would “open the floodgates” to mass data protection claims if it is allowed to go ahead, the Supreme Court has heard.
Former Which? director Richard Lloyd, supported by campaign group Google You Owe Us, wants to bring a “representative action” against the US-based tech giant on behalf of around 4.4 million people in England and Wales.
He claims Google “illegally misused the data of millions of iPhone users”, through the “clandestine tracking and collation” of information about internet usage on iPhones’ Safari browser, known as the “Safari workaround.”
Your Tech Devices Want to Read Your Brain. What Could Go Wrong?
The Washington Post on MSN News reported:
As a PhD student at the University of Michigan in 2015, he developed a brain-computer interface that would allow people to control software and physical objects with their thoughts. Today, that interface is behind plans by a Boston-based start-up, Neurable, to begin shipping a set of brain-sensing headphones to let you know when you’re poised for peak productivity.
Using your thoughts to make things happen in the real world was once a thing of science fiction. Now, it’s moving into reality, and Neurable’s interface is just one of the products companies are trying to develop that would usher in a consumer revolution in electronics.
Already, brain tech allows players to manipulate avatars in video games by concentrating on parts of the screen. And Facebook last month revealed plans to interpret your intent to move a finger to trigger digital commands.
Washington Post Quits Fact-Check Database 100 Days Into Biden Presidency
The Washington Post is ending its presidential fact-check database just 100 days into President Joe Biden’s administration after four years of rigorously investigating former President Donald Trump.
“We’ve been comparing Biden (67 false or misleading claims) to Trump’s first 100 days (511 claims.)” Washington Post fact-checker Glenn Kessler tweeted Tuesday. “But past is no prologue. In the last 100 days before the 2020 election, we counted 8,859 claims made by Trump. It was a wild ride.”
Google Owner Sees Record Profits as Lockdown Boom Continues
Google owner Alphabet saw its earnings soar in the first quarter as people stuck at home in the pandemic used more of its services.
Net profit jumped by 162% to a record $17.9bn in the three months to March as advertising revenue swelled by a third.
It comes as the tech giant faces increased scrutiny over its power and the pandemic has people turning to the internet more than ever.
The firm credited “elevated consumer activity online” for its results.
Apple Fined $12M by Russian Regulator Over App Store Monopoly Abuse
Russia’s antitrust regulator, the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS), has fined Apple $12 million over complaints it unfairly cracked down on third-party parental control apps, the regulator has announced. The FAS started its investigation after receiving a complaint from Kaspersky Lab in March 2019, which claimed Apple had forced it to limit the functionality of its Safe Kids app shortly after Apple added the Screen Time feature to iOS 12.
The fine comes in the same week that EU regulators are expected to issue charges of their own against Apple. These come in response to a complaint from Spotify in March 2019 about the 30 percent cut Apple takes for in-app purchases, which it said gives Apple’s own services an unfair advantage. As well as Spotify, parental control apps Kidslox and Qustodio also complained to European regulators, The New York Times reported in April 2019.
