David Meyer, Fortune; A.I. Regulation Is Coming Soon. Here’s What the Future May Hold
"Last year Angela Merkel’s government tasked a new Data Ethics
Commission with producing recommendations for rules around algorithms
and A.I. The group’s report
landed Wednesday, packed with ideas for guiding the development of this
new technology in a way that protects people from exploitation.
History tells us that German ideas around data tend to make their way onto the international stage...
So, what do those recommendations look like? In a word: tough."
Monday, October 28, 2019
The biggest lie tech people tell themselves — and the rest of us; Vox, October 8, 2019
, Vox;
"With great power comes great responsibility
Often consumers don’t have much power of selection at all. Those who run small businesses find it nearly impossible to walk away from Facebook, Instagram, Yelp, Etsy, even Amazon. Employers often mandate that their workers use certain apps or systems like Zoom, Slack, and Google Docs. “It is only the hyper-privileged who are now saying, ‘I’m not going to give my kids this,’ or, ‘I’m not on social media,’” says Rumman Chowdhury, a data scientist at Accenture. “You actually have to be so comfortable in your privilege that you can opt out of things.”
And so we’re left with a tech world claiming to be driven by our desires when those decisions aren’t ones that most consumers feel good about. There’s a growing chasm between how everyday users feel about the technology around them and how companies decide what to make. And yet, these companies say they have our best interests in mind. We can’t go back, they say. We can’t stop the “natural evolution of technology.” But the “natural evolution of technology” was never a thing to begin with, and it’s time to question what “progress” actually means."
The biggest lie tech people tell themselves — and the rest of us
They see facial recognition, smart diapers, and surveillance devices as inevitable evolutions. They’re not.
"With great power comes great responsibility
Often consumers don’t have much power of selection at all. Those who run small businesses find it nearly impossible to walk away from Facebook, Instagram, Yelp, Etsy, even Amazon. Employers often mandate that their workers use certain apps or systems like Zoom, Slack, and Google Docs. “It is only the hyper-privileged who are now saying, ‘I’m not going to give my kids this,’ or, ‘I’m not on social media,’” says Rumman Chowdhury, a data scientist at Accenture. “You actually have to be so comfortable in your privilege that you can opt out of things.”
And so we’re left with a tech world claiming to be driven by our desires when those decisions aren’t ones that most consumers feel good about. There’s a growing chasm between how everyday users feel about the technology around them and how companies decide what to make. And yet, these companies say they have our best interests in mind. We can’t go back, they say. We can’t stop the “natural evolution of technology.” But the “natural evolution of technology” was never a thing to begin with, and it’s time to question what “progress” actually means."
Sunday, October 27, 2019
Google Maps Just Introduced a Controversial New Feature That Drivers Will Probably Love but Police Will Utterly Hate; Inc., October 20, 2019
Bill Murphy Jr., Inc.; Google Maps Just Introduced a Controversial New Feature That Drivers Will Probably Love but Police Will Utterly Hate
"This week, however, Google announced the next best thing: Starting immediately, drivers will be able to report hazards, slowdowns, and speed traps right on Google Maps...
"This week, however, Google announced the next best thing: Starting immediately, drivers will be able to report hazards, slowdowns, and speed traps right on Google Maps...
But
one group that will likely not be happy is the police. In recent years,
police have asked -- or even demanded -- that Waze drop the
police-locating feature."
Thursday, October 24, 2019
‘Don’t leave campus’: Parents are now using tracking apps to watch their kids at college; The Washington Post, October 22, 2019
Abby Ohlheiser, The Washington Post; ‘Don’t leave campus’: Parents are now using tracking apps to watch their kids at college
"Many
parents install tracking apps with good intentions, said Stacey
Steinberg, a law professor at the University of Florida who has studied
how technology impacts raising families and privacy. “We don’t want our
kids to screw up,” she said. “We don’t want them to get hurt. Technology
offers us new ways to feel like we are protecting them — both from
others and from themselves.
“But
kids need autonomy from their parents, especially when they reach
adulthood,” Steinberg added. “If we want our kids to trust us, if we
want our kids to believe they are capable of making wise decisions, then
our actions need to show it. Valuing their privacy is one way to do
so.”"
The Black-and-White World of Big Tech; The New York Times, October 24, 2019
, The New York Times; The Black-and-White World of Big Tech
Mark
Zuckerberg presented us with an either-or choice of free speech —
either we have it or we’re China. Tech leaders have a duty to admit it’s
much more complicated.
"Mr. Zuckerberg presented us with an
either-or choice of free speech — either we have free speech or we’re
China. “Whether you like Facebook or not, I think we need to come
together and stand for voice and free expression,” he said with an
isn’t-this-obvious tone.
But, as
anyone who has lived in the real world knows, it’s much more complex.
And that was the main problem with his speech — and it’s also what is at
the crux of the myriad concerns we have with tech these days: Big
Tech’s leaders frame the debate in binary terms.
