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News From Around the World
Find the latest news articles from around the world about electromagnetic radiation and frequency, wireless technology, 5G and cellular information.
Phonegate Alert criticizes WHO study on mobile phone risks
Paris, September 18, 2024 – The Phonegate Alert association demands a thorough and independent examination of the results of a recently published study by the World Health Organization (WHO). This study, which concludes there are no risks of brain cancer linked to mobile phone use, raises numerous questions about its methodology and impartiality.
The WHO study screened 5,379 scientific publications published between 1994 and 2022. However, only 63 of them were subjected to in-depth examination, raising questions about the selection criteria.
New paper; Spots with Extremely High Radiofrequency Radiation After Deployment of 5G Base Stations in Stockholm, Sweden
Abstract: Since 2016 we have made several measurements of environmental exposure to RF radiation in Stockholm, Sweden, including previous generations and now also 5G. Results show that the RF radiation has increased substantially.
These levels are in the same magnitude or even higher than those measured in homes of persons that rapidly developed symptoms of the microwave syndrome after installation of 5G, usually in combination with 4G+, in the neighborhood.
Kuwait to Freeze Bank Accounts of Residents Who Resist Biometric Fingerprinting
Kuwait is mandating a biometric registration process for citizens and expatriates. Those who fail to register their fingerprints by the set deadlines will face consequences such as suspended government services and frozen bank accounts.
It is claimed that the reasons for enforcing the registration of digital biometrics are to enhance security and address dual nationality issues. However, this initiative aligns with global trends in biometrics and the sharing of our data with selected agencies.
India to Digitize the Agricultural Sector Through Unique Digital Farmer ID
India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the implementation of DPI for agriculture in the Union Budget 2024-25. The approved Digital Agriculture Mission will receive a total public funding of US$335.36 million, which includes $230.95 million from the central (federal) government.
Through the AgriStack initiative, each farmer will receive a unique digital identifier, similar to the Aadhaar system. The digital identifier will be connected to various personal and farming-related information, including land records, livestock ownership, crops grown, and benefits received.
Old Wine in New Bottles: The New WHO Cancer Review
An international team of researchers, many with close ties to ICNIRP, is trying to put to rest the very possibility that RF radiation can lead to brain cancer —and, by extension, any type of cancer.
On August 30, they published a detailed systematic review of RF and cell phone epidemiological studies, which concludes that there is little evidence to justify continued concern over a possible cancer link.
‘So many things that could go wrong’ | Walnut Hills student petitions to ban new phone pouch policy
CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Public School students are now required to magnetically lock their cell phones in pouches all day.
CPS says the new Yondr pouch policy — which most high schools in the district have implemented — is about cutting out distractions and improving academic performance.
“I think there’s a lot of students who are actually going to benefit from being free from distraction,” said Brandon Craig, a CPS board member.
Dr. Kareem Moncree-Moffett, a CPS board member, said Hughes High School experienced a 38% decrease in 9th grade failures.
Your Child’s Smart Toy is a Data Scientist — Here’s How It’s Quietly Watching and What it’s Learning
Remember when toys were simple? A stuffed animal was just a stuffed animal, and the only data it collected was the occasional ketchup stain or grass mark from outdoor adventures. But in today’s digital age, your child’s favorite playmate might be secretly moonlighting as a miniature surveillance device, collecting data on everything from playtime habits to personal preferences.
Welcome to the brave new world of smart toys, where every playtime could be a potential privacy pitfall. An eye-opening new study by researchers from the University of Basel uncovers alarming shortcomings in the privacy and security features of popular smart toys, raising concerns about the safety of children’s personal information.
Backyard Privacy in the Age of Drones
Police departments and law enforcement agencies are increasingly collecting personal information using drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles. In addition to high-resolution photographic and video cameras, police drones may be equipped with myriad spying payloads, such as live-video transmitters, thermal imaging, heat sensors, mapping technology, automated license plate readers, cell site simulators, cell phone signal interceptors and other technologies.
