CURRENT UPDATES ON AI, PRIVACY & BIG DATA NEWS
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CURRENT UPDATES
ON AI, PRIVACY &
BIG DATA NEWS
TRUMP BANNED US TRANSACTIONS
KANSAS’ GOP DEBATES CONTACT
WITH EIGHT CHINESE APPS
TRACING PRIVACY RIGHTS IN
INCLUDING ALIPAY
PREPARATION FOR REWRITING LAW
US President Trump signed an executive order
Republican legislators and Kansas’ GOP
on Jan 5 barring transactions with eight
attorney general views privacy as key, while
Chinese software apps, escalating tensions
legislators prepare to make a decision whether
with Beijing two weeks before the inauguration
to rewrite a law that gives COVID-19 exposed
of Biden. The move aims to curb the threat to
individuals the rights to refuse to disclose their
Americans posed by Chinese apps, which
close contacts to public health officials.
have huge user bases and access to private
Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly wants lawmakers
data. The order stated that the US must take
to rewrite the law legislated in 2020, contending
aggressive action against Chinese app
that provisions permitting individuals to opt-out
developers to safeguard national security. The
of contact tracing were purposeless. Several
Department of Commerce has to ban
health officials say the law is obstructing efforts
transactions within 45 days and is currently
to trace new COVID-19 cases to their source
targeting QQ Wallet and WeChat Pay. By
and caution others who may have been
having access to personal electronic devices,
infected. Attorney General Derek Schmidt and
Chinese connected software apps can collect
Republicans in the GOP-regulated congress are
massive data from users, including sensitive
not ruling out changes, but some said they
personal information and confidential data.
want to ensure that people’s privacy is still
Such data collection would allow China to
safeguarded. The law was adopted for the
track the whereabouts of federal workers. The
pandemic and expires on May 1, forcing
order may amplify tensions between Beijing
lawmakers to review it during the annual 90-day
and Washington, who have been in bitter
legislative session. The renewed debate over
conflict over the origins of COVID-19 and a
privacy arises as Republicans are preparing to
Hong Kong crackdown.
reclaim the governor’s office in 2022.
PUBLISHED JAN 6, 2021
PUBLISHED ON JAN 8, 2021 SOURCE: EURACTIV
SOURCE: IAPP LINK: https://www.euractiv.com/section/china/news/trump-bars-
LINK: https://iapp.org/news/a/a-roundup-of-us-contact-tracing-notes/ us-transactions-with-eight-chinese-apps-including-alipay/
TECH CHIEF IMPLEMENTS 50-50 CMA TO INVESTIGATE GOOGLE’S
GENDER POLICY IN HER AI COMPANY PRIVACY SANDBOX BROWSER
CHANGES
Ashwini Asokan, the founder of an AI company,
said implementing a fifty-fifty gender policy was a The Competition and Markets Authority
challenge but it is absurd to believe there is no (CMA) has launched an investigation into
pipeline of women in the tech industry. Ms. Google’s proposals to abolish third-party
Asokan decided that diversity was going to be the cookies and other features from its Chrome
crucial factor in the success of her AI start-up, browser. The investigation will evaluate if the
Mad Street Den. Ms. Asokan had no doubts about proposals could cause advertising spend to
implementing the gender policy, although she knew become overly-concentrated on Google’s
that it was a radical approach in the male- ecosystem, at their competitors’ expense.
dominated tech sector, she believes that diversity Google follows complaints of anticompetitive
is vital to break the suppression of AI's application behaviour and requests for the CMA to
and development caused by tech companies such ensure that it develops its proposals in a
as Facebook and Google. In Dec 2020, the way that does not misrepresent competition.
debate over diversity in AI blew up when Timnit Google’s proclaimed changes, known as the
Gebru, ex co-leader of the AI ethics team at ‘Privacy Sandbox’ project would oust third-
Google, said she was sacked after raising party cookies on the Chrome and Chromium-
concerns about minority hiring and biases built into based browsers and replace them with new
their AI systems. She also alleged that there was tools to target advertising as well as other
no accountability at Google on recruiting female features that the company claims will defend
employees and that they were silencing consumers’ privacy to a larger extent. The
marginalised voices. Ms. Asokan faced similar project is already in progress, but Google’s
struggles at the start when she had difficulties final proposals have yet to be settled or
meeting her quota of female workers. Today, 50 enforced. In its recent market research in
percent of her start-up’s employees consist of digital advertising, the CMA underlined
females, including the management level where several concerns regarding Google’s potential
positions were traditionally male-dominated. Ms. impacts which include compromising the
Asokan worries that AI is not being responsibly ability of publishers to generate revenue and
developed as it is non-inclusive and promises to undermining competition in digital advertising,
push for diversity. She says creating a world which will strengthen Google’s dominant
where all industries can benefit from AI would only market position.
be possible if people become active creators of AI.