Mr. Zuckerberg missed an opportunity to recognize that there has been a
hidden and high price of all the dazzling tech of the last decade. In
offering us a binary view for considering the impact of their
inventions, many digital leaders avoid thinking harder about the costs
of technological progress."
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Food delivery robots from Starship Technologies are coming to Pitt’s Oakland campus; Nextpittsburgh, September 3, 2019
Bill
O'Toole, Nextpittsburgh; Food delivery robots from Starship Technologies are coming
to Pitt’s Oakland campus
"Stakeholders got their
first look at the project last week when the Oakland Planning and Development
Corporation (OPDC)
held a public meeting where Starship gave a presentation
on the project.
The university has confirmed
to us that Starship’s service is due to launch later this fall, but the company
declined to offer further specifics about the project to NEXTpittsburgh.
According to the minutes of the meeting, they plan to begin a
staged rollout in mid-September. The fleet will eventually have 25 autonomous
rovers carting goods (presumably to hungry students) from campus food vendors
such as Forbes Street Market...
The food delivery service
poses obvious practical challenges for the flow of traffic and people
throughout the bustling neighborhood. According to the minutes of the public
meeting, several attendees expressed concerns over the potential for traffic and
bicycle accidents.
“It’ll be interesting to see
how they interface with people there in the public right of ways,” says Georgia
Petropoulos, executive director of the Oakland Business Improvement District, which has
no formal role in the project."
A face-scanning algorithm increasingly decides whether you deserve the job; The Washington Post, October 22, 2019
Drew Harwell, The Washington Post; A face-scanning algorithm increasingly decides whether you deserve the job
HireVue claims it uses artificial intelligence to decide who’s best for a job. Outside experts call it ‘profoundly disturbing.’
HireVue claims it uses artificial intelligence to decide who’s best for a job. Outside experts call it ‘profoundly disturbing.’
"“It’s a profoundly disturbing development that we have proprietary
technology that claims to differentiate between a productive worker and a
worker who isn’t fit, based on their facial movements, their tone of
voice, their mannerisms,” said Meredith Whittaker, a co-founder of the AI Now Institute, a research center in New York...
Loren
Larsen, HireVue’s chief technology officer, said that such criticism is
uninformed and that “most AI researchers have a limited understanding”
of the psychology behind how workers think and behave...
“People
are rejected all the time based on how they look, their shoes, how they
tucked in their shirts and how ‘hot’ they are,” he told The Washington
Post. “Algorithms eliminate most of that in a way that hasn’t been
possible before.”...
HireVue’s growth, however, is running into some regulatory snags. In August, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) signed a first-in-the-nation law
that will force employers to tell job applicants how their AI-hiring
system works and get their consent before running them through the test.
The measure, which HireVue said it supports, will take effect Jan. 1."
Trump housing plan would make bias by algorithm 'nearly impossible to fight'; The Guardian, October 23, 2019
Kari Paul, The Guardian; Trump housing plan would make bias by algorithm 'nearly impossible to fight'
"Under the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) new rules, businesses would be shielded from liability when their algorithms are accused of bias through three different loopholes:
"Under the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) new rules, businesses would be shielded from liability when their algorithms are accused of bias through three different loopholes:
- When the algorithm in question is vetted by a “neutral third party”.
- When the algorithm itself was created by a third party.
- If an algorithm used did not use race or a proxy for it in the computer model.
How is an academic CV different from a résumé?; The Washington Post, October 22, 2019
Daniel W. Drezner, The Washington Post; How is an academic CV different from a résumé?
"During the weekend, the Chronicle of Higher Education’s Megan Zahneis wrote up Phillips’s study, noting some possible concerns: “While it has popped up in a few high-profile cases, CV falsification is an instance of academic misconduct that might not make as many headlines as fudging data or plagiarism. But the difficulty of detecting it could make it all the more insidious.” Indeed, the grad students who did the coding for Phillips et al. got more and more upset as they proceeded. As Phillips explained to Zahneis, “That’s because most of these were applicants for entry-level positions, which is what they hoped to be applying for someday.""
"During the weekend, the Chronicle of Higher Education’s Megan Zahneis wrote up Phillips’s study, noting some possible concerns: “While it has popped up in a few high-profile cases, CV falsification is an instance of academic misconduct that might not make as many headlines as fudging data or plagiarism. But the difficulty of detecting it could make it all the more insidious.” Indeed, the grad students who did the coding for Phillips et al. got more and more upset as they proceeded. As Phillips explained to Zahneis, “That’s because most of these were applicants for entry-level positions, which is what they hoped to be applying for someday.""
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
Under digital surveillance: how American schools spy on millions of kids; The Guardian, October 22, 2019
Lois Beckett, The Guardian; Under digital surveillance: how American schools spy on millions of kids
"The new school surveillance technology doesn’t turn off when the school day is over: anything students type in official school email accounts, chats or documents is monitored 24 hours a day, whether students are in their classrooms or their bedrooms.
