37 Senators that voted to let the FBI seize your internet history without a warrant. The bill failed by one vote.

Privacy News Online: These are the 37 Senators that voted to let the FBI seize your internet history without a warrant.

A key amendment to the USA Freedom Reauthorization Act of 2020 that would have required authorities to obtain a warrant before gaining access to American internet browsing and search history just failed on the Senate floor by a single vote. For those that are unaware, key parts of the Patriot Act – namely the mass surveillance section – is currently unauthorized and needs to be reauthorized by Congress to stay in effect. The current bill under consideration to do that is called the US FREEDOM Reauthorization Act of 2020 and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has snuck in an amendment that would allow the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department of Justice (DOJ) to seize internet search and browsing history if they claim it is tied to an active investigation.
[.]
27 Republicans and 10 Democrats voted against the amendment and 4 senators were no-shows.
[.]
[The 37 senators were:]

Barrasso, John (R-WY)

Blackburn, Marsha (R-TN)

Blunt, Roy (R-MO)

Boozman, John (R-AR)

Burr, Richard (R-NC)

Capito, Shelley Moore (R-WV)

Collins, Susan M. (R-ME)

Cornyn, John (R-TX)

Cotton, Tom (R-AR)

Fischer, Deb (R-NE)

Graham, Lindsey (R-SC)

Hyde-Smith, Cindy (R-MS)

Inhofe, James M. (R-OK)

Johnson, Ron (R-WI)

Lankford, James (R-OK)

McConnell, Mitch (R-KY)

Perdue, David (R-GA)

Portman, Rob (R-OH)

Roberts, Pat (R-KS)

Romney, Mitt (R-UT)

Rubio, Marco (R-FL)

Shelby, Richard C. (R-AL)

Thune, John (R-SD)

Tillis, Thom (R-NC)

Toomey, Patrick J. (R-PA)

Wicker, Roger F. (R-MS)

Young, Todd (R-IN)

Carper, Thomas R. (D-DE)

Casey, Robert P., Jr. (D-PA)

Feinstein, Dianne (D-CA)

Hassan, Margaret Wood (D-NH)

Jones, Doug (D-AL)

Kaine, Tim (D-VA)

Manchin, Joe, III (D-WV)

Shaheen, Jeanne (D-NH)

Warner, Mark R. (D-VA)

Whitehouse, Sheldon (D-RI)

@ Bernard Kerik Twitter:

What about BERNIE SANDERS ? He was too busy to show up for work and vote on a matter of such little importance.

Daily Beast: Senate Proposal Against Warrantless Internet Spying Died by One Vote. Bernie Sat It Out Entirely.

A bipartisan proposal to protect citizens’ internet search and browsing history from warrantless government surveillance died in the Senate on Wednesday. It lost by just one vote.
[.]
Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), who is quarantining from the coronavirus, Patty Murray (D-WA), Ben Sasse (R-NE) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) did not vote, according to the roll call.

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Privacy News Archived

AI social-distancing enforcement tool. "You will be TRACKED!"

RT: Coronavirus inspires DYSTOPIAN new AI social-distancing enforcement tool (VIDEO).

An AI start-up company has developed a video surveillance system that can tell if we’re abiding by social distancing rules. It’s the latest example of the pandemic inspiring what some might view as sinister technology.
[.]
Californian software developer Landing AI has created a video tool that can be used to ascertain whether people are following social distancing rules.

“Landing AI has developed an AI-enabled social distancing detection tool that can detect if people are keeping a safe distance from each other by analyzing real-time video streams from the camera,” the company chirps, in a blog post about the new software.

Remove your mask and smile for the camera! Big Brother wants a nice, clear image of your facial recognition for their database.

Transgender bathroom policy: "It's not everything we want."

It never is.

Stream: ‘My Privacy is Being Invaded’: High School Girl Reacts to New Transgender Bathroom Policy.

Video footage shows a high school girl choked up when her high school ruled that trans students have unrestricted access to bathrooms and locker rooms.

A high school student identified by the Daily Herald as Julia Burca chokes up as she discusses how her school district ruled Thursday that transgender students will have unrestricted access to bathrooms of their choice, video footage created by the Daily Herald shows.

“I feel uncomfortable that my privacy is being invaded,” Burca says, who had a red nose and eyes. “As I am a swimmer, I do change multiple times naked in front of the other students in the locker room. I understand that the board has an obligation to all students but I was hoping they would go about this in a different way that would also accommodate students such as myself.”

