#data regulator

[orbitbrain]

Irish Regulator Fines Meta 265 Million Euros Over Data Breach

Irish Regulator Fines Meta 265 Million Euros Over Data Breach

Home › Privacy Irish Regulator Fines Meta 265 Million Euros Over Data Breach By AFP on November 28, 2022 Tweet Ireland’s data regulator on Monday slapped Facebook owner Meta with a 265-million-euro ($275-million) fine after details of more than half a billion users were leaked on a hacking website. The Data Protection Commission (DPC) said it had reached the decision following a “comprehensive…

[mostlysignssomeportents]

At long last, a meaningful step to protect Americans' privacy

This Saturday (19 Aug), I'm appearing at the San Diego Union-Tribune Festival of Books. I'm on a 2:30PM panel called "Return From Retirement," followed by a signing:

https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/festivalofbooks

Privacy raises some thorny, subtle and complex issues. It also raises some stupid-simple ones. The American surveillance industry's shell-game is founded on the deliberate confusion of the two, so that the most modest and sensible actions are posed as reductive, simplistic and unworkable.

Two pillars of the American surveillance industry are credit reporting bureaux and data brokers. Both are unbelievably sleazy, reckless and dangerous, and neither faces any real accountability, let alone regulation.

Remember Equifax, the company that doxed every adult in America and was given a mere wrist-slap, and now continues to assemble nonconsensual dossiers on every one of us, without any material oversight improvements?

https://memex.craphound.com/2019/07/20/equifax-settles-with-ftc-cfpb-states-and-consumer-class-actions-for-700m/

Equifax's competitors are no better. Experian doxed the nation again, in 2021:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/04/30/dox-the-world/#experian

It's hard to overstate how fucking scummy the credit reporting world is. Equifax invented the business in 1899, when, as the Retail Credit Company, it used private spies to track queers, political dissidents and "race mixers" so that banks and merchants could discriminate against them:

https://jacobin.com/2017/09/equifax-retail-credit-company-discrimination-loans

As awful as credit reporting is, the data broker industry makes it look like a paragon of virtue. If you want to target an ad to "Rural and Barely Making It" consumers, the brokers have you covered:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/04/13/public-interest-pharma/#axciom

More than 650,000 of these categories exist, allowing advertisers to target substance abusers, depressed teens, and people on the brink of bankruptcy:

https://themarkup.org/privacy/2023/06/08/from-heavy-purchasers-of-pregnancy-tests-to-the-depression-prone-we-found-650000-ways-advertisers-label-you

These companies follow you everywhere, including to abortion clinics, and sell the data to just about anyone:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/05/07/safegraph-spies-and-lies/#theres-no-i-in-uterus

There are zillions of these data brokers, operating in an unregulated wild west industry. Many of them have been rolled up into tech giants (Oracle owns more than 80 brokers), while others merely do business with ad-tech giants like Google and Meta, who are some of their best customers.

As bad as these two sectors are, they're even worse in combination – the harms data brokers (sloppy, invasive) inflict on us when they supply credit bureaux (consequential, secretive, intransigent) are far worse than the sum of the harms of each.

And now for some good news. The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, under the leadership of Rohit Chopra, has declared war on this alliance:

https://www.techdirt.com/2023/08/16/cfpb-looks-to-restrict-the-sleazy-link-between-credit-reporting-agencies-and-data-brokers/

They've proposed new rules limiting the trade between brokers and bureaux, under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, putting strict restrictions on the transfer of information between the two:

https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/15/tech/privacy-rules-data-brokers/index.html

As Karl Bode writes for Techdirt, this is long overdue and meaningful. Remember all the handwringing and chest-thumping about Tiktok stealing Americans' data to the Chinese military? China doesn't need Tiktok to get that data – it can buy it from data-brokers. For peanuts.

The CFPB action is part of a muscular style of governance that is characteristic of the best Biden appointees, who are some of the most principled and competent in living memory. These regulators have scoured the legislation that gives them the power to act on behalf of the American people and discovered an arsenal of action they can take:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/10/18/administrative-competence/#i-know-stuff

Alas, not all the Biden appointees have the will or the skill to pull this trick off. The corporate Dems' darlings are mired in #LearnedHelplessness, convinced that they can't – or shouldn't – use their prodigious powers to step in to curb corporate power:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/10/the-courage-to-govern/#whos-in-charge

And it's true that privacy regulation faces stiff headwinds. Surveillance is a public-private partnership from hell. Cops and spies love to raid the surveillance industries' dossiers, treating them as an off-the-books, warrantless source of unconstitutional personal data on their targets:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/02/16/ring-ring-lapd-calling/#ring

These powerful state actors reliably intervene to hamstring attempts at privacy law, defending the massive profits raked in by data brokers and credit bureaux. These profits, meanwhile, can be mobilized as lobbying dollars that work lawmakers and regulators from the private sector side. Caught in the squeeze between powerful government actors (the true "Deep State") and a cartel of filthy rich private spies, lawmakers and regulators are frozen in place.