Tech companies are also working with schools to monitor students’ web searches and internet usage, and, in some cases, to track what they are writing on public social media accounts.
Parents and students are still largely unaware of the scope and intensity of school surveillance, privacy experts say, even as the market for these technologies has grown rapidly, fueled by fears of school shootings, particularly in the wake of the Parkland shooting in February 2018, which left 17 people dead."
"The new school surveillance technology doesn’t turn off when the school day is over: anything students type in official school email accounts, chats or documents is monitored 24 hours a day, whether students are in their classrooms or their bedrooms.
Tech companies are also working with schools to monitor students’ web searches and internet usage, and, in some cases, to track what they are writing on public social media accounts.
Parents and students are still largely unaware of the scope and intensity of school surveillance, privacy experts say, even as the market for these technologies has grown rapidly, fueled by fears of school shootings, particularly in the wake of the Parkland shooting in February 2018, which left 17 people dead."
Saturday, October 19, 2019
Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t understand free speech in the 21st century; The Guardian, October 18, 2019
Siva Vaidhyanathan, The Guardian; Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t understand free speech in the 21st century
"The problem of the 21st century is cacophony. Too many people are yelling at the same time. Attentions fracture. Passions erupt. Facts crumble. It’s increasingly hard to deliberate deeply about complex crucial issues with an informed public. We have access to more knowledge yet we can’t think and talk like adults about serious things...
The thing is, a thriving democracy needs more than motivation, the ability to find and organize like-minded people. Democracies also need deliberation. We have let the institutions that foster discussion among well informed, differently-minded people crumble. Soon all we will have left is Facebook. Look at Myanmar to see how well that works."
"The problem of the 21st century is cacophony. Too many people are yelling at the same time. Attentions fracture. Passions erupt. Facts crumble. It’s increasingly hard to deliberate deeply about complex crucial issues with an informed public. We have access to more knowledge yet we can’t think and talk like adults about serious things...
The thing is, a thriving democracy needs more than motivation, the ability to find and organize like-minded people. Democracies also need deliberation. We have let the institutions that foster discussion among well informed, differently-minded people crumble. Soon all we will have left is Facebook. Look at Myanmar to see how well that works."
Thursday, October 17, 2019
How to Stop the Abuse of Location Data; The New York Times, October 16, 2019
Jeff Glueck, The New York Times; How to Stop the Abuse of Location Data
"Companies should have to maintain data with adequate security protections, including encryption
at rest and in transit. Employees at companies that collect data on
millions of consumers should undergo privacy and ethics training.
Companies should require clients and other people who use the data to
promise that they will not use the tech and data for unethical or
discriminatory practices — and should penalize those that act
unethically. Regulation should force companies to create ethics
committees where management and employees must discuss their privacy and
ethical data use policies regularly."
There are no formal rules for what is ethical — or even legal — in the location data business. That needs to change.
"Companies should have to maintain data with adequate security protections, including encryption
at rest and in transit. Employees at companies that collect data on
millions of consumers should undergo privacy and ethics training.
Companies should require clients and other people who use the data to
promise that they will not use the tech and data for unethical or
discriminatory practices — and should penalize those that act
unethically. Regulation should force companies to create ethics
committees where management and employees must discuss their privacy and
ethical data use policies regularly."
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
What Teaching Ethics in Appalachia Taught Me About Bridging America’s Partisan Divide; Politico, October 13, 2019
Evan Mandery, Politico; What Teaching Ethics in Appalachia Taught Me About Bridging America’s Partisan Divide
"The aim “is to create a space in which I can admit—let in—another person’s voice,” Gilligan says. It’s a way of stimulating empathy. “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view—until you climb into his skin and walk around in it,” Atticus Finch tells Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird. An emerging body of research shows that Finch—or Harper Lee—was right.
Curious things start to happen to people when they listen generously. At the most superficial level, one hears things that he or she might not like. But one also hears the sincerity of people’s convictions, the authenticity of their experiences, and the nuance of their narratives. Being open is transformative because, almost inevitably, one finds that the stories they’ve been told about what people believe oversimplify reality...
Caleb Wright, who’s from Chapel Hill says, “The value is that you can staunchly disagree with someone, but also humanize the person.” Adds Gaby, “It was more to learn about each other than to change people’s minds.”
The point, in other words, is to combat “othering.”
“People don’t change their minds, they just change their opinion about the other side,” says Ravi Iyer, a social psychologist who, with Jonathan Haidt and Matt Motyl, founded Civil Politics, a nonprofit aimed at bridging moral divisions. “The evidence is imperfect,” Iyer says, “but all of the imperfect evidence is telling a similar story.”
That story is known as the contact hypothesis—a well-supported theory in social psychology that contact between members of different groups is likely to reduce mutual prejudice...
