Technology

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36160327

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• Hackernews.

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36128488

In the face of intense public opposition, the city’s Chamber of Commerce has gone to unusual lengths to promote Musk’s xAI facility: sending out a mailer, for the first time in recent memory, that includes misleading facts.

cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/44609842

Oliver Thomas withdraws controversial facial recognition ordinance in New Orleans — for now BY SARAH RAVITS 31 mins ago

New Orleans City Council member and mayoral candidate Oliver Thomas Aug. 21 quietly withdrew, at least for now, a controversial ordinance granting police the authority to use facial recognition technology to spy on people in public.

The decision has drawn cautious optimism from civil rights groups, though Thomas could bring the ordinance up again as soon as Sept. 11.

If passed, the ordinance would authorize the use of facial recognition technology for real-time surveillance by the New Orleans Police Department or a third-party operator. New Orleans would be the first U.S. city to implement this type of program.

Thomas, who co-sponsored the ordinance with Eugene Green, told Gambit he withdrew it from yesterday’s meeting to allow NOPD “to make edits” on the measure.

**But opponents of the ordinance said there are no changes that would resolve their concerns over civil rights and privacy concerns. **

“There are no edits or modifications that could make this proposal safe. It needs to be taken off the table entirely, forever,” said Rachel Taber, an organizer with Union Migrante, a group that supports immigrants’ rights.

Green and Thomas have argued the ordinance would help NOPD stop crime more efficiently and aid in other investigations, particularly focused on violence, sexual assault and illegal drugs.

But opponents of the bill have sounded the alarm over potential civil rights violations, pointing out that a real-time surveillance system of this caliber could easily be used by law enforcement or third parties to target and monitor marginalized communities including immigrants and people of color — regardless of criminal activity.

It could also track LGBTQ activity and monitor people seeking reproductive health care.

While the ordinance does specifically prohibit the NOPD from targeting immigrants, women seeking reproductive health care and LGBTQ people, those restrictions would almost certainly be trumped by state law requiring NOPD to comply with agencies like the Louisiana State Police and federal law enforcement — which, among other things, are currently targeting immigrants for kidnappings and detention.

Taber also pointed to the already-robust private surveillance all over the city that NOPD and other law enforcement agencies can access, if needed.

“If a crime occurs, as is, they can subpoena evidence from nearby cameras,” she said. “No one needs 24/7 access to all faces and license plates all the time, everywhere, without cause.”

In closed beta. Wonder how it will affect the Fediverse?

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36131552

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36116640

Source Press Gazette.

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36118899

Republished here under Public Domain.

Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson sent letters today to more than a dozen prominent technology companies reminding them of their obligations to protect the privacy and data security of American consumers despite pressure from foreign governments to weaken such protections. He also warned them that censoring Americans at the behest of foreign powers might violate the law.

The letters were sent to companies that provide cloud computing, data security, social media, messaging apps and other services and include: Akamai, Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Cloudflare, Discord, GoDaddy, Meta, Microsoft, Signal, Snap, Slack and X.

The letters noted that companies might feel pressured to censor and weaken data security protections for Americans in response to the laws, demands, or expected demands of foreign powers. These laws include the European Union’s Digital Services Act and the United Kingdom’s Online Safety Act, which incentivize tech companies to censor worldwide speech, and the UK’s Investigatory Powers Act, which can require companies to weaken their encryption measures to enable UK law enforcement to access data stored by users.

“I am concerned that these actions by foreign powers to impose censorship and weaken end-to-end encryption will erode Americans’ freedoms and subject them to myriad harms, such as surveillance by foreign governments and an increased risk of identity theft and fraud,” Chairman Ferguson wrote.

The letter noted that as companies consider how to comply with foreign laws and demands, they are still required to comply with the FTC Act’s prohibition against unfair and deceptive practices in the marketplace. For example, if a company promises consumers that it encrypts or secures online communications but then adopts weaker security in response to demands from a foreign government, such an action could be considered a deceptive practice under the FTC Act, the letter noted.

The FTC has brought dozens of cases over the past two decades against companies that have failed to keep their promises to consumers to deploy reasonable safeguards to protect consumer data.

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36118716

Context

Wikipedia.

Max (stylized in all uppercase; Russian: Макс, [ˈmaks] MAKS) is a Russian messenger released by VK in 2025. As of July 2025, it is in beta-testing stage. By analogy with the Chinese platform WeChat, a universal mobile application ("superapp") is being developed on the basis of Max, which allows, in addition to using the functions of the messenger, to also receive electronic Gosuslugi, verify identity through a digital ID, use a strengthened electronic signature, and also make payments.

Russia’s new state-backed messaging app Max will come pre-installed on all devices sold in the country starting on Sept. 1, the government announced Thursday.

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36118454

Raphael Graven, 46, died on Monday during a days-long broadcast on the streaming platform Kick

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36069490

Research.

The diamond sensor works by detecting magnetic tracer fluid (iron oxide nanoparticles) that is introduced into the patient during or before breast cancer surgery. The tracer fluid is injected into the tumour and then travels to the lymph nodes alongside metastasized cancer cells. A magnetic field sensor based on a diamond can then locate the tracer fluid and pinpoint the lymph nodes to be surgically removed to stop the cancer spread.

Its compact design is achieved by using a tiny diamond (0.5 mm3) and a small permanent magnet that is attached to the probe head. This eliminates the need for bulky electronics allowing for a handheld versatile tool.

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36083939

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36081990

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36089101

The Office of Defects Investigation (“ODI”) has identified numerous incident reports submitted by Tesla, Inc. (“Tesla”) in response to Standing General Order 2021-01 (the “SGO”), in which the reported crashes occurred several months or more before the dates of the reports. The majority of these reports involved crashes in which the Standing General Order in place at the time required a report to be submitted within one or five days of Tesla receiving notice of the crash. When the reports were submitted, Tesla submitted them in one of two ways. Many of the reports were submitted as part of a single batch, while others were submitted on a rolling basis.  

Preliminary engagement between ODI and Tesla on the issue indicates that the timing of the reports was due to an issue with Tesla’s data collection, which, according to Tesla, has now been fixed. NHTSA is opening this Audit Query, a standard process for reviewing compliance with legal requirements, to evaluate the cause of the potential delays in reporting, the scope of any such delays, and the mitigations that Tesla has developed to address them. As part of this review, NHTSA will assess whether any reports of prior incidents remain outstanding and whether the reports that were submitted include all of the required and available data.

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/36092597