Or, at least, they were. The CFPB's discovery that it had the power all along to curb commercial surveillance follows on from the FTC's similar realization last summer:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/08/12/regulatory-uncapture/#conscious-uncoupling

I don't want to pretend that all privacy questions can be resolved with simple, bright-line rules. It's not clear who "owns" many classes of private data – does your mother own the fact that she gave birth to you, or do you? What if you disagree about such a disclosure – say, if you want to identify your mother as an abusive parent and she objects?

But there are so many stupid-simple privacy questions. Credit bureaux and data-brokers don't inhabit any kind of grey area. They simply should not exist. Getting rid of them is a project of years, but it starts with hacking away at their sources of profits, stripping them of defenses so we can finally annihilate them.

I'm kickstarting the audiobook for "The Internet Con: How To Seize the Means of Computation," a Big Tech disassembly manual to disenshittify the web and make a new, good internet to succeed the old, good internet. It's a DRM-free book, which means Audible won't carry it, so this crowdfunder is essential. Back now to get the audio, Verso hardcover and ebook:

http://seizethemeansofcomputation.org

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/08/16/the-second-best-time-is-now/#the-point-of-a-system-is-what-it-does

Image: Cryteria (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HAL9000.svg

CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en

[scribefindegil]

Obsessed with the POV choice in Imperial Radch as well, both because Leckie does some really wild stuff with how expansive the strict first-person is able to become due to the worldbuilding and who her narrator is, and because it's SO entangled with the central thematic concepts of identity. In the first book flashbacks when the narrator is still a warship, "I" can encompass so many things, and sometimes explicitly refers to different facets in the narration--is "I" Justice of Toren, or One Esk, or a specific segment, or Breq narrating from twenty years in the future? "I" isn't simple, isn't unified, and while this is most literal and obvious with Breq/One Esk/Justice of Toren and Anaander Mianaai's split factions it's true constantly throughout the work at every level of scope. Individual characters struggle with internal conflicts and hit their breaking points--what is it that makes someone decide they have to disobey orders and make a stand or they won't be themself anymore? How do you know who you are if you've been forcibly changed (Tisarwat) or if the world you knew has moved on and become unrecognizable (Seivarden)? How does a character on a colonized world navigate the split identity that comes from the pressure to assimilate to the dominant culture? And then there's the Radch writ large, all the Radchaai so deeply invested in the idea that there is only one true concept of Radchaai society, of civilization, but of course there isn't! It changes based on location and over time, and Breq muses that the Radchaai empire would be largely unrecognizable to the isolated sphere of the Radch itself. In these books, even if you aren't the last remnant of a destroyed spaceship and its legion of bodies, "I" is such a complicated concept and the narrative never lets you forget it.

[chaoticlandworlder]

People are kinda unhinged about Checo's Red Bull contract renewal...

Like yes, I was also surprised that Checo got signed for 2 years (though if it's 1+1 that some ppl are saying it is, it is more understandable) but come on, taking so much time just to comment and spam hate? Ridiculous and so immature.

And who should've replaced him? There are only so many available F1 drivers. So many haters are from the Versainz-lineup side (I too would've loved Versainz lol just for the vibes), but come on, realistically, Carlos was never going to work (just look at the Torro Rosso days...) and anyway it was news weeks ago that Carlos/Red Bull had no interest in signing a contract. I can see why some may say Yuki should be there but I can also understand why Red Bull may not want to promote him yet (no I will not elaborate because *gunshots*). And tbh, whichever driver they put in that seat, will still be crushed by Max. In fact, I think one of Checo's strong points is that he's managed to last fairly well against Max mentally- until last year where he got in over his head with the early talks of him possibly becoming wdc. Besides, even if you think another driver should have gotten that seat, it does not justify all the hate.