Palatine High School in northwest Illinois [is] where board members voted to give unrestricted locker room and restroom access to transgender students[.]
[.]
A transgender student identified as Nova Maday [said], "It passed, it passed," Maday reportedly says happily in the video. "I’m ecstatic."

"It’s definitely a first step forward in many more steps, it’s a great policy, unfortunately, it’s not everything we want," [said Maday].

What are those "many more steps"?

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Stream Archived

Smart Ovens Turning Themselves on and Preheating during the night. Manufacturer blames other apps.

The Verge: Your smart oven might be more ready for breakfast than you realize.

Multiple people report that their June Smart Oven turned on by itself during the night and preheated to 400 degrees, perhaps in eager anticipation of the meal it might soon cook. June did not issue a statement regarding the potential cause of this heating fiasco, but it told The Verge that user error was to blame.

In one instance, June blamed the Amazon Alexa integration for the preheating and in another instance said the user may have tapped something within the app that triggered the preheat functionality. In only one case did June send out a new oven, but the company said it was due to “unrelated issues.” The events have users concerned.

"Blame the Other App." Way to go PR Department of June.

One could consider unplugging the oven. This may trigger the physical act of reprogramming when plugged back in. Gee, can the App Dependent Generation burn one calorie by the intense manual labor required to reprogram it? If you get short of breath, sit down, relax, you'll be okay. Really. There's an App for that.

The self-activation, preheating and possible fire is the least of the worries. The smart oven is probably spying on those who own it. It's recording their words and movements. It's monitoring everything they do. And it's talking about them behind their back with the smart fridge, Alexa, the Flat Screen and all the other Black Mirror devices. And their car, and gas, water and electric meters. Wave to the hidden cameras in the ovens, Fitbits, cell phones and flat screens. Your life is being live-streamed on the Dark Web. Yeah, the camera does add ten pounds, but don't worry, ya look fine.

Related: House Beautiful - Delta's new tech lets you turn on faucets, preheat water and more.

[Delta] also works with Google Assistant. (Because who doesn't want more Gulag in their lives? DD)

[--] while getting ready in the morning, you can rely on this new technology to help prepare your morning joe, just by saying, “Alexa, ask Delta to fill up the coffee pot.” Or if you’re a busy parent trying to get the kids out of the door and you remember that the dog needs water, Delta VoiceIQ technology can also help with that too via an app.

It's always the, "...And More," that gets us to fork over our money, isn't it?

Facebook Messenger Kids app flaw let thousands of children chat to strangers online. Facebook 2Q lobbying spends more than Amazon and Google.

Mirror: Messenger Kids app flaw let thousands of children chat to strangers online.

It’s promoted as a ‘safe kids’ chat app’, but new findings may put you off letting your children use the Facebook Messenger Kids app.

A design flaw has been discovered within the app, that allowed thousands of children to chat to strangers online.

A report by The Verge revealed that Facebook has quietly been closing down these group chats and alerting users, but did not make a public statement about the issue.
[.]
...the flaw meant that children could be added to group chats with strangers, as long as one of their trusted contacts had added them.

MarketWatch: Facebook tops Amazon and Google in 2Q lobbying spending.

Facebook Inc. shelled out $4.1 million on lobbying Washington in the second quarter, topping the outlays by other so-called FAANG companies and keeping the tech giant on pace for another record year of spending to influence lawmakers and regulators.
[.]
Amazon.com Inc. AMZN, -1.00%  wasn’t far behind with $4 million[.]
[.]
Google business spent $2.9 million from April through June[.]
[.]
Netflix Inc.,...spent a relatively modest $200,000.

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Mirror story Archived
Market Watch story Archived

Patent Granted to Facebook's shadowbanning.

Reclaim The Net: Facebook’s shadowbanning process is now patented:

It's official and patented: Facebook is that company that engages in censorship utilizing a practice known as shadowbanning. [].. the US Patent and Trademark Office has now granted the request.
[.]
In the summary of the patent case Facebook describes how shadowbanning works: comments are analyzed for content and sentiments that are prohibited by the social network, such as profanities, or racist, derogatory, “or negative” remarks.

And while such comments will still be visible to the author – and in some cases, their friends – “the social networking system will not display the comment to other users.”

Facebook added that it may also “train a machine learning classifier to block comments based on moderator actions of manually deleting comments or unblocking comments in the online forum.”

Is this Social Media AI Comment Moderation or censorship? This should be a fun one to watch. AI learning what it identifies as "negative remarks". What could possibly go wrong?