I left my experience at App with a richer understanding of Southern conservatives and libertarians, but more significantly with great optimism, even exuberance, about the untapped potential of experiences that teach people how to talk productively about their differences. Even after a career spent moderating conversations on controversial issues, I learned how to listen better and was changed by the stories I heard.
Imagine if, instead of requiring a swim test for college students or gym for middle-schoolers, we required students to sit in a room with a diverse group of people and listen to the stories of their life. “If I wanted to prepare children to live as citizens in a democratic society,” Gilligan says, “nothing would be more valuable than to teach them to listen.”"
There’s a language for talking about hot-button issues. And we’re not learning it.
"The aim “is to create a space in which I can admit—let in—another person’s voice,” Gilligan says. It’s a way of stimulating empathy. “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view—until you climb into his skin and walk around in it,” Atticus Finch tells Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird. An emerging body of research shows that Finch—or Harper Lee—was right.
Curious things start to happen to people when they listen generously. At the most superficial level, one hears things that he or she might not like. But one also hears the sincerity of people’s convictions, the authenticity of their experiences, and the nuance of their narratives. Being open is transformative because, almost inevitably, one finds that the stories they’ve been told about what people believe oversimplify reality...
Caleb Wright, who’s from Chapel Hill says, “The value is that you can staunchly disagree with someone, but also humanize the person.” Adds Gaby, “It was more to learn about each other than to change people’s minds.”
The point, in other words, is to combat “othering.”
“People don’t change their minds, they just change their opinion about the other side,” says Ravi Iyer, a social psychologist who, with Jonathan Haidt and Matt Motyl, founded Civil Politics, a nonprofit aimed at bridging moral divisions. “The evidence is imperfect,” Iyer says, “but all of the imperfect evidence is telling a similar story.”
That story is known as the contact hypothesis—a well-supported theory in social psychology that contact between members of different groups is likely to reduce mutual prejudice...
I left my experience at App with a richer understanding of Southern conservatives and libertarians, but more significantly with great optimism, even exuberance, about the untapped potential of experiences that teach people how to talk productively about their differences. Even after a career spent moderating conversations on controversial issues, I learned how to listen better and was changed by the stories I heard.
Imagine if, instead of requiring a swim test for college students or gym for middle-schoolers, we required students to sit in a room with a diverse group of people and listen to the stories of their life. “If I wanted to prepare children to live as citizens in a democratic society,” Gilligan says, “nothing would be more valuable than to teach them to listen.”"
Seven Bold Leaders Reveal How Ethical Leadership Is A Boon To Business; Forbes, October 14, 2019
Bruce Weinstein, Forbes; Seven Bold Leaders Reveal How Ethical Leadership Is A Boon To Business
"Ethical leadership in a business benefits the bottom line. It’s also a boon to the people who work for the organization and the people it serves.
The relationship between ethical conduct and benefits is one of the themes of this year’s Global Ethics Day. The Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs created this event nine years ago to provide an “opportunity for organizations around the world to hold events on or around this day, exploring the meaning of ethics in international affairs.”
Last year, I observed Global Ethics Day in this column by asking 20 leaders what “ethics” meant to them. Each provided a one-sentence summary. This year we’re stretching out a bit. I asked seven leaders to provide a concrete example or two of how ethical leadership benefits businesses, employees, clients and communities.
Here’s what they said."
"Ethical leadership in a business benefits the bottom line. It’s also a boon to the people who work for the organization and the people it serves.
The relationship between ethical conduct and benefits is one of the themes of this year’s Global Ethics Day. The Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs created this event nine years ago to provide an “opportunity for organizations around the world to hold events on or around this day, exploring the meaning of ethics in international affairs.”
Last year, I observed Global Ethics Day in this column by asking 20 leaders what “ethics” meant to them. Each provided a one-sentence summary. This year we’re stretching out a bit. I asked seven leaders to provide a concrete example or two of how ethical leadership benefits businesses, employees, clients and communities.
Here’s what they said."
Student tracking, secret scores: How college admissions offices rank prospects before they apply; The Washington Post, October 14, 2019
Douglas MacMillan and Nick Anderson, The Washington Post; Student tracking, secret scores: How college admissions offices rank prospects before they apply
"Admissions
officers say behavioral tracking helps them serve students in the
application process. When a college sees that a qualified student is
serious about applying based on the student’s Web behavior, it can
dedicate more staffers to follow up...
But
Web tracking may unfairly provide an advantage to students with better
access to technology, said Bradley Shear, a Maryland lawyer who has
pushed for better regulation of students’ online privacy. A low-income
student may be a strong academic candidate but receive less attention
from recruiters because the student does not own a smartphone or have
high-speed Internet access at home, he said.
“I don’t think the algorithm should run the admissions department,” Shear said."