Also, some are just straight up delusional like somehow spinning it to hate on Max? E.g. those who think Max masterminded the whole contract (crazy take tbh) or got angry at Max for saying smt along the lines of how he's happy for Checo. Like what do you want him to say? "Omfg I hate having Sergio Perez as my teammate I wish [insert name of rando driver said angry person wanted to replace Checo] was my teammate instead!!" Be so fr guys.

[kaurwreck]

If you're following KOSA, you should also be following state legislation, which is much more rapidly adopting tech regulation related to child safety than Congress. For reference, in 2023, 13 states adopted 23 laws related to child safety online.

Even if your locality hasn't adopted similar tech regulation, online platforms, apps, and websites are rarely operating in only some states. When regulations become patchwork, it's often easier for companies to adopt policies reflective of the most stringent regulations relevant to their service for all users, rather than try to implement different policies for users based on each user's location.

I know this because that's what happened when patchwork data privacy regulations began swelling — which is why many webites have privacy policies reflective of the GDPR that apply even to users outside of Europe. I also know this because I'm a tech lawyer — I'm the wet cat drafting policies for and advising tech and video game companies on how to navigate messy, convoluted, and patchwork US regulatory obligations.

So, when I say this is how companies are thinking about this, I mean this is how my coworkers and I have to think about this. And because the US is such a large market, this could impact users outside the US, too.

[frank-olivier]

The Future of Justice: Navigating the Intersection of AI, Judges, and Human Oversight

One of the main benefits of AI in the justice system is its ability to analyze vast amounts of data and identify patterns that human judges may not notice. For example, the use of AI in the U.S. justice system has led to a significant reduction in the number of misjudgments, as AI-powered tools were able to identify potential biases in the data and make more accurate recommendations.

However, the use of AI in the justice system also raises significant concerns about the role of human judges and the need for oversight. As AI takes on an increasingly important role in decision-making, judges must find the balance between trusting AI and exercising their own judgement. This requires a deep understanding of the technology and its limitations, as well as the ability to critically evaluate the recommendations provided by AI.

The European Union's approach to AI in justice provides a valuable framework for other countries to follow. The EU's framework emphasizes the need for human oversight and accountability and recognizes that AI is a tool that should support judges, not replace them. This approach is reflected in the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which requires AI systems to be transparent, explainable and accountable.

The use of AI in the justice system also comes with its pitfalls. One of the biggest concerns is the possibility of bias in AI-generated recommendations. When AI is trained with skewed data, it can perpetuate and even reinforce existing biases, leading to unfair outcomes. For example, a study by the American Civil Liberties Union found that AI-powered facial recognition systems are more likely to misidentify people of color than white people.

To address these concerns, it is essential to develop and implement robust oversight mechanisms to ensure that AI systems are transparent, explainable and accountable. This includes conducting regular audits and testing of AI systems and providing clear guidelines and regulations for the use of AI in the justice system.

In addition to oversight mechanisms, it is also important to develop and implement education and training programs for judges and other justice professionals. This will enable them to understand the capabilities and limitations of AI, as well as the potential risks and challenges associated with its use. By providing judges with the necessary skills and knowledge, we can ensure that AI is used in a way that supports judges and enhances the fairness and accountability of the justice system.

Human Centric AI - Ethics, Regulation. and Safety (Vilnius University Faculty of Law, October 2024)

Friday, November 1, 2024

[venacoeurva]

TBH everything public has been or will be scraped (Tumblr just made it easier for a select few specific models and gave them more data... including data that should not have under any circumstance so I would imagine there's gonna be some legal rammies for that?) and at this point I'm just twiddling my thumbs waiting for actual legislation to make doing AI training fiscally and legally inconvenient and an elaborate hoop jump because companies won't stop until it hits that point to no longer make it worth it and make it no longer that unicorn investors were sold. They've been happy to collect and sell our data for ads everywhere for years, it ain't surprising so many sites stoop to this.

So I'm just gonna sit here and make uglier watermarks, bout as much as I can do as an individual, and there are much more heinous things happening in the world right now.

[pikslasrce]

i get the outrage over the ai generated mv bc i agree however it irks me that people keep pointing out the wonky/extra fingers/etc as a gotcha bc i think thats the whole point of using ai for the video they wanted the "flaws" that come with it that 'ai generated uncanny valley' vibe like even tho i disagree w it on an ethical level i do get where theyre coming from artistic direction-wise

[steddiecensus]

Location, Location, Location!