Steve Wozniak: "Get off Facebook!"

Steve Wozniak, "Get off Facebook." Via TMZ:

LA Wire: Steve Wozniak Warns People to Get Off Facebook Over Privacy Concerns.

Steve Wozniak has a warning for anyone who uses social media … the platforms are eavesdropping on your private conversations, and sending that precious data to advertisers.
[.]
...he explains why anything you say in the presence of your electronics is readily made available to all sorts of entities.

The Urban Twist: Steve Wozniak warns to GET OFF Facebook and Instagram.

Wozniak, [accuses] platforms under the umbrella of Facebook [of] using audio surveillance tactics to gather information to sell to advertisers.

Is You Tube planning to hide its Comment section?

Slashgear: YouTube may be planning to hide the comment section by default.

YouTube is testing a feature that makes [its comment section] avoidance easier.
[.]
YouTube is testing a feature on Android that hides the comment section by default. Rather than having comments readily available by scrolling down, they’re now hidden behind a new ‘Comments’ section in the menu directly beneath the video that is currently playing.

A prompt in the app warns users that ‘comments have been moved,’ advising them to tap on the new menu section to open the comments. Scrolling down only reveals additional recommended videos; tapping ‘Comments’ pulls up the expected comment section.
[.]
It’s unclear why YouTube has decided to test this new design, which appeared for users in India.

 Kommentare, Der Kommissar?

Tech News

New Atlas: Your air taxi is waiting.

Alaka'i Technologies' Skai machine has a range of up to four hours/400 mi (640 km) and a five-passenger capacity [...] using a hydrogen fuel cell powertrain that neatly sidesteps the energy density issue that's holding back battery-powered aircraft.

 - - -

IEEE: How to Build a Moral Robot. 

So how can we build a robot that can figure out which norms to follow, and when?
[.]
"Our hypothesis is that in any particular context, a subset of norms is activated—a particular set of rules related to that situation. That subset of norms is then available to guide action, to recognize violations, and allow us to make decisions."

It's a very good article. Hit the link.
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Packt>: House Oversight and Reform Committee labels Facial Recognition as racist, biased and abusive to civil rights.

At the hearing, Joy Buolamwini, founder of Algorithmic Justice League highlighted one of [her] studies at MIT, on facial recognition systems, it was found that for the task of guessing a gender of a face, IBM, Microsoft and Amazon had error rates which rose to over 30% for darker skin and women. On evaluating benchmark datasets from organizations like NIST (National Institute for Standards and Technology), a striking imbalance was found. The dataset contained 75 percent male and 80 percent lighter skin data, which she addressed as “pale male datasets”. She added that our faces may well be the final frontier of privacy and Congress must act now to uphold American freedom and rights at minimum. 

The Algorithmic Justice League. Aren't they the nemesis of THE Justice League?
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AI News: Amazon patent envisions Alexa listening to everything 24/7.

A patent filed by Amazon envisions a future where Alexa listens to users 24/7 without the need for a wakeword.
[.]
For example, say you were discussing booking a seat at your favourite restaurant next Tuesday. After asking, “Alexa, do I have anything on my schedule next Tuesday?” it could respond: “No, would you like me to book a seat at the restaurant you were discussing and add it to your calendar?”

Today, such a task would require three separate requests.

Three separate requests? WTFITS? We ask so much from ourselves, don't we? When will the heavy-lifting end?
- - -
The Guardian: World's first raspberry-picking robot set to work.

Yeah, it's slow. However, the story states, "[the] machine [is] expected to pick more than 25,000 raspberries a day, outpacing human workers." Kind of  reminds me of the autonomous dry-waller at Bustednuckles.

- - -

Seattle Times: Judge orders Facebook to turn over records on data privacy.

A Delaware judge is ordering Facebook to turn over internal records regarding data privacy and access to user data.
[.]
The lawsuit followed reports that the data of more than 50 million Facebook users had been misappropriated without their knowledge by British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica in 2015.

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Engadget: Cadillac's hands-free SuperCruise.

Plenty of images of the new Caddy at the link and the engineering seems as solid as autonomous driving can be. Until...something goes wrong.
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Pocket Lint: Lego worked with NASA to release this 1,087-piece Apollo 11 Luna Lander set.

Tech News

Technocracy: UK Pedestrian Fined $115 For Avoiding Facial Recognition Camera.

Police fined a pedestrian £90 for disorderly behaviour after he tried to cover his face when he saw a controversial facial recognition camera on a street in London.

