Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton last week <a href="https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/news/releases/paxton-sues-google-its-unauthorized-capture-and-use-biometric-data-and-violation-texans-privacy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">announced</a> a new lawsuit against Google for gathering unauthorized biometric data in violation of Texas law which prohibits companies from the practice.&nbsp;The <a href="https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/images/press/The%20State%20Of%20Texas's%20Petition%20(Google%20Biometrics).pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">complaint</a> alleges the tech giant has been using sophisticated technology to capture and store faces and voiceprints of Google users and non-users, including both adults and children. The alleged purpose is to enhance Google’s technology.&nbsp;“Indeed, all across the state, everyday Texans have become unwitting cash cows being milked by Google for profits,” says the complaint.&nbsp;Aside from privacy concerns, the complaint argues that biometric data is fundamentally different than credit card information, social security numbers, and other data often stored by companies, because “biometric identifiers (like face geometry and voiceprints) form an inherent part of our unique, human identity and cannot be simply erased or replaced when stolen.”&nbsp;One of the ways Google captures this information is through FaceNet, a face-mapping technology which allows Google to identify and group faces together on Google Photos. FaceNet scans and maps the faces of both users and non-users on the app, which has been downloaded over 6 billion times, and stores them “for an unreasonable amount of time.”&nbsp;“When a Texas mother uploads photos of her daughter’s third birthday party to Google Photos, for example, Google captures the face geometry of every child’s face that can be detected in those photographs,” says the lawsuit.&nbsp;“Even more troubling, when the mother uploads video of the birthday party, Google runs facial recognition on every face detected in that video, including the faces of uninvolved bystanders in the park, restaurant, or schoolyard.&nbsp;“And when a grandson drives to Midland to visit his grandmother on Easter and sends a series of photos taken on his Android phone to the family thread, those photos are sent to Google Photos by default, where Google captures grandma’s face geometry.”&nbsp;The practice gets more invasive with Nest Hub Max, the smart home controller Google debuted in 2019. Nest Hub Max is a tablet-sized device which functions as a camera and security camera, makes calls and video calls, and can operate certain house features on voice command. The device also uses facial recognition – all the time.&nbsp;The complaint explains that “the Nest Hub Max’s camera is designed to be a modern Eye of Sauron —constantly watching and waiting to identify a face it knows.” This includes bystanders, people passing in front of the camera, and curious children who stand in front of it.&nbsp;The device also includes Google Assistant, a voice-controlled personal assistant installed in a plethora of Google products. Google Assistant is always listening to every voice it hears so that it can record voices and audio “plus a few seconds before.” Google stores these recordings, including that of children, “indefinitely”.&nbsp;Texas is seeking a temporary injunction to stop Google from capturing these biometric data until a trial outcome.&nbsp;

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Legal News

'Designed to be a modern Eye of Sauron—constantly watching and waiting to identify a face it knows'

Google illegally gathers biometric data on non-consenting individuals, says Texas AG

