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WCVB Cameraman’s Termination Over COVID Vaccine Deemed Justified
Hearst was justified in terminating a former WCVB cameraman who refused to get a COVID-19 vaccine after the station’s parent company denied him a religious exemption, a federal appeals court ruled earlier this month.
George Rodrique sued Hearst Stations and Hearst Communications, WCVB’s owner, in late 2022 over his termination the year prior. First reported by Universal Hub, the Jan. 17 U.S. Court of Appeals decision backs up a 2024 lower court ruling, which tossed Rodrique’s lawsuit and sided with Hearst.
In his original complaint, Rodrique said he’s developed his own spiritual guidelines “through an amalgamation of biblical maxims, many other ideologies and spiritual practices, and personal experiences that help to guide him down the proper path in life.” He explained those beliefs require him, in part, to avoid “polluting” his body with “substances that do not exist in nature.”
Report: Majority of US Teens Have Lost Trust in Big Tech
American teens have lost their faith in Big Tech, according to a new report from Common Sense Media, a nonprofit offering reviews and ratings for media and technology, which more recently includes artificial intelligence, or AI, products.
In the study released Wednesday, the organization surveyed over 1,000 teens on whether major technology companies like Google, Apple, Meta, TikTok and Microsoft cared about their well-being and safety, made ethical decisions, protected their private data, and more. In all cases, a majority of teens reported low levels of trust in these tech companies. Nearly half of teens said they had little or no trust that the companies would make responsible decisions about how they use AI.
Distrust in Big Tech has been building in the U.S. for years from the 2013 revelation of the government’s mass data collection and the data scandal involving consulting firm Cambridge Analytica to the 2021 Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen’s leaks indicating Meta was aware of its harms on society and the multiple Congressional hearings where lawmakers grilled Big Tech CEOs over app safety, antitrust issues and harmful algorithms.
Trump’s Fight Against Online Censorship Quickly Goes Global
Flanked by some of the Big Tech executives whose companies had suppressed the views of his supporters throughout his predecessor’s term, President Trump on Jan. 20 declared the days of such speech policing over.
Hours later, the president put action behind his words, signing an executive order prohibiting the federal government from engaging in, facilitating, or funding “any conduct that would unconstitutionally abridge the free speech of any American citizen.”
The move was celebrated by those who see it as a blow against what they decry as the Censorship Industrial Complex. Others cast the executive order as giving a dangerous license to “misinformation” and “disinformation.”
What is clear is that this is just the latest salvo in an ongoing war over the digital public square, pitting the Trump administration and like-minded Republican congressional allies against not only domestic opponents but the global counter-disinformation eco-system.
ConnectID, Visa, ID.me Illustrate Central Place Digital ID Plays in Digital Economy
Convenience is king, even in identity verification. Customers want to be able to prove their identity without constantly submitting the same data over and over again. Hence the appeal of bank ID systems such as ConnectID and Visa, which work on the principle that large institutions like banks already have most of the data people need to prove their identity.
In Australia and the U.S., these platforms are accumulating millions of users, and accelerating the mass market adoption of digital identity. Commonwealth Bank, National Australia Bank, ANZ and Westpac — the four biggest banks in Australia — have signed onto ConnectID’s digital identity service, offering it to more than 10 million customers, according to a company release.
Like banks, major credit cards and payments providers are already large, trusted holders of personal data. A new white paper from Visa has insights on the place digital payments occupy in the digital identity verification ecosystem, and on the issue of data collection in particular. Trust, Visa says, is built with “high quality user experiences, strong consent frameworks, and an expectation that digital identities and the associated data are protected at the highest security level.”
It highlights the role of biometrics, and the challenges that come with it. “Biometric information is often used in digital transactions to identify or authenticate a person in a convenient way. However, due to the sensitivity of biometric information, care must be taken on how it is used, stored and shared.”
Québec Privacy Act Sets ‘High Legal Threshold’ for Biometric Data Collection
Québec could end up becoming the Illinois of Canada — at least in terms of how seriously it legislates data privacy. A feature from Osler law firm explores how the provincial privacy commissioner has dialed up its enforcement activities, and how the “rigorous approach” the Commission d’accès à l’information (CAI) takes to biometric data collection under the Québec Privacy Act could sway similar legislation across the country.
Osler cites a case from September 2024, wherein the CAI initiated an investigation into the biometric practices of a printing company, and subsequently issued a decision ordering the company to stop using facial recognition technology for employee access control, on the grounds that biometric data collection was not necessary or proportionate under the circumstances.
Osler says that “while consistent with the CAI’s past orders and guidance, the decision highlights the high legal threshold for using facial recognition and other biometric identification technologies in Québec.”
Belize to Install 1,000 Surveillance Cameras With Facial Recognition From March
In Belize, tracking crime suspects and crowd trouble incidents will soon become easier with the planned installation of at least 1,000 surveillance cameras in the capital city.
The information, reported by Great Belize TV, indicates that the project, set to begin in March, seeks to put in place a surveillance infrastructure in Belize City and other parts of the country, equipped with features including facial recognition to facilitate real-time monitoring and evidence collection for crimes such as kidnappings, robberies and murder.
Already, an inauguration ceremony has taken place for the installation of 50 Pan-tilt-zoom surveillance cameras as part of the project. The ceremony took place on January 11. According to the country’s Police boss, Commissioner Chester Williams, the system which will also have motion video detection capabilities, will be able to track unusual movements and send an alarm to alert the police of such incidents.
“And it doesn’t only send an alarm; it also zooms in on the area where the problem is detected to pick up who is around,” Williams states, as quoted. The official also explained that as part of the system, panic buttons will be installed alongside, to permit individuals in distress to send signals to security officers.