Captured data can later be scrutinized with backend software tools like license plate readers and face recognition technology. There have even been proposals for law enforcement to attach lethal and less-lethal weapons to drones and robots.
A hollow victory in fight to bring transparency to cops’ use of facial recognition technology
Francisco Arteaga spent nearly four years behind bars battling an armed robbery case after police using facial recognition technology identified him as their prime suspect. His court challenge led to a ruling that now requires police departments to reveal the algorithms of the technology in cases where the technology is used. (Dana DiFilippo | New Jersey Monitor)
Francisco Arteaga was incarcerated, waiting to appear for a court hearing last fall, when he spotted a huge guy eyeballing him from the other side of the courthouse holding cell.
Under The Skin: The Internet Of Bio-NanoThings
First, there was the Internet of Things (IoT), then the Internet of Bodies (IoB), the Internet of Everything (IoE), and finally, Big Pharma and the military are going into your blood to construct the Internet of Bio-NanoThings (IoBNT). You might have hoped for the Internet of Nothing, but instead, you are getting the Internet Of Universal Skynet (IoUS). This paper from March 2015 is a primer that anybody can understand, including you. The IoBNT is the final building block of the surveillance network, bridging all living things from the biochemical domain into the electrical domain of the Internet.
There was no warning that nanotechnology of this sort was being pumped into your veins when you received a mRNA injectable from Pfizer or Moderna. Not a word from the government, Big Pharma, or the Military. There was no Informed Consent offered. The non-stop propaganda blared “Safe and Effective.”
Another WHO RF Review Challenged
More than 99% of Studies on Oxidative Stress Discarded
A third RF systematic review commissioned by the World Health Organization’s EMF Project is under fire. This one is on RF–induced oxidative stress. Last month, two other WHO reviews —on pregnancy outcomes and on tinnitus— were both called into question as critics called for them to be retracted.
A team of 14 from six countries, led by Felix Meyer of the German Office for Radiation Protection (BfS), identified 11,599 studies on oxidative stress in the frequency range 800-2450 MHz. They then eliminated 11,543 of them as not meeting their criteria for inclusion. Of the remaining 56, there are 45 animal studies and 11 cellular studies.
School Board Committee Backs Cell Tower Ban on School Campuses
A School Board committee Tuesday voted unanimously to endorse a revised policy that would prohibit the construction of telecommunication towers on elementary, middle and high school properties. The item will now go before the full board.
Board Chair Melinda Mansfield (Dulles) proposed an amendment to the staff recommended policy changes to say that after Oct. 1, wireless facilities would not be considered on school campuses, however school sites that have been approved prior to that date could still be built.
Verizon Sees Undersea Cable Opportunity
According to a filing it submitted to the FCC, Verizon (NYSE: VZ) has applied to install an undersea fiber optic cable across the Pacific Ocean. The official description refers to the request as an “Application for a License to Land and Operate a Domestic, Private Fiber-Optic Submarine Cable System Connecting Makaha, Hawaii and Morro Bay, California, to be known as the ‘California-Hawaii S1 Cable System.’”
FCC has not yet approved the project as it is analyzing its impact on national security. There has already been speculation by defense analysts that Chinese repair ships may be gleaning digital information from fiber cable systems. The State Department has also expressed concerns that in times of combat, submarine cables could become easy targets.
T-Mobile to Award Small Town High School With Football Field Makeover
Promising a “Football Field Makeover,” T-Mobile (NASDAQ: TMUS) is sponsoring a contest where small towns will compete for prizes by submitting stories about their high school’s football team spirit, and their needs for new football facilities.
“Ultimately, the school that can break through the noise, best show off its community spirit and passion, and get community members to vote for their school on social media will emerge victorious,” T-Mobile said.
Bill to Revive ACP Introduced in the House
U.S. Representatives Nikki Budzinski (D-IL) and Mike Carey (R-OH) introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation to renew the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) – the FCC program that helped low-income households afford access to high-speed internet.
The ACP ran out of money at the end of May. At a recent congressional hearing, FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel told lawmakers the Commission is maintaining the ACP enrollment data in case Congress is able to revive the program that had 23 million enrolled households, Inside Towers reported.