A British vigilante group known as the “Blade Runners” is receiving widespread support from British taxpayers as it continues to destroy climate surveillance cameras across London.<h2>The ULEZ mandate</h2>By order of London Mayor Sadiq Khan, the city is peppered with ultra-low emission zones (ULEZs), areas accessible only to low-emission vehicles. Cars that do not meet the city’s environmental standards are charged £12.50 ($16) for entering the ULEZ. Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras positioned around the zones read license plates and check them against the vehicles’ make and model in real time. If a vehicle does not meet the environmental threshold, a fine is levied against the car owner.&nbsp;The ULEZ climate mandate has drawn heavy&nbsp;<a href="https://frontline.news/post/london-hundreds-protest-against-climate-mandates">protests</a> from residents, including&nbsp;<a href="https://frontline.news/post/british-veteran-launches-hunger-strike-as-unrest-grows-over-climate-mandates">hunger strikes</a> and refusals to pay fines. Taxpayers have also taken to disabling the ANPR surveillance cameras which Transport for London (TfL), the city’s transportation department, said will be used both for climate and law enforcement.<h2>Taxpayers cheer the ‘Blade Runners’</h2>Since the climate restrictions were expanded last year, the Blade Runners have taken to disabling and destroying hundreds of cameras. Between April and September 2023, Metropolitan Police recorded 200 reports of cameras being stolen and 595 reports of cameras being vandalized.TfL began placing black boxes around ULEZ camera wirings to protect them from being cut, but taxpayers found other ways to disable the cameras — like removing them completely.<div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"> MUST SEE: Blade Runners topple THREE ULEZ cameras in a coordinated strike… The people are fighting back! <a href="https://t.co/Yvr2Xr7Lun">pic.twitter.com/Yvr2Xr7Lun</a>— David Morgan #StayFree (@david_r_morgan) <a href="https://twitter.com/david_r_morgan/status/1802726912050995623?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 17, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>In response, the city&nbsp;<a href="https://frontline.news/post/london-taxpayers-attack-surveillance-vans-in-continued-revolt">deployed</a> mobile surveillance vans mounted with ANPR cameras across London in the hopes of evading attacks, but Blade Runners soon began targeting those as well. Some surveillance vans have been spotted covered in graffiti with their tires slashed, while others have been completely covered in tarp.Last month, 21 cameras were destroyed in the hours after Sadiq Khan was re-elected mayor of London, the&nbsp;Daily Mail&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13538797/Moment-Blade-Runner-uses-power-tool-cut-ULEZ-camera-traffic-light-latest-attack-Sadiq-Khans-hated-scheme.html">reported</a>. Last weekend, Blade Runners used power tools to topple a ULEZ camera and traffic lights to the delight of some fellow taxpayers. In a video that was posted to social media, passing cars can be heard honking in support.The video received over 37,000 likes. Comments on the post were largely supportive, with users writing that, “When tyranny becomes law, rebellion becomes duty,” and “Fair play to them, it's a complete scam that does nothing.”Blade Runner Matt Hardy told the&nbsp;Daily Mail&nbsp;that the Blade Runners are “people pissed off about the tyranny reigning over us and getting out and doing things about it – real votes, real boys here.”<h2>‘These cameras are not about the climate. They are about control’</h2>British actor and influencer Laurence Fox said this week he was just given back his electronic devices by police after being arrested earlier this year for cheering on the Blade Runners:<blockquote>These cameras are not about the climate. They are about control. They are the primary infrastructure for all sorts of things that ideologues like the midget dictator [Sadiq Khan] would like to impose upon us.I can now finally say the word ‘Bladerunners’ again. One of the ridiculous restrictions on free speech imposed by the police.It’s a dreadful shame to see so many of these cameras dying suddenly. I’m not at all thrilled about it. Just because I am smiling like a Cheshire Cat, it doesn’t mean that I am over the moon that these scameras continue to topple in high winds.&nbsp;Vive la résistance!</blockquote><div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">POLICE UPDATE Following 6 coppers bursting into my house earlier this year to arrest me for saying how pleased I was that the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ULEZ?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ULEZ</a> scam was meeting such robust resistance, this morning the <a href="https://twitter.com/metpoliceuk?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@metpoliceuk</a> were ordered by the magistrate to hand back all my devices, including my…— Laurence Fox (@LozzaFox) <a href="https://twitter.com/LozzaFox/status/1803030521095622912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 18, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div> &nbsp;

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Pushback_Resistance

Climate Change

‘Pissed off about the tyranny reigning over us’

