amazon Amazon Develops Alexa Feature to Mimic Voices of Deceased Relatives Amazon reveals a new AI system that allows Alexa to replicate a deceased loved one's voice from less than a minute of audio. The technology draws heavy criticism and dystopian comparisons from the public.
amazon Amazon Unveils Alexa Feature to Clone Voices from Short Audio Clips Amazon announces a new AI capability that synthesizes a short audio clip into longer speech, allowing Alexa to mimic the voice of a deceased loved one to read stories. The technology requires only one minute of recording to produce a high-quality voice.
facial recognition Facial Recognition Growth Sparks Serious Privacy and Security Concerns Facial recognition technology is expanding rapidly across consumer and government sectors, but it brings significant privacy risks like non-consensual tracking and unchangeable biometric data breaches.
tech policy US Lawmakers Advance Landmark Privacy Bill and CHIPS Act in July The House Energy and Commerce Committee advances the American Data Privacy and Protection Act while the House passes the CHIPS and Science Act. Antitrust advocates also continue pushing for votes on major tech competition bills.
meta Meta Stock Plunges as Ongoing Controversies Outweigh Metaverse Pivot Meta experiences a massive 38% stock drop in early 2022, driven more by longstanding scandals and privacy issues than its costly metaverse rebranding.
artificial intelligence Dutch Police Use Deepfake Videos to Breathe Life Into Cold Cases Law enforcement agencies are finding unconventional ways to leverage artificial intelligence, using deepfake technology to reconstruct victims and generate new leads in unsolved crimes.
ftc FTC Seeks Public Input on Commercial Surveillance and Algorithmic Rules The Federal Trade Commission launches an inquiry into commercial surveillance and data security, asking 95 questions about consumer data practices including algorithmic discrimination. Meanwhile, HHS proposes a ban on discriminatory clinical algorithms in healthcare.
ftc FTC Warns Against Relying Solely on AI to Fix Online Harms The Federal Trade Commission issues a new report cautioning businesses against depending entirely on artificial intelligence to solve complex online problems. The agency highlights significant risks of bias, inaccuracy, and privacy violations associated with unchecked algorithmic tools.
eu Civil Society Coalition Urges EU Parliament to Ban Biometric Mass Surveillance A coalition of 53 organizations calls on EU lawmakers to outlaw biometric mass surveillance in the Artificial Intelligence Act. The group warns that failing to ban these systems destroys public anonymity and threatens fundamental human rights.
ftc FTC Proposes Sweeping Commercial Surveillance and Data Security Regulations The Federal Trade Commission initiates a broad rulemaking process targeting commercial surveillance and lax data security practices. The new rules carry the threat of massive civil penalties for businesses across nearly all economic sectors.
texas Texas Schools Outpace Nation in Student Social Media Surveillance Texas schools lead the country in using social media monitoring tools to track students, but experts question the effectiveness of these services. Many parents and students remain unaware that school districts are paying third-party companies to watch their online activity.
instagram Instagram Expands Sensitive Content Filters Beyond Explore Tab Instagram allows users to hide sensitive content from recommendations across the entire app, not just the Explore tab. The platform faces criticism for its vague definition of sensitive material and lack of granular controls.
google Google Blocks RCS Promotional Messages in India Over Spam Abuse Google disables RCS promotional messaging for businesses in India after numerous firms, including major banks, flood users with unsolicited ads. The tech giant pauses the feature to work with the industry on improving the user experience.
mozilla Mozilla Launches Private, Offline Translation Tool for Firefox Mozilla introduces Firefox Translations, a new browser extension that translates web pages locally without sending data to cloud servers. The tool prioritizes user privacy over cloud-based alternatives by performing all machine learning processes directly on the user's device.
privacy Period Tracking Apps Pose Serious Privacy Risks After Roe Reversal The overturning of Roe v. Wade brings renewed scrutiny to period-tracking apps, as experts warn that the intimate data they collect lacks federal privacy protections and could potentially be used against users in states that ban abortion.