Monday, October 14, 2019
MARVEL & Others Sued Over X-MEN: THE ANIMATED SERIES Theme Song Alleging Copyright Infringement - Report; Newsarama, October 9, 2019
Chris Arant, Newsarama; MARVEL & Others Sued Over X-MEN: THE ANIMATED SERIES Theme Song Alleging Copyright Infringement - Report
"Marvel Entertainment, the Walt Disney Company, and others are being sued for copyright infringement over the 1990s theme song to X-Men: The Animated Series due to its similiarities to a 1980s Hungarian cop show's theme, according to TMZ. The similarities between the two themes have been noted before online, and now a representative from the estate of the original show's composer has reportedly filed a lawsuit."
"Marvel Entertainment, the Walt Disney Company, and others are being sued for copyright infringement over the 1990s theme song to X-Men: The Animated Series due to its similiarities to a 1980s Hungarian cop show's theme, according to TMZ. The similarities between the two themes have been noted before online, and now a representative from the estate of the original show's composer has reportedly filed a lawsuit."
Artificial Intelligence Moving to Battlefield as Ethics Weighed; Bloomberg Government, October 10, 2019
, Bloomberg Government; Artificial Intelligence Moving to Battlefield as Ethics Weighed
Ethical uses of the technology could include the development
of landmines, similar to the Claymore mines used by the U.S. in
Vietnam, that can distinguish between adults carrying weapons and
children, the nonprofit research group the Mitre Corp. told the defense
board at a public hearing at Carnegie Mellon University in March.
Shanahan’s center first employed the technology to help fight wildfires in California and elsewhere and has discussed humanitarian relief uses in the Pacific with Japan and Singapore. Much of the potential for military artificial intelligence lies outside direct battlefield operations in areas such as logistics and accounting."
"The Pentagon, taking the next big step of deploying artificial
intelligence to aid troops and help select battlefield targets, must
settle lingering ethical concerns about using the technology for waging
war...
Shanahan’s center first employed the technology to help fight wildfires in California and elsewhere and has discussed humanitarian relief uses in the Pacific with Japan and Singapore. Much of the potential for military artificial intelligence lies outside direct battlefield operations in areas such as logistics and accounting."
Wednesday, October 9, 2019
FBI violated Americans’ privacy by abusing access to NSA surveillance data, court rules; October 8, 2019
Nick Statt, The Verge; FBI violated Americans’ privacy by abusing access to NSA surveillance data, court rules
The ruling was made in October 2018 by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), a secret government court responsible for reviewing and authorizing searches of foreign individuals inside and outside the US. It was just made public today."
"The Federal Bureau of Investigation made tens of
thousands of unauthorized searches related to US citizens between 2017
and 2018, a court ruled. The agency violated both the law that
authorized the surveillance program they used and the Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution.
The ruling was made in October 2018 by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), a secret government court responsible for reviewing and authorizing searches of foreign individuals inside and outside the US. It was just made public today."
Americans and Digital Knowledge; Pew Research Center, October 9, 2019
Emily A. Vogels and Monica Anderson, Pew Research Center; Americans and Digital Knowledge
"A new Pew Research Center survey finds that Americans’ understanding
of technology-related issues varies greatly depending on the topic, term
or concept. While a majority of U.S. adults can correctly answer
questions about phishing scams or website cookies, other items are more
challenging. For example, just 28% of adults can identify an example of
two-factor authentication – one of the most important ways
experts say people can protect their personal information on sensitive
accounts. Additionally, about one-quarter of Americans (24%) know that
private browsing only hides browser history from other users of that
computer, while roughly half (49%) say they are unsure what private
browsing does.
This survey consisted of 10 questions designed to test Americans’ knowledge of a range of digital topics, such as cybersecurity or the business side of social media companies. The median number of correct answers was four. Only 20% of adults answered seven or more questions correctly, and just 2% got all 10 questions correct."
A majority of U.S. adults can answer fewer than
half the questions correctly on a digital knowledge quiz, and many
struggle with certain cybersecurity and privacy questions
This survey consisted of 10 questions designed to test Americans’ knowledge of a range of digital topics, such as cybersecurity or the business side of social media companies. The median number of correct answers was four. Only 20% of adults answered seven or more questions correctly, and just 2% got all 10 questions correct."
Most people don’t understand privacy, and that’s a huge opportunity for design; Fast Company, October 9, 2019
Mark Wilson, Fast Company; Most people don’t understand privacy, and that’s a huge opportunity for design
New research highlights just how clueless we are when it comes to digital privacy. It’s time for companies to step up and fill in the gaps.
"About half of Americans don’t even recognize that privacy policies are a binding contract between websites and their users in the first place.
The findings come courtesy of a new report by Pew Research, which polled 4,727 U.S. adults with a straightforward, 10-question test. It checked for basic knowledge about phishing, online advertising, and cookies. Only 20% of people answered 7 of 10 questions correctly. Just as devastating? Only 2% of people got all 10 questions right...
