Access and Privacy Online

Access and Privacy Online


20240907 Access and Privacy Online

Show Notes for Saturday September 7th. Writing: Shaun Fisk  | Production: Patrick Farnsworth  | Music: Breakmaster Cylinder You can support these efforts by subscribing or donating.   Show Notes: Clearview AI fined $33.7 million by Dutch data protection watchdog over ‘illegal database’ of faces  https://fipa.bc.ca/clearview-ai-fined-33-7-million-by-dutch-data-protection-watchdog-over-illegal-database-of-faces/   A great teaching opportunity’: How one school board plans to use AI in the classroom  https://fipa.bc.ca/a-great-teaching-opportunity-how-one-school-board-plans-to-use-ai-in-the-classroom/   Black students are […]

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Sweden joins countries seeking to end screen time for children under 2

Sweden says children under the age of 2 should not be exposed to any digital screens. The recommendations, issued by the Scandinavian country’s public health agency earlier this month as a new school year begins, are the latest in a worldwide effort to limit screen time for young children. The coronavirus lockdowns exacerbated the problem […]

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Fight For Farmland condemns region for freedom of information denials

The group behind the fight to deny the Region of Waterloo access to 770 acres of land in Wilmot Township for a future mega-site development has been dealt another blow in their fight get more details. Fight for Farmland has expressed deep disappointment and growing concern as the region has again denied a freedom of […]

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Nova Scotia RCMP to apologize to Black community for historic use of street checks

The commander of the RCMP in Nova Scotia will apologize to the province’s Black community on Saturday for the Mounties’ historic use of street checks. Now banned in Nova Scotia, street checks involve police randomly stopping citizens to record their personal information and store it electronically — a practice sometimes referred to as “carding” elsewhere […]

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Drones helped in big Vancouver arrest. It’s time for policy scrutiny, researchers say

Canadian police forces have been using drones for many years, but scrutiny of their use is lacking, especially as the technology has evolved, privacy and surveillance researchers say.  Their concerns come after Vancouver’s Chief Const. Adam Palmer revealed that investigators deployed drones to locate a suspect in a pair of gruesome stranger attacks in the […]

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Nevada high court ends casino mogul Steve Wynn’s defamation suit against The Associated Press

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Nevada Supreme Court on Thursday ended a defamation lawsuit brought by casino mogul Steve Wynn against The Associated Press in 2018, rejecting his bid for a jury to hear his claim that he was defamed by an AP story about two women who alleged Wynn committed sexual misconduct. The seven-member […]

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28 months after FOI request, St. Catharines has not released chemical testing data for contaminated former GM site slated for residential development

Twenty-eight months after a Freedom of Information  request was submitted to the City of St. Catharines, officials have yet to release crucial reports detailing the presence of chemicals on the former GM site along Ontario Street that the previous mayor pushed to get developed behind the scenes.   These reports, Phase I and II Environmental Site […]

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US widens indictment of Russians in ‘WhisperGate’ conspiracy to destroy Ukrainian and NATO systems

BALTIMORE (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department has widened its indictment of Russians in the so-called WhisperGate malware attacks aimed at destroying computer systems in Ukraine and 26 NATO allies including the United States. A superseding indictment announced Thursday names five Russian military intelligence officers in a conspiracy to demoralize the Ukrainian people on the […]

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Florida ‘whistleblower’ says he was fired for leaking plans to build golf courses in state parks

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A former state employee who said he leaked information about the plans to build golf courses and hotels in Florida’s state parks has apparently been fired. But James Gaddis, who described himself as an “ethical whistleblower,” said he doesn’t regret making the public aware of the proposals, according to the Palm […]

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Resource crunch at federal emergency centre caused ‘significant staff exhaustion’

Budget and staff challenges have left overworked employees exhausted and sapped morale at the federal nerve centre for managing forest fires and other national emergencies, an internal memo reveals. The Public Safety Canada document also says the Government Operations Centre lacks both the capacity to fully modernize and the money for new digital tools.  The […]

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Clearview AI fined $33.7 million by Dutch data protection watchdog over ‘illegal database’ of faces

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Dutch data protection watchdog on Tuesday issued facial recognition startup Clearview AI with a fine of 30.5 million euros ($33.7 million) over its creation of what the agency called an “illegal database” of billion of photos of faces. The Netherlands’ Data Protection Agency, or DPA, also warned Dutch companies […]

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Q&A: Future of Marineland uncertain after abysmal season; conviction for poor treatment of black bears

Sunday, September 1st will mark the final day of the 2024 season for Marineland, the Niagara Falls theme park that has arguably been the second most noteworthy attraction in the municipality, only surpassed by the famous cataracts that give the city its name.  With dwindling attendance, persistent protests from animal rights activists and what the […]

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