Officers set up the camera on a van in Romford, East London, which then cross-checked photos of faces of passers-by against a database of wanted criminals.

But one man was unimpressed about being filmed and covered his face with his hat and jacket, before being stopped by officers who took his picture anyway.

After being pulled aside, the man told police: ‘If I want to cover me face, I’ll cover me face. Don’t push me over when I’m walking down the street.’

- - -
C|Net: Good reasons not to trust tech companies.

...why wouldn't a company like Facebook go the extra step and just listen in on our conversations through our phones?

"Most Americans can't go through their day without having one of these companies in their lives," said Margaret O'Mara, a history professor at the University of Washington and author of The Code: Silicon Valley and the Remaking of America.

- - -
TechTalks: Self-driving forklifts are here.

...factories and industrial complexes are closed environments, and are much more predictable. There’s no threat of kids running in the forklift’s path, and the lighting, weather and traffic conditions are usually constant. “The rules for forklifts are easier than self-driving cars because the environment is structured,” [says Saurav Agarwal, CTO and co-founder at Stocked Robotics, an Austin-based AI company focused on automating industrial vehicles].

- - -
Here's a trip down memory lane. TechSpot: The Most Memorable Game Controllers over the past 40 years.

The departure from the arcades has drastically morphed how players control games. Here we will take a look at some of the more memorable gamepads and controllers for consoles and PC over the last four decades.

How many do you remember? Hit the link for more.

 

 PC Gaming Technology circa 4th 5th Millennium BC

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ZD Net: Six ways the new Mac Pro could go terribly wrong.

Once upon a time, Apple understood extreme pro users. From about 2006 to about 2012, Apple sold what is fondly referred to as the "cheese grater" Mac Pro, so named because the holes on the side of the unit were reminiscent of a cheese grater.
[.]
Then, in 2013, Apple introduced what's come to be known as the "trash can" Mac Pro, because it looks like a glossy little trash can. When Phil Schiller introduced it, he was so proud of it that he bragged, "Can't innovate, my ass."

Since then, that machine has been pretty much a failure.
[.]
It's entirely possible the new Mac Pro could go horribly wrong:
#1 Proprietary modules and module interfaces

#2 Limited module selection

#3 Lack of user maintainability and some kind of unexpected lock-in

#4 Lack of, or minimal upgradeability

#5 Form over functional heat management

#6 Pricing that limits purchases to high-end enterprises only

- - -
Extreme Tech: Elon Musk: Tesla Broke in 10 Months Without ‘Hardcore’ Cost Reduction.

Tesla may have just raised $2.7B in additional funding, but the company’s cash burn rate is so high, even that amount won’t keep the lights on for very long. According to CEO Elon Musk, the company is instituting “hardcore” cost-cutting rules and scrutinizing every penny that leaves the firm.["]

- - -
MobileSyrup: Justin Trudeau to launch Digital Charter to combat hate speech and disinformation.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his government will be launching a digital charter in order to combat hate speech and online disinformation.
[.]
“We look forward to working alongside internet companies, but indeed, if they do not choose to act, we will be forced to continue to act in ways that protect Canadians and we will have more to say about the kinds of tools we will be using in the coming weeks and months,” Trudeau said.

Learn To Code Launch Digital Charters.
- - -
Technology.Org: Same computer password for the last 10 years? You might need a vibrating cybernudge.

Researchers say changing human behaviour key to foiling cyberattacks.
[.]
People routinely put off, ignore or forget cyber security measures such as changing passwords, updating privacy settings and locking computer screens.

So..."passwordABC1", "Admin123" and "tHatsHitheadBoss88"...I should change those then...?

Mark Zuckerberg privacy joke gets no laughs.Howard Beale - "Network": as relevant today as in 1976.

Mashable: Zuckerberg joke a slap in the face to Facebook victims.

Most awkward Zuck moments revolve around the CEO's inability to exhibit human emotion. This one comes with a serving of insult, added to injury.

[Zuckerberg] opened Facebook's annual F8 developer conference on Tuesday with a manifesto-ish address about how the future of Facebook is focused on privacy.
[.]
    The moment Mark Zuckerberg tries to make a joke about privacy and nobody laughs: pic.twitter.com/izt7kIhjLz

    — alfred 🆖 (@alfredwkng) April 30, 2019
[.]
"I know that we don't exactly have the strongest reputation on privacy right now, to put it lightly," Mark Zuckerberg joked, amid some understated snorty laughs. Not even the audience — packed with Facebook employees and developers — could muster more than that.