It’s easy to blame people in these situations. Get educated about technology already! Learn your privacy rights! Isn’t it obvious all that legalese constitutes a binding contract? But the fact is, people are pretty smart when given the right opportunity. Everyone you know understands, more or less, how to use relatively complicated platforms like email and social media. They understand both how to pull the levers and what those levers do. What they don’t understand is who might be watching those levers being pulled, why they’re allowed to be watching, and for what purpose they are watching in the first place."
Tuesday, October 8, 2019
California makes ‘deepfake’ videos illegal, but law may be hard to enforce; The Guardian, October 7, 2019
Kari Paul, The Guardian; California makes ‘deepfake’ videos illegal, but law may be hard to enforce
AB 730 makes it illegal to circulate doctored videos, images or audio of politicians within 60 days of an election
"California made it illegal to create or distribute “deepfakes” in a move meant to protect voters from misinformation but may be difficult to enforce.
"California made it illegal to create or distribute “deepfakes” in a move meant to protect voters from misinformation but may be difficult to enforce.
California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, on Thursday signed legislation
that makes it illegal to create or distribute videos, images, or audio
of politicians doctored to resemble real footage within 60 days of an
election.
Deepfakes are videos manipulated by artificial intelligence to overlay images of celebrity faces on others’ bodies, and are meant to make viewers think they are real."
Deepfakes are videos manipulated by artificial intelligence to overlay images of celebrity faces on others’ bodies, and are meant to make viewers think they are real."
Inside the Deepfake ‘Arms Race’; The Daily Beast, October 7, 2019
David Axe, The Daily Beast; Inside the Deepfake ‘Arms Race’
Can countermeasures neutralize the coming wave of high-tech disinformation?
"The first deepfakes appeared in late 2017 on Reddit. An anonymous user
calling themselves “deepfakes”—a portmanteau of artificial-intelligence
“deep learning” and “fakes”—imposed celebrities’ faces on pornography...
A deepfake video, still image, or audio recording is the product of a
clever bit of coding called a “generative adversarial network,” or GAN. A
GAN has two components: a discriminator and a generator. The
discriminator is trying to tell fake media from real media. The
generator is trying to fool the discriminator with increasingly
realistic-seeming fakes."
The Supreme Court Denies Domino’s Petition in a Win for Disability Rights; Slate, October 7, 2019
Aaron Mak, Slate; The Supreme Court Denies Domino’s Petition in a Win for Disability Rights
"On Monday, the Supreme Court handed down an order announcing it would not take up a petition from the Domino’s pizza chain to appeal a lower-court decision dictating that the company must make its website and app accessible to people with disabilities. The decision is a major win for disability rights advocates, who have been arguing that the Americans with Disabilities Act applies to websites, digital platforms, and other nonphysical spaces."
"On Monday, the Supreme Court handed down an order announcing it would not take up a petition from the Domino’s pizza chain to appeal a lower-court decision dictating that the company must make its website and app accessible to people with disabilities. The decision is a major win for disability rights advocates, who have been arguing that the Americans with Disabilities Act applies to websites, digital platforms, and other nonphysical spaces."
Sunday, October 6, 2019
Scientist Who Discredited Meat Guidelines Didn’t Report Past Food Industry Ties; The New York Times, October 4, 2019
Tara Parker-Pope and , The New York Times;
Scientist Who Discredited Meat Guidelines Didn’t Report Past Food Industry Ties
The
lead researcher, Bradley C. Johnston, said he was not required to
report his past relationship with a powerful industry trade group.
"In an interview,
Dr. Johnston said his past relationship with ILSI had no influence on
the current research on meat recommendations. He said he did not report
his past relationship with ILSI because the disclosure form asked only
about potential conflicts within the past three years. Although the
ILSI-funded study publication falls within the three-year window, he
said the money from ILSI arrived in 2015, and he was not required to
report it for the meat study disclosure.
“That
money was from 2015 so it was outside of the three year period for
disclosing competing interests,” said Dr. Johnston. “I have no
relationship with them whatsoever.”"
Why We Need a Code of Ethics for the Supreme Court; Time, October 1, 2019
Alicia Bannon and Johanna Kalb, Time; Why We Need a Code of Ethics for the Supreme Court
"Alicia Bannon is the co-author of Supreme Court Ethics: The Need for an Ethics Code and Additional Transparency. Bannon is the managing director of the Brennan Center’s Democracy Program and head of its Fair Courts team.
"Judges are supposed to take steps to avoid even the appearance of bias or political activity. But over the last twenty years, we’ve seen Supreme Court justices engage in activities forbidden under the code of ethics for other federal judges. Members of the Court have given partisan speeches. They have failed to recuse themselves from cases with which they have apparent conflicts of interest. Some have accepted lavish gifts from people and organizations who also fund constitutional litigation...