I don't think anyone will be surprised to learn that this fandom skews very American... BUT there are Many international Steddie fans!

I'm sure that this survey only being in English skewed these results pretty heavily, so if I was going to repeat this experiment, I'd definitely try to work with other international fans to translate/spread the survey further.

[andmaybegayer]

saw a post like "why are there no weird Tumblr users on Tumblr Live doing weird things, it's all Instagram influencer wannabes." and while I do not know anything for certain I wonder if the massive reflexive negative day zero response from people who see themselves as The Old Timers basically killed Live's potential for users to do interesting things with it and ceded that entire part of the site to people who didn't care about what is really a pretty minor design spat.

I would bet you that a few people tried to use Live and got yelled at by their follower base for "legitimising Live" or something ridiculous like that. I don't know if MBARI is still doing their weekly jellyfish stream but if I was the guy in charge of their Tumblr, I would probably have stopped by now.

There's a concerted effort to go around every week and actively hide the Live feed! When I eventually get Live I would be interested in streaming some bugwatching or birding or hiking or whatever but I can see how that could quickly get boring if the only people showing up are median new Tumblr users and not the people I hang out with on the rest of the site.

[yellowcakeuf6]

Data reveals his most intimate secret to Deanna Troi - his fetish for stripy socks bwahaha

[salisburyautisticcarerealestate]

Salisbury Autistic Care - The Sensory Haven Future Homes for Autistic People

Salisbury Autistic Care: Creating Inclusive Communities for Individuals on the Autism Spectrum is putting its best foot forward by designing homes best suited for autistic individuals. Efforts are made to provide an environment where those on the autism spectrum can thrive and feel at ease.

In this discussion, we'll explore how Salisbury's real estate sector is designing homes with the latest innovations that prioritize the safety concerns of these individuals.

Let's discover together how the latest innovative homes are reshaping the landscape of inclusive living.

Smart Home Technology: Real estate is focusing on installing homes with smart home devices that can be controlled remotely or automated to perform tasks autonomously. It includes devices like voice-activated assistants (like Amazon Alexa or Google Home), smart thermostats, lighting systems, and security cameras that can greatly improve the autonomy and comfort of individuals with autism. These technologies can be programmed to adjust environmental factors according to the individual's preferences, providing a sense of control and reducing sensory overload.

Communication Apps and Devices: Many autistic people face trouble in communication. However, integrating communication apps and devices within the property can facilitate effective communication. It will help them by assisting in conveying their message to their caregivers. These may include augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) apps, picture exchange communication systems (PECS), or specialized devices that support speech output.

Safety and Monitoring Solutions: Autistic individuals are not much aware of their safety in the surrounding environment. As a result, they may unintentionally engage in behaviors that could put their well-being at risk. Technology can play a crucial role in ensuring their safety. GPS tracking devices, door alarms, and wearable sensors can alert caregivers if a resident leaves the property or enters restricted areas, allowing for timely intervention. Additionally, smart locks and security systems can enhance overall safety within the property.

Sensory Regulation Tools: Many individuals with autism are sensitive to sensory stimuli. The real estate must focus on designing calming sensory rooms with soft lighting, comfortable seating, tactile objects, soothing music or sounds, and visual projections. Interactive projections or immersive virtual reality experiences can provide engaging and customizable sensory experiences, allowing individuals with autism to explore different sensory inputs in a controlled and therapeutic environment.

Data Collection and Analysis: Homes installed with smart sensors can help in tracking daily behavior patterns like sleep patterns, activity levels, or emotional states, providing valuable insights about the individual. This information can be used to create personalized care plans and interventions.

Educational and Therapeutic Resources: Integrating educational and therapeutic resources within autism care properties empowers residents to engage in meaningful activities and skill-building exercises that support their development and enhance their quality of life. Smart home technology helps them to have access to educational and therapeutic sessions that promote learning, growth, and self-confidence for individuals with autism.

Conclusion

Through these advancements, Salisbury Autistic Care — Most Desirable Areas to Live in is not only addressing the unique needs and challenges faced by autistic individuals but also trying to create surroundings where they can feel safe and comfortable. By prioritizing safety, communication, sensory comfort, and personalized support, these homes are reshaping the landscape of inclusive living and setting a new standard for the integration of technology and compassion in real estate development.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Go back to the top of this article and reread that transcript of Rep. Buddy Carter grilling TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew. Now, Carter is a dunderhead, but he’s dunderheaded in a way that illuminates just how bad COPPA enforcement is, and has been, for 25 long years.