British taxpayers cheer vigilante group destroying climate cams

Fisker is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the electric vehicle (EV) company announced Tuesday.<h2>‘Like other companies in the electric vehicle industry’</h2>“Fisker has made incredible progress since our founding, bringing the Ocean SUV to market twice as fast as expected in the auto industry and making good on our promises to deliver the most sustainable vehicle in the world,” a spokesperson <a href="https://assets.ctfassets.net/cghen8gr8e1n/6W19OiEBJDVIFVEmo4feHA/df902c5cb2b067251a300efb0b35f611/Fisker-Filing-FINAL.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">said</a>.The California-based company added it is not the only EV maker that has been struggling to stay in business.“We are proud of our achievements, and we have put thousands of Fisker Ocean SUVs in customers’ hands in both North American [sic] and Europe. But like other companies in the electric vehicle industry, we have faced various market and macroeconomic headwinds that have impacted our ability to operate efficiently. After evaluating all options for our business, we determined that proceeding with a sale of our assets under Chapter 11 is the most viable path forward for the company.”Fisker’s collapse is the latest indication that the EV industry is folding due to sinking demand. Other EV industry players are also cutting their losses as they jump ship.<h2>Hertz</h2>In March, Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr&nbsp;<a href="https://www.motorfinanceonline.com/news/hertz-ceo-resigns-amid-ev-investment-setback/#:~:text=Scherr's%20departure%20coincides%20with%20Hertz's,electric%20vehicle%20(EV)%20rentals">resigned</a> after his bet on EVs cost the car rental giant its biggest quarterly loss since 2020. Hertz had been praised by the Biden administration for its ambition to convert 25% of its fleet to EVs by the end of this year. In January, however, the company announced it would instead be selling its 20,000 EVs — including Teslas — at heavily discounted prices and replacing them with gas-powered cars.<h2>Mercedes-Benz</h2>Mercedes-Benz also recently had to give up its ambition to only sell electric cars by 2030. Instead, EVs are expected to make up only 50% of the German carmaker’s sales over the next decade.<h2>Apple</h2>In February, Apple abandoned its multi-billion dollar effort to create an electric car. Despite being a decade in the works and employing 2,000 people, Project Titan was axed due to falling consumer demand.<h2>Aston Martin</h2>A lack of consumer demand is also partly to blame for Aston Martin&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13138123/Aston-Martin-puts-brakes-new-electric-supercar-2026-bosses-say-drivers-want-engines-throaty-roar.html">placing</a> its battery-operated “supercar” on hold until 2026.“Demand, certainly at an Aston Martin price point, is not what we thought it was going to be two years ago,” said Aston Martin Executive Chairman Lawrence Stroll.&nbsp;<h2>Ford</h2>In December, Ford slashed production of its flagship EV at its assembly plant in Dearborn, Michigan by half. The automaker cut the monthly production quote for the all-electric F-150 Lightning pickup truck from 3,200 units to 1,600 units per month.<h2>Biden administration continues to force EV production</h2>Nevertheless, the Biden administration in March issued new climate mandates aimed at forcing more EV production. The new rules from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) contain tight emissions standards that will&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/epa-electric-vehicles-emissions-limits-climate-biden-e6d581324af51294048df24269b5d20a">require</a> 56% of new vehicle sales to be fully electric by 2032, with an additional 13% required to be hybrids.

car market decline.jpg

US News

Biden administration continues to force EV production

Electric car company files bankruptcy as EV market folds

For the last two years, British authorities have been testing AI-powered emotion recognition cameras on travelers in train stations, according to recently disclosed documents.<h2>What can the cameras see?</h2>In each of eight train stations around the UK, five to seven cameras or sensors scan the passing crowds. Using AI software from Amazon, the cameras use object recognition algorithms to spot criminal activity, trespassing, weapons, wet floors, overcrowding, and overstuffed trash cans.&nbsp;They can also alert authorities when passengers engage in “unusual behavior,” such as shouting, running, smoking, or skateboarding.&nbsp;A combination of existing cameras and newly installed smart cameras are being used for the surveillance project. All are equipped with Amazon’s Rekognition surveillance system.<h2>Emotional recognition</h2>Through a combination of facial and behavioral analyses, the Rekognition software allows officials to also <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/amazon-ai-cameras-emotions-uk-train-passengers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">analyze visitors’ emotions</a>. Internal documents note that the cameras can detect whether a passenger is “happy, sad [or] angry.” They can also recognize passenger satisfaction, which “could be utilized to maximum advertising and retail revenue.”<h2>Anti-social behavior</h2>Authorities can also detect passengers who exhibit “anti-social behaviour,” which&nbsp;<a href="https://www.met.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/asb/asb/antisocial-behaviour/what-is-antisocial-behaviour/">according</a> to London’s Metropolitan Police Service means “behaviour by a person which causes, or is likely to cause, harassment, alarm or distress to persons not of the same household as the person.”<h2>Social distancing, face masks, and demographics</h2>Other&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24757655-usecases_dpas_review_managed_stations?responsive=1&amp;title=1">use cases</a> for the surveillance cameras include detecting whether passengers are keeping to social distancing rules and wearing face masks. The cameras can also scan for demographics by identifying people’s age profiles and “socio-economic classification,” which the documents note can create “revenue opportunities for better targeted advertising and product placement.”<h2>‘Quite a concerning step’</h2>The documents were obtained by Big Brother Watch, a civil rights and government watchdog group, in response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request. Network Rail, a body within the Department of Transportation which manages most of the country’s train network, has been overseeing the surveillance project.&nbsp;“The rollout and normalization of AI surveillance in these public spaces, without much consultation and conversation, is quite a concerning step,” Jake Hurfurt, head of research and investigations at Big Brother Watch,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wired.com/story/amazon-ai-cameras-emotions-uk-train-passengers/">told</a> Wired.As of now, the surveillance systems do not use facial recognition technology, which analyzes faces and matches them against facial images stored in certain databases.