Of course, having a code of conduct isn’t a cure-all, whether the code applies to judges, professors, or CEOs. But it’s vital for transparency and accountability. By adopting a code of ethics that is publicly available, the Court would shape expectations among judges and the public about acceptable behavior. A code would anticipate and give guidance on knotty ethical dilemmas, and also help to protect the justices against criticism for the tricky ethical decisions they make. And if the justices slip up, a code would allow them to be held accountable, by each other, in the court of public opinion and, in very rare instances, through impeachment."
"Alicia Bannon is the co-author of Supreme Court Ethics: The Need for an Ethics Code and Additional Transparency. Bannon is the managing director of the Brennan Center’s Democracy Program and head of its Fair Courts team.
Johanna Kalb is the co-author of Supreme Court Ethics: The Need for an Ethics Code and Additional Transparency. Kalb is a fellow at the Brennan Center and associate dean and professor at Loyola University New Orleans College of Law."
"Judges are supposed to take steps to avoid even the appearance of bias or political activity. But over the last twenty years, we’ve seen Supreme Court justices engage in activities forbidden under the code of ethics for other federal judges. Members of the Court have given partisan speeches. They have failed to recuse themselves from cases with which they have apparent conflicts of interest. Some have accepted lavish gifts from people and organizations who also fund constitutional litigation...
Of course, having a code of conduct isn’t a cure-all, whether the code applies to judges, professors, or CEOs. But it’s vital for transparency and accountability. By adopting a code of ethics that is publicly available, the Court would shape expectations among judges and the public about acceptable behavior. A code would anticipate and give guidance on knotty ethical dilemmas, and also help to protect the justices against criticism for the tricky ethical decisions they make. And if the justices slip up, a code would allow them to be held accountable, by each other, in the court of public opinion and, in very rare instances, through impeachment."
Bootleg film shows Florida prison in all its danger, squalor. An inmate shot it on the sly; The Miami Herald, October 4, 2019
Romy Ellenbogen, The Miami Herald; Bootleg film shows Florida prison in all its danger, squalor. An inmate shot it on the sly
"David Fathi, the director of the ACLU’s National Prison Project, said as technology has developed, videos and photos from inside prisons have become more common.
“This would be, to my knowledge, the first prison documentary filmed exclusively by a prisoner with a cellphone,” he said.
Fathi said the issue is paradoxical — prisons have good reason for forbidding cellphones, but the footage also increases transparency, shining daylight in a dark place and potentially exposing abuses."
"David Fathi, the director of the ACLU’s National Prison Project, said as technology has developed, videos and photos from inside prisons have become more common.
“This would be, to my knowledge, the first prison documentary filmed exclusively by a prisoner with a cellphone,” he said.
Fathi said the issue is paradoxical — prisons have good reason for forbidding cellphones, but the footage also increases transparency, shining daylight in a dark place and potentially exposing abuses."
Federal whistleblowers would do it again, even after retaliation and ‘professional suicide’; The Washington Post, October 4, 2019
Joe Davidson, The Washington Post; Federal whistleblowers would do it again, even after retaliation and ‘professional suicide’
"“Was the destruction of my career and family worth the excruciating time and money, ostracism and vilification? No,” [former FBI agent Jane Turner] said Wednesday. “Was standing up and doing the ethical, legal and moral whistleblowing the right thing? Yes. Would I do it again? My moral and legal compass would not allow any different course of action.
Her advice to the CIA whistleblower: “Carefully weigh the costs to you, your family and your career when deciding whether to blow the whistle. And document, document, document … because the hierarchy will lie.”"
"“Was the destruction of my career and family worth the excruciating time and money, ostracism and vilification? No,” [former FBI agent Jane Turner] said Wednesday. “Was standing up and doing the ethical, legal and moral whistleblowing the right thing? Yes. Would I do it again? My moral and legal compass would not allow any different course of action.
Her advice to the CIA whistleblower: “Carefully weigh the costs to you, your family and your career when deciding whether to blow the whistle. And document, document, document … because the hierarchy will lie.”"
Saturday, October 5, 2019
The Hippocratic License: A new software license that prohibits uses that contravene the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights; BoingBoing, October 4, 2019
Cory Doctorow, BoingBoing; The Hippocratic License: A new software license that prohibits uses that contravene the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights
"The Open Source Initiative maintains the canonical list of free/open licenses based on compliance with its Open Source Definition, which excludes licenses that ""discriminate against any person or group of persons" and that "restrict anyone from making use of the program in a specific field of endeavor." On this basis, OSI cofounder Bruce Perens says the Hippcratic License is not compatible with the OSD.
Ehmke calls the OSD "horribly dated" because it doesn't enable software developers to ensure that "our technology isn't used by fascists.""
"The Open Source Initiative maintains the canonical list of free/open licenses based on compliance with its Open Source Definition, which excludes licenses that ""discriminate against any person or group of persons" and that "restrict anyone from making use of the program in a specific field of endeavor." On this basis, OSI cofounder Bruce Perens says the Hippcratic License is not compatible with the OSD.