Senators Introduce Bill to Streamline Broadband Permitting on Federal Land
Senators John Thune (R-SD), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), ranking member and chairman, respectively, of the Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and Broadband, and John Barrasso (R-WY), introduced the Accelerating Broadband Permits Act this week. The measure aims to speed the review permit application process with federal agencies.
The legislation cuts unnecessary red tape and increases transparency into the federal permitting process. It also requires federal agencies to implement controls to ensure broadband applications are being processed within the required 270-day deadline, according to the sponsors.
FCC Says New Pole Attachment Rules Are in Effect
WASHINGTON, July 29, 2024 – A federal agency said last Friday that new rules designed to speed broadband deployment have gone into effect.
The announcement was made by the Federal Communications Commission’s Wireline Competition Bureau regarding new rules that are intended to assist Internet Service Providers that need to attach their wires and other facilities to utility poles owned by various third parties.
The FCC hopes the rules will accelerate wireline broadband deployment by addressing infrastructure barriers.
FCC, Telecom Groups Decry USF Court Decision
The FCC’s majority along with rural telecom associations reacted strongly to a federal appeals court ruling that struck down the agency’s Universal Service Fund (USF), vowing to fight the decision. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel called the ruling that the USF funding mechanism is unconstitutional “misguided and wrong.”
Rosenworcel asserted: “The opinion reflects a lack of understanding of the statutory scheme that helped create the world’s best and most far-reaching communications network. It upends decades of bipartisan support for FCC programs that help communications reach the most rural and least-connected households in our country, as well as hospitals, schools, and libraries nationwide. We will pursue all available avenues for review.”
D.C. Approves Small Cell Change for Standalone Poles
The Washington, D.C., Department of Transportation’s (DDOT) Public Space Committee unanimously approved new amendments to its Small Cell Design Guidelines on July 18, allowing standalone poles for node use and approving three standard standalone pole designs. WIA said the rules align with its small cell guidelines that include detailed setbacks and requirements that the new pole aligns with existing streetlights.
Pole height is limited to 30 feet. WIA VP Government Affairs Karmen Rajamani provided written testimony in favor of these rules. In sum, the updated Small Cell Design Guidelines permit small cells on existing and new structures in the public rights-of-way, bringing connectivity throughout the District, according to the association.
Facial recognition and AI monitoring deployed in India’s largest railway network
India’s rail networks are adding AI and facial recognition systems to their stations, part of a growing biometrics and surveillance market experts predict will be worth more than US$15 billion within the next five years.
A release from IDIS Global says the South Korean video surveillance manufacturer is providing Indian Railways, Asia’s largest rail network, with a 4K camera system equipped with integrated AI video analytics and facial recognition technology from Herta Security.
USPS Caught Sharing Customer Addresses with Tech Giants, Including Meta and LinkedIn
Ever wonder how sometimes digital ads know what you’re discussing in the privacy of your own home…and even sometimes what you’re thinking?
Well, here’s one part of that answer, we’re sure. An investigation from TechCrunch has revealed that the U.S. Postal Service was sharing the addresses of its online customers with tech giants like Meta and LinkedIn.
In Split Vote, FCC OKs Rules to Support WiFi Hotspots Through E-Rate
The FCC vote to approve final rules to support funding WiFi hotspots in schools and libraries through the E-Rate program fell along party lines, 3-2. The point is to support students, school staff, and library patrons who don’t have an internet connection at home.
Established in 1996, E-Rate provides discounts to help schools and libraries obtain affordable telecommunications and internet access. The program has been updated through the years to focus support on bringing high-speed broadband to and within schools and libraries. The agency says the latest action will enable schools and libraries to loan out WiFi hotspots in rural and urban areas.
The Gold in AI Mass Surveillance Goes to …
The 2024 Paris Olympics is drawing the eyes of the world as thousands of athletes and support personnel and hundreds of thousands of visitors from around the globe converge in France. It’s not just the eyes of the world that will be watching. Artificial intelligence systems will be watching, too.