PUBLISHED ON JAN 8, 2021
PUBLISHED ON JAN 10, 2021 SOURCE: IAPP
SOURCE: FINANCIAL TIMES LINK: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-to-investigate-
LINK: https://www.ft.com/content/6e178d8b-0080-4879-add4- google-s-privacy-sandbox-browser-
51882ce0c3a3 changeshttps://iapp.org/news/a/cma-to-investigate-impact-of-
googles-privacy-sandbox/S. AFRICA’S PLANS TO COLLECT
DETAILED BIOMETRICS OF
NEWBORNS RAISE PRIVACY
CONCERNS
HOW VALID IS THE CATCHPHRASE
S. Africa has drafted a new policy to record
OF 2020: “F*** THE ALGORITHM!”?
biometric data, such as iris patterns, hands,
High-profile algorithmic fiascos last year, such feet and ears, of every newborn child and to
as British students’ A-levels grades being link the data to parents’ identity numbers.
unfairly predicted by algorithms or the About 10% of the approximately 1 million
Stanford Medical Centre staff facing unjust babies born every year are not registered at
vaccination priorities pre-determined by birth, which in turn affects the provision of
algorithms, sparked mass anger as many services since children without birth certificates
people witnessed power being exercised by risk exclusion from education and healthcare.
an algorithm for the first time. However, these The new registration system is also aimed at
fears are based on a fallacy, since an preventing corrupt authorities from selling
algorithm is no more than a tool and has no fraudulent birth certificates to foreigners trying
agency by itself. Whether algorithms lead to to obtain citizenship illegally. Although
positive or negative outcomes depends on the governments are required to have digital
humans who create these algorithms, and registers of the population to deliver services,
they should be held legally and morally the threat to privacy is especially critical in S.
accountable. Researchers and regulators Africa where crucial elements of its Protection
should divert more attention to the data of Personal Information Act, aimed at
deployed in AI systems, since partial data protecting data held by governmental
sets can result in AI systems that further agencies, have yet to be enacted.
entrench social inequities. Although companies Furthermore, S. Africa has been vulnerable to
vow to take data discrimination issues severe cyberattacks in the past. Digital identity
seriously, it remains difficult for outsiders to systems are complex and require serious
judge how far they actually integrate ethical oversight, which has led to S. African digital
codes into their design processes. If rights activists questioning if vast databases of
companies fail to convince the public, we can every child’s biometrics might be the best
expect increasing pressure for tighter solution to combat identity theft.
regulation and for algorithms to be testable PUBLISHED ON JAN 8, 2021
and contestable in Court. SOURCE: REUTERS
LINK: https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN29C2UL
PUBLISHED ON DEC 30, 2020
SOURCE: FINANCIAL TIMES
LINK: https://www.ft.com/content/2b7e06c2-edd0-477c-b345-
45eef2851e2dWHATSAPP’S NEW PRIVACY ONLINE LENDING APP INDUSTRY IN
TERMS REQUIRE USERS TO INDIA ATTRACTS SCRUTINY FOR
SHARE DATA WITH FACEBOOK POLICY VIOLATIONS
WhatsApp users would have received a The recent surge in smartphone usage and
notification requiring them to accept its inexpensive mobile internet in India has led to
updated Privacy policy or no longer have the proliferation of hundreds of online lending
access to the messenger app from February apps on the country’s Google Play Store.
8 onwards. Previously, users could opt to Unfortunately, the rapid developments in
not share their WhatsApp account details technology have outpaced regulatory initiatives
with Facebook, but under the new privacy needed to protect vulnerable borrowers. At
terms, they do not have a choice. WhatsApp least 10 lending apps, which have been
account information shared with Facebook downloaded millions of times, have violated
and its partners consist of the user’s phone Google’s policies on loan repayment lengths.
number, status messages, profile name and They have also demanded exorbitant lending
picture, app logs as well as IP address. fees, charging interest rates up to 60 percent a
Facebook account information shared with week. Inflated processing fees, short tenures
partner companies include account and steep penalty charges are predatory
registration information, such as the user’s practices that can lead people into a debt trap.
name and phone number, transactional data, These apps have also garnered the attention of
information on how the user interacts with the police who have received several reports of
other accounts including businesses, IP borrowers’ suicides after they and their families
address and additional information that is were allegedly harassed by debt-recovery
specified under ‘Information We Collect’ in agents. Despite debt-recovery harassment being
the privacy statement. According to illegal, Reuters found that nearly all of the top-
WhatsApp, information is shared between 50 lending apps require borrowers to grant
them to improve, customise and better them access to phone contacts, where agents
market their services as well as Facebook exploit borrowers’ contact list to repeatedly call
Company products to their users. Users and pester their family and friends, demanding
would have to switch to alternative repayment.
messaging apps, such as Telegram or PUBLISHED ON JAN 11, 2021
Signal, if they do not accept these terms. SOURCE: REUTERS
LINK: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-google-apps-
PUBLISHED ON JAN 8, 2021 insight/some-lending-apps-thrive-on-indias-google-play-despite-
SOURCE: TECHRADAR policy-violations-idUSKBN29F0PC
LINK: https://www.techradar.com/sg/news/whatsapps-new-
privacy-policy-requires-you-to-share-data-with-facebookYou can also read