Ehmke calls the OSD "horribly dated" because it doesn't enable software developers to ensure that "our technology isn't used by fascists.""
An Open Source License That Requires Users to Do No Harm; Wired, October 4, 2019
Klint Finley, Wired;
"Increasingly, some developers are calling on their employers and the government to stop using their work in ways they believe are unethical...
Coraline Ada Ehmke wants to give her fellow developers more control over how their software is used. Software released under her new "Hippocratic License" can be shared and modified for almost any purpose, with one big exception: "Individuals, corporations, governments, or other groups for systems or activities that actively and knowingly endanger, harm, or otherwise threaten the physical, mental, economic, or general well-being of individuals or groups in violation of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”
Defining what it means to do harm is inherently contentious, but Ehmke hopes that tying the license to existing international standards will reduce the uncertainty. The declaration of human rights "is a document that's 70 years old and is pretty well established and accepted for its definition of harm and what violating human rights really means," she says."
An Open Source License That Requires Users to Do No Harm
Open
source software can generally be freely copied and reused. One
developer wants to impose ethical constraints on the practice.
"Increasingly, some developers are calling on their employers and the government to stop using their work in ways they believe are unethical...
Coraline Ada Ehmke wants to give her fellow developers more control over how their software is used. Software released under her new "Hippocratic License" can be shared and modified for almost any purpose, with one big exception: "Individuals, corporations, governments, or other groups for systems or activities that actively and knowingly endanger, harm, or otherwise threaten the physical, mental, economic, or general well-being of individuals or groups in violation of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”
Defining what it means to do harm is inherently contentious, but Ehmke hopes that tying the license to existing international standards will reduce the uncertainty. The declaration of human rights "is a document that's 70 years old and is pretty well established and accepted for its definition of harm and what violating human rights really means," she says."
Friday, October 4, 2019
Gatekeeping Is Not The Same As Censorship; Forbes, August 22, 2019
Kalev Leetaru, Forbes; Gatekeeping Is Not The Same As Censorship
"With each new effort by social media companies to reign in the deluge of digital falsehoods, accusations pour forth that such efforts represent censorship. In reality, the two represent very different concepts, with censorship referring to the repression of ideas in alignment to political, social or moral views, while gatekeeping in its broadest sense refers to efforts to maintain the quality of information published in a given venue. A censor prohibits discussion of topics with which they disagree. A gatekeeper is viewpoint-neutral, ensuring only that the information has been thoroughly vetted and verified...
In the end, both social platforms and society at large must recognize the clear distinction between the dangers of censorship and the benefits of gatekeeping."
"With each new effort by social media companies to reign in the deluge of digital falsehoods, accusations pour forth that such efforts represent censorship. In reality, the two represent very different concepts, with censorship referring to the repression of ideas in alignment to political, social or moral views, while gatekeeping in its broadest sense refers to efforts to maintain the quality of information published in a given venue. A censor prohibits discussion of topics with which they disagree. A gatekeeper is viewpoint-neutral, ensuring only that the information has been thoroughly vetted and verified...
In the end, both social platforms and society at large must recognize the clear distinction between the dangers of censorship and the benefits of gatekeeping."
The Authoritarian’s Worst Fear? A Book; The New York Times, October 3, 2019
, The New York Times; The Authoritarian’s Worst Fear? A Book
""Regimes are expending so much energy attacking books because their supposed limitations have begun to look like strengths: With online surveillance, digital reading carries with it great risks and semi-permanent footprints; a physical book, however, cannot monitor what you are reading and when, cannot track which words you mark or highlight, does not secretly scan your face, and cannot know when you are sharing it with others."
""Regimes are expending so much energy attacking books because their supposed limitations have begun to look like strengths: With online surveillance, digital reading carries with it great risks and semi-permanent footprints; a physical book, however, cannot monitor what you are reading and when, cannot track which words you mark or highlight, does not secretly scan your face, and cannot know when you are sharing it with others."
Thursday, October 3, 2019
E.U.’s Top Court Rules Against Facebook in Global Takedown Case; The New York Times, October 3, 2019
, The New York Times; E.U.’s Top Court Rules Against Facebook in Global Takedown Case
"The case has been closely watched
because of its potential ripple effects for regulating internet
content. The enforcement of defamation, libel and privacy laws varies
from country to country, with language and behavior that is allowed in
one nation prohibited in another. The court’s decision highlights the
difficulty of creating uniform standards to govern an inherently
borderless web and then enforcing them.
Facebook
and other critics have warned that letting a single nation force an
internet platform to delete material elsewhere would hurt free
expression...
Last week, the European Court of Justice limited the reach of the European privacy law known as the “right to be forgotten,”
which allows European citizens to demand Google remove links to
sensitive personal data from search results. The court said Google could
not be ordered to remove links to websites globally, except in certain
circumstances when weighed against the rights to free expression and the
public’s right to information."
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