Advisory - NSFW language:

Reference: Howard Beale.

Reference: "Network".

Anne Arundel County Police involved shooting serving an “emergency risk protective order,” aka "Red Flag Order".

This is recently-breaking news and, so far, appears to be legit.

FOX 5 News Baltimore: Man shot being served Red Flag Order.

When officers began to serve [ Gary J.] Willis with the order, he became irate, opened the door to the residence and grabbed the gun according to police. They say, an attempt was made by an officer to take the gun away from Willis when Willis fired the gun.

A second officer fired their service weapon, striking Willis, who was pronounced deceased at the scene.
[.]
The 'red flag' legislation is already law in five states- including California, Connecticut, Indiana, Oregon, and Washington. It has been introduced in 18 states and D.C.

This is an active and ongoing investigation. Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to contact the Homicide Unit at [deleted - D.D.]. Callers wishing to remain anonymous are asked to call the Tip Line at [deleted - D.D.]

This "Red Flag" issue is already getting coverage, Standing By, Zack, and I'm guessing, (among many others), these folks will weigh in on this issue in the days ahead: 90 Miles, Phil, Irish, the GBBL and other fine writers at the Blogroll; see right-hand sidebar.
- - -
Typos fixed; 01/17/2019.

Tech News - Time To Reclaim our Privacy Edition

We will rue the day we voluntarily gave up our privacy to tech devices. And that day already happened. The rue is coming... 

Google Home + Chromecast = hackers discover exact physical location of IOT (Internet of Things). Threat Post:

Google Home and Chromecast devices allow attackers to uncover the precise physical locations of the connected gadgets thanks to two common internet of things issues present in both.
[.]
...an attacker can use DNS rebinding to carry out an attack. This is a technique where JavaScript in a malicious web page is used to communicate with or gain control of a victim router or other target device that uses a default password and web-based administration.

- - -
Geek: MS helping ICE.

...there’s one piece of Microsoft news we’ve been sad to see not get a ton reporting, news that’s not quite new but disturbingly relevant again. In case you didn’t know, Microsoft is supporting ICE[.]

- - -
Beta News: MicroSoft backtracks; distancing itself from ICE collaboration.

...people took to social media to call out Microsoft, making references to the child separation policy; shortly afterwards, the ICE reference was deleted. Now it is back[.]

- - -

Technocracy: DHS is quietly building a database that includes facial recognition, DNA and relationships:

In late May, EFF filed comments criticizing DHS’s plans to collect, store, and share biometric and biographic records it receives from external agencies and to exempt this information from the federal Privacy Act. 

I ask: just how much more personal information do you want DHS to have on you? DHS is out of control.  Biometric Update:

The database will include multiple biometrics, including face images and DNA data, as well as “data from questionable sources, and highly personal data on innocent people." 

Please, please, please - get involved with the EFF.
- - -
MIT Tech Review: It's time to REIGN IN THE DATA BARONS!
- - -
Gizmodo: Alexa in your hotel room.

[You] forget your toothbrush [while on vacation]. [Don't call the front desk, tell Alexa].  Amazon’s new Alexa for Hospitality service, which puts an Echo device in your hotel room, might let you avoid the conversation altogether, and let you bring a bit of your always-on, always-listening, always-spying smart home with you. So don’t do anything stupid.

Yeah - calling the front desk for a toothbrush, or going to the nearest retail store and buying a new tooth brush -- well, it's just such a laborious task for some people. 
- - -
Information Week - Quantum computing needs to be on your radar now:

Quantum computing will bring wonderful advances to our lives, BUT - - - it will also be used for incredibly nefarious purposes.
- - -
Tech News World: Hacking Academia.
- - -
Recall Vault 7 ?  Bleeping Computer:  Ex-CIA Employee Charged with Leak of Classified CIA Vault 7 Hacking Tools 

The Department of Justice has announced new charges against former CIA software engineer Joshua Schulte for allegedly leaking classified CIA documents, software projects, and hacking utilities called Vault 7 to WikiLeaks. Schulte was charged on August 24, 2017 with possession of child pornography, but was also believed to be the source of the embarrassing leak of CIA documents.

- - -
Who OWNS BIG MEDIA?  Recode has a wonderful diagram explaining it all.
- - -
Yep...the  refrain coming is, "Well, everyone else got that 'mark' on their forehead or hand, so why not me?"