Carter thinks that TikTok is using biometric features to enforce COPPA. He imagines that TikTok is doing some kind of high-tech phrenology to make sure that every user is over 13 (“I find that [you aren’t capturing facial images] hard to believe. It is our understanding that they’re looking at the eyes. How do you determine what age they are then?”).

Chew corrects the Congressdunderhead from Georgia, explaining that TikTok uses “age-gating”: “when you ask the user what age they are.”

That is the industry-wide practice for enforcing COPPA: every user is presented with a tick-box that says “I am over 13.” If they tick that box, the company claims it has satisfied the requirement not to spy on kids.

But if COPPA were meaningfully enforced, companies would simply have to stop spying on everyone, because there are no efficient ways to verify the age of users at the scale needed for general operation of a website.

-How To Make a Child-Safe TikTok: Have you tried not spying on kids?

[system-of-a-feather]

So You Fucked Up and Made A Bad Decision

Since we are kind of working through A Situation cause a part Did a Bad to a loved one, as someone's whose navigated this a few times within our system and kinda lowkey professionally navigates these sorts of issues near daily for work, here is a few pointers and rules to handling it in a manner that will recover quicker and minimize long term damage with a person you care for

(This is intentionally made similar to talking to a child as this is partially aimed to help those that have delayed emotional development due to trauma. Thus this is being explained in a way targeted for people whose emotional development is rather immature / limited. If that sort of simple talking is triggering and uncomfortable for you, feel free to continue past this post /genuine)

You Did a Bad, and you noticed you Did a Bad and while that is not 'okay', these things happen and most importantly, it has ALREADY happened. There is no taking back the action that is done and the hard thing is that we now have to live with that in the moment decision whether we like it or not. It is important to internally come to terms with the reality that an Action You Regret was already done and can not be undone.

That is OK though, because now we are in the present and we can make Better Decisions.

We made one Bad Decision, but now and in the future we can make Good Decisions and we now have PLENTY of opportunities to make Good Decisions and not repeat the Bad Decisions we made in the past.

Here are some general Good Decisions we can do now and some Not So Good Decisions we can do.

Good Decision: Giving our loved one space and time to process things. You hurt them, intentionally or not, and they have a right to feel hurt. It might suck to not be able to make things better immediately, but sometimes people need time to work through what they are feeling. It's important that we respect our loved one's wishes for space. This doesn't mean they don't love you and it doesn't mean they hate you. This just means they need time to get into their best place

Not So Good Decision: Insisting on apologizing to them. It is a GOOD idea to apologize to our loved ones when we hurt them and the intent is good, but as Professor Oak says, there is a time and place for everything and now might not be the right time. It is good to put it out there that you are sorry and want to make amends, but if your loved one is not receptive and/or does not want to talk right now, it is important to make the Good Decision and give them space.

Good Decision: Give yourself time and space to process your own feelings. While they were the ones that were hurt, that doesn't mean you also don't have feelings. Even people that hurt others are allowed to have feelings, it's a natural thing and its important that you give yourself the space to feel what you are experiencing as those feelings can be really hard as well. Only when you are in a better place is it easier to figure out how we can best take care of our friends.

Not So Good Decision: Beat yourself up for having done a Bad Decision. The Bad Decision was already made and no amount of hurting yourself will undo the damage that has done. You don't deserve to be beaten up for a mistake in the past, nor does hurting yourself help heal the situation. There is little benefit to beating yourself up over it and a better use of the time and energy would be put towards thinking about how to help your friend and/or learn from this experience.

Good Decision: When both you and your loved one is ready, talk about what had happened, apologize sincerely, and discuss what you both need to move forward from this incident. It's important to openly listen to one another and come to talk on your own terms. It is also important to reflect on what brought us to this situation where a Bad Decision was made so we can learn how to prevent the situation from getting here and redirect it as a team to prevent it from happening again.

[velvetstreets]

I’ve actually fried my brain to dust particles trying to approach this assignment

[yddaw]

Sometimes it’s unfortunate seeing that a lot of people are anti [insert technology here]. It makes sense of course, but it seems like the idea being shared is that the technological tool itself is “bad” but not the company using it.

Like Chromium is not the same thing as Chrome itself. And AI is not only for stealing content and reselling it. But having so many companies do this and use these tools with little to no regulation (specifically on privacy) paints such a nasty image for the tool that has so much potential 😩