Government and private companies will be using advanced AI tools and other surveillance tech to conduct pervasive and persistent surveillance before, during and after the Games. The Olympic world stage and international crowds pose increased security risks so significant that in recent years authorities and critics have described the Olympics as the “world’s largest security operations outside of war.”
AI’s Outrageous Environmental Toll Is Probably Worse Than You Think
By now, you’re probably well aware of the staggering energy and resource costs of generative AI. But even if the whole industry is a bubble ready to burst, chances are that the environmental toll we’re hearing about now is only going to get worse — because AI’s appetite is absolutely insatiable.
Consider the obscene amounts of water that’s needed just to cool the data centers that train and host generative AI models, which is somewhere in the millions of gallons per year. Internal estimates from Microsoft about its data facility in Goodyear, Arizona, for example, show that it’s set to annually consume 56 million gallons of drinking water — which is more than a drop in the ocean for such a water-scarce region.
Florida Neighbors Lament Over Small Cell Buildout
Kendal Lake, FL resident Lissette Monzon told a WPLG-TV crew that she was completely surprised by the appearance of a 32-foot 5G small cell pole adjacent to her property.
“Nobody let us know that 5G towers were coming into our communities,” she said. Though FCC data and the American Cancer Society agree that the communications equipment does not present a health hazard, Monzon commented that she felt that the cell tower could be dangerous to humans or birds, and could threaten property values.
Brazil data regulator bans Meta from mining data to train AI models
Brazil’s national data protection authority determined on Tuesday that Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, cannot use data originating in the country to train its artificial intelligence.
Meta’s updated privacy policy enables the company to feed people’s public posts into its AI systems. That practice will not be permitted in Brazil, however.
The decision stems from “the imminent risk of serious and irreparable or difficult-to-repair damage to the fundamental rights of the affected data subjects,” the agency said in the nation’s official gazette.
State bill affecting Santa Clara County landlines pulled after backlash
A state bill that would have let AT&T off the hook for emergency landline service — circumventing state regulators and affecting remote pockets of Santa Clara County — is on hold after public backlash.
Assembly Bill 2797 has been pulled from the California Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee meeting slated for Tuesday. It comes after the bill — originally about horse racing — was gutted and amended to give telecommunications companies another way out of their “carrier of last resort” duty if they submit a notice showing a lack of customers or that alternative services are available. Critics said AT&T is behind the bill, which Assemblymember Tina McKinnor introduced just before state utility regulators denied AT&T’s request to withdraw from its state obligation.
Cell Tower Radiation Linked to Genetic Changes in Nearby Residents
Senior European scientists are reporting that people living near cell phone towers show significant changes in their genetic makeup. This is the first time that chronic exposure to cell tower radiation has been linked to unrepairable genetic damage.
A team led by Wilhelm Mosgöller of the Medical University of Vienna and Igor Belyaev of the Slovak Academy of Sciences in Bratislava contend that years of low-dose RF exposure can increase the incidence of a number of different types of chromosomal aberrations. Such changes could lead to serious, though uncertain, health consequences, including cancer and neurological disease. (Chromosomes are strands of DNA coiled around proteins.)
Brewer Opposes 5G Towers Planned for Upper West Side
Five gigantic 5G towers may soon be coming to the Upper West Side, but not if Council Member Gale Brewer has anything to say about it.
Brewer has sent letters in opposition to the five proposed towers to both the Deputy Commissioner of the State Historic Preservation Office, Daniel Mackay, and the NYC Office of Technology and Innovation. The former letter was sent on June 17.
Drone As First Responder Programs Are Swarming Across the United States
Law enforcement wants more drones, and we’ll probably see many more of them overhead as police departments seek to implement a popular project justifying the deployment of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs): the “drone as first responder” (DFR).
Police DFR programs involve a fleet of drones, which can range in number from four or five to hundreds. In response to 911 calls and other law enforcement calls for service, a camera-equipped drone is launched from a regular base (like the police station roof) to get to the incident first, giving responding officers a view of the scene before they arrive.