Science

Science


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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‘A great teaching opportunity’: How one school board plans to use AI in the classroom

When students return to Catholic schools in Ottawa this week, they will be able to use artificial intelligence to help solve math problems and create essay outlines. Their teachers, too, can turn to AI to generate lesson plans, adjust content to a student’s specific needs, and give feedback on assignments. The Ottawa Catholic School Board […]

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Sensors can read your sweat and predict overheating. Here’s why privacy advocates care

On a hot summer day in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, dozens of men removed pipes, asbestos and hazardous waste while working to decontaminate a nuclear facility and prepare it for demolition. Dressed in head-to-toe coveralls and fitted with respirators, the crew members toiling in a building without power had no obvious respite from the heat. Instead, […]

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National security agencies should detail how they’re using AI: federal advisory body

A federal advisory body is calling on Canada’s security agencies to publish detailed descriptions of their current and intended uses of artificial intelligence systems and software applications. In a new report, the National Security Transparency Advisory Group also urges the government to look at amending legislation being considered by Parliament to ensure oversight of how […]

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CBSA to use facial recognition app for people facing deportation: documents

The Canada Border Services Agency plans to implement an app that uses facial recognition technology to keep track of people who have been ordered to be deported from the country. The mobile reporting app would use biometrics to confirm a person’s identity and record their location data when they use the app to check in. […]

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Ottawa latest city to turn to AI to predict chronic homelessness

How old are you? What is your gender? Are you Indigenous? Are you a Canadian citizen? Do you have a family?  Those are just a few of the data points that a new artificial intelligence system will use to determine if somebody might be at risk of chronic homelessness in Ottawa, thanks to a team-up […]

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Government chatbots? It’s one possibility under Ottawa’s new AI strategy

Delayed air passengers, disgruntled phone customers and even hungry people craving a slice of pizza increasingly find their pleas to private companies being answered by artificial intelligence. Soon Canadians who need to reach out to the federal government could also find themselves talking to an employee who’s been helped by non-human assistants.  Ottawa is working […]

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FTC orders 8 companies to provide information on ‘surveillance pricing’ practices

NEW YORK (AP) — The Federal Trade Commission has ordered information from eight companies that the agency says offer products and services that use personal data to set prices based on a shopper’s individual characteristics. In a Tuesday announcement, the FTC said it was seeking to better understand the “opaque market” of “surveillance pricing” practices […]

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What to know about the Kids Online Safety Act and its chances of passing

The last time Congress passed a law to protect children on the internet was in 1998 — before Facebook, before the iPhone and long before today’s oldest teenagers were born. Now, a bill aiming to protect kids from the harms of social media, gaming sites and other online platforms appears to have enough bipartisan support […]

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One Tech Tip: What to do if your personal info has been exposed in a data breach

LONDON (AP) — Data breaches like the most recent one involving AT&T customers are becoming an almost regular occurrence.  As more of our lives move online, our personal data like email addresses, phone numbers, birthdates and even passcodes are becoming ever more vulnerable to theft or being mistakenly exposed.  In malicious breaches, cybercriminals can use […]

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Scammers are swiping billions from Americans every year. Worse, most crooks are getting away with it

The scammers are winning. Sophisticated overseas criminals are stealing tens of billions of dollars from Americans every year, a crime wave projected to get worse as the U.S. population ages and technology like AI makes it easier than ever to perpetrate fraud and get away with it. Internet and telephone scams have grown “exponentially,” overwhelming […]

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UN adopts Chinese resolution with US support on closing the gap in access to artificial intelligence

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. General Assembly adopted a Chinese-sponsored resolution with U.S. support urging wealthy developed nations to close the widening gap with developing countries and ensure they have equal opportunities to use and benefit from artificial intelligence. The resolution approved Monday follows the March 21 adoption of the first U.N. resolution on […]

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