Traveling This Summer? Maybe Don’t Let the Airport Scan Your Face.
Here’s something I’m embarrassed to admit: Even though I’ve been reporting on the problems with facial recognition for half a dozen years, I have allowed my face to be scanned at airports. Not once. Not twice. Many times. But the main reason I haven’t declined airport face scans is actually very simple: I had no idea I could opt out.
It turns out that saying no is not only doable but surprisingly easy — at least in theory. Everyone, regardless of citizenship, can opt out when it comes to domestic flights in the U.S. (For international flights, U.S. citizens can opt out but foreign nationals have to participate in face scanning, with some exceptions.) Simply stand away from the camera or keep your face covered with a mask, present your ID, and say, “I opt out of biometrics. I want the standard verification process.”
In theory, an officer is then supposed to manually look over your ID and compare it to your face, as they used to do before facial recognition. But in practice, there have been reports of passengers — even a senator — facing resistance or intimidation when they try to go this route.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) are also supposed to have clear signs informing passengers of the right to opt out. But at many airports, you have to look really, really hard to spot that message. Be prepared to crane your neck at an unnatural angle or squint at a very small font!
USPS Shared Customer Postal Addresses With Meta, LinkedIn and Snap
The U.S. Postal Service was sharing the postal addresses of its online customers with advertising and tech giants Meta, LinkedIn and Snap, TechCrunch has found. On Wednesday, the USPS said it addressed the issue and stopped the practice, claiming that it was “unaware” of it.
TechCrunch found USPS was sharing customers’ information by way of hidden data-collecting code (also known as tracking pixels) used across its website. Tech and advertising companies create this kind of code to collect information about the user — such as which pages they visit — every time a webpage containing the code loads in the customer’s browser.
In the case of USPS, some of that collected data included the postal addresses of logged-in USPS Informed Delivery customers, who use the service to see photos of their incoming mail before it arrives.
It’s not clear how many individuals had their information collected or for how long. Informed Delivery had more than 62 million users as of March 2024.
After Massive IT Outage for Airlines and Healthcare, Officials See Signs of Recovery
Federal officials expect transportation systems will largely return to normal operations by Saturday, following a massive IT outage for Windows users that knocked out systems for transportation, delivery and healthcare.
Airports on Friday were crowded with stranded travelers as major U.S. airlines grounded flights. Several healthcare providers delayed some scheduled procedures. Emergency 911 call service was disrupted in some areas.
Cybersecurity company CrowdStrike pointed to a defect in an update it had delivered for Microsoft’s Windows systems. Microsoft and CrowdStrike said the underlying problems were being fixed, but the incident underscored how a software glitch can have profound ripple effects.
Biden Has COVID and Didn’t Wear a Mask. The CDC’s Guidelines Say He Doesn’t Have to
President Joe Biden did not wear a face mask in public a couple of times after the White House announced he had tested positive for COVID-19. The White House said the Democratic incumbent was experiencing “mild” symptoms while the president’s physician said Biden would self-isolate “in accordance with CDC guidance for symptomatic individuals.”
After the announcement on Wednesday, Biden emerged bare-faced from the motorcade after he arrived at the airport in Las Vegas, where he had made several appearances, and boarded Air Force One. He also was not wearing a mask, which medical professionals have said can help slow the spread of disease, as he stepped off the plane hours later at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. Biden was surrounded by Secret Service agents and aides on both ends of the trip.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention encourages people recovering from COVID-19 or any other respiratory illness to wear masks as part of an overall strategy to reduce transmission, but masks are not mandated.
Most of Gen Z Using TikTok for Health Advice: Survey
Most of Generation Z is turning to TikTok to seek health advice, citing quick responses and free advice, a recent survey found.
The poll, conducted by Zing Coach, found that 56% of Gen Z respondents use TikTok for wellness, diet and fitness advice and that a large share of them use the platform as their main form of health advice. Among those surveyed, 34 percent said they use TikTok to get most of their health advice, making it more than twice as popular as the other options listed.
Meanwhile, 14% said they got their advice from friends, 13% said Google and 11% said qualified doctors or trainers.
Senators Press AT&T on Why It Stores Call Records on a Third-Party ‘AI Data Cloud’
U.S. senators are starkly questioning AT&T’s data storage practices after a serious data breach.
Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) — the chair and ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law — wrote letters questioning the telecom giant and its practice of storing call and text records with a third-party platform called Snowflake.
The lawmakers demanded more info regarding the hack in which the company said“nearly all” text and phone records were stolen in mid-to-late 2022. The letters demanded answers from the CEOs of both AT&T and Snowflake.
Not long after the news of the breach broke, it was reported that AT&T had actually paid a hacker roughly $370,000 to delete the stolen information — though that does not actually guarantee the data is actually fully gone.
Nvidia, Pfizer Lead $80 Million Funding for Israeli Medical AI Tech Firm CytoReason
Israel’s CytoReason, which uses AI to develop disease models, said on Wednesday it had raised $80 million in a private funding round. Nvidia (NVDA.O), Pfizer (PFE.N), Thermo Fisher (TMO.N) and venture capital investor OurCrowd participated in the round, CytoReason said.
The company said it aims to expand the application of its models into additional indications and grow its proprietary molecular and clinical data.
In 2022, Pfizer expanded its partnership with CytoReason with a $20 million investment that could reach $110 million by 2027.
“The rapid expansion of new technologies, like artificial intelligence, holds tremendous potential to help transform what is possible in human health,” said Mikael Dolsten, Pfizer’s chief scientific officer.
SITA Extends Contract With Heathrow as Biometrics Expand in Airports Globally
SITA’s contract with Heathrow Airport has been extended by five years, setting up the Swiss firm to continue providing network, telecom and connectivity services for the airport’s IT infrastructure and potentially opening the door to more biometrics deployments.
A release says that, in addition to digital infrastructure support for thousands of network access switches and wireless access points, SITA will develop new projects around Heathrow’s network telecoms infrastructure, cyber-security, radio and operational technology. This applies not only for airport operations but also for businesses operating within Heathrow.
SITA recently posted $1.5 billion in 2023 revenues, up 7 percent from the previous year, driven by record sales of its airport biometrics, digital identity initiatives, and deployments of software and IT infrastructure for the aviation industry. With Europe’s busiest airport as its client for another half-decade, the firm stands to cement its position as a leader in providing biometric technology for the airport experience.
Nigeria Fines Meta $220 Million for Violating Consumer, Data Laws
Nigeria fined Meta Platforms (META.O) $220 million, its competition watchdog said on Friday, after investigations showed data-sharing on social platforms violated local consumer, data protection and privacy laws.
Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) said Meta appropriated the data of Nigerian users on its platforms without their consent, abused its market dominance by forcing exploitative privacy policies on users, and meted out discriminatory and disparate treatment on Nigerians, compared with other jurisdictions with similar regulations.
