The Verge: Russian lawmakers approve plan to take more control over internet traffic. “Russian lawmakers are moving ahead with a proposal to take further control over internet traffic in the country, The Associated Press reports. Under the proposal, Russian internet traffic would be required to be sent through servers in the country, according to the AP, giving the country more leverage to surveil and censor information. The bill was approved by the State Duma, and it will now head to the upper legislative chamber before going to President Putin’s desk for a signature.”
digital surveillance
New York Times: Insurers Want to Know How Many Steps You Took Today
New York Times: Insurers Want to Know How Many Steps You Took Today. “A smartphone app that measures when you brake and accelerate in your car. The algorithm that analyzes your social media accounts for risky behavior. The program that calculates your life expectancy using your Fitbit. This isn’t speculative fiction — these are real technologies being deployed by insurance companies right now.”
New York Times: Google’s Sensorvault Is a Boon for Law Enforcement. This Is How It Works.
New York Times: Google’s Sensorvault Is a Boon for Law Enforcement. This Is How It Works.. “Law enforcement officials across the country have been seeking information from a Google database called Sensorvault — a trove of detailed location records involving at least hundreds of millions of devices worldwide, The New York Times found. Though the new technique can identify suspects near crimes, it runs the risk of sweeping up innocent bystanders, highlighting the impact that companies’ mass collection of data can have on people’s lives.”
Bloomberg: Amazon Workers Are Listening to What You Tell Alexa
Bloomberg: Amazon Workers Are Listening to What You Tell Alexa. “Tens of millions of people use smart speakers and their voice software to play games, find music or trawl for trivia. Millions more are reluctant to invite the devices and their powerful microphones into their homes out of concern that someone might be listening. Sometimes, someone is.”
Techdirt: Court Documents Show Canadian Law Enforcement Operated Stingrays Indiscriminately, Sweeping Up Thousands Of Innocent Phone Owners
Techdirt: Court Documents Show Canadian Law Enforcement Operated Stingrays Indiscriminately, Sweeping Up Thousands Of Innocent Phone Owners. “A wide-ranging criminal investigation involving eleven suspects has resulted in the reluctant disclosure of Stingray data by Canadian law enforcement. The Toronto PD and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police joined forces to deploy a surveillance dragnet that swept up thousands of innocent Canadians, as Kate Allen reports for the Toronto Star.”
TechCrunch: ICE has a huge license plate database targeting immigrants, documents reveal
TechCrunch: ICE has a huge license plate database targeting immigrants, documents reveal. “Newly released documents reveal Immigration and Customs Enforcement is tracking and targeting immigrants through a massive license plate reader database supplied with data from local police departments — in some cases violating sanctuary laws.”
Facial recognition’s ‘dirty little secret’: Millions of online photos scraped without consent (NBC News)
NBC News: Facial recognition’s ‘dirty little secret’: Millions of online photos scraped without consent. “As the algorithms get more advanced — meaning they are better able to identify women and people of color, a task they have historically struggled with — legal experts and civil rights advocates are sounding the alarm on researchers’ use of photos of ordinary people. These people’s faces are being used without their consent, in order to power technology that could eventually be used to surveil them. That’s a particular concern for minorities who could be profiled and targeted, the experts and advocates say.”