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surveillance

World News

Cameras can also detect 'anti-social behavior,' social distancing

UK tests emotion recognition cameras in train stations

The European Union (EU) is considering subjecting foreign travelers to lie detector tests administered by AI technology.&nbsp;<h2>How would it work?</h2>Authorities at airports and ferry ports would use cameras equipped with machine-learning software to detect whether a person is being untruthful. As travelers fill out their entry applications, their eye, facial, and behavioral movements would be analyzed. If the camera indicates the traveler is lying, the software will send an alert to an immigration officer who will investigate.The technology has already been successfully tested in trials conducted by EU countries in the last few years. iBorderCtrl and TRESPASS, two such trials, explored how to create an automated border control system. Several features were tested, including the lie detector tests described above. They also piloted a feature in which AI software scans the social media accounts of travelers before granting them entry.Critics of the lie-detection scheme include Patrick Breyer, a German MEP. Breyer&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13534215/Outrage-British-tourists-going-away-EU-countries-face-lie-detector-test-carried-artificial-intelligence-granted-entry.html">told</a> The Mail on Sunday that the technology is “pseudoscience” that threatens to profile the wrong people.&nbsp;“It will discriminate against anyone who is disabled or who has an anxious personality. It will not work,” said Breyer.<h2>Part of the Entry-Exit System</h2>If the EU decides to implement AI-powered lie detection, it will likely be introduced as part of the new Entry-Exit System (EES) due to take effect on October 6th. EES will replace the passport-stamping process by having foreign travelers apply for entry through self-service kiosks. These kiosks will collect the travelers’ biometric data, including their fingerprints and facial images.These data will eventually be stored in the Common Identity Repository (CIR), a massive database being built by the EU. The CIR will be capable of storing biometric files on 300 million individuals.&nbsp;<h2>EES for outsiders, digital ID for insiders</h2>While the EU prepares to roll out the EES for foreigners, including British citizens, it is also rolling out a digital ID program for EU citizens .Regulations that took effect last month&nbsp;<a href="https://frontline.news/post/europe-launches-digital-id-scheme/">require</a> EU&nbsp;Member States in the European Union to provide a digital ID wallet to their citizens by 2026 which must conform to the European Union Digital Identity (EUDI) wallet specifications. These specifications include the ability to store a taxpayer’s identity papers, such as driver’s licenses, health insurance cards, diplomas and other official documents.&nbsp;&nbsp;<h2>How will the wallet be used?</h2>The digital wallet will allow access to both public and private services. Uses include making payments, opening a bank account, getting prescriptions, signing contracts, traveling, accessing government services, receiving social security benefits, logging into social media accounts, and more.&nbsp;“It can also be used to facilitate the freedom of movement by storing documents such as the European Health Insurance Card,” explains the European Commission (EC) on its&nbsp;<a href="https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/eudi-wallet-implementation">website</a>.Under the current rules, the EUDI wallet will be optional for taxpayers.&nbsp;<h2>Critics raise concerns about the wallet</h2>The EUDI wallet’s main selling point is that users will be able to share only the details necessary to authenticate themselves for a given service. All other personal information will remain hidden. The EC expects this feature to satisfy widespread privacy concerns.But concerns about the wallet remain. The main worry is that while users only share those details that are necessary, the government can decide at any point which information is “necessary” to share. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, the European Commission made proof of vaccination necessary to access services and establishments. Prior to that, each taxpayer’s health information was considered confidential.

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Technology could be introduced with new biometric entry system

Europe may subject travelers to lie detector tests

Google illegally gathers biometric data on non-consenting individuals, says Texas AG

'Designed to be a modern Eye of Sauron—constantly watching and waiting to identify a face it knows'

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British taxpayers cheer vigilante group destroying climate cams

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UK tests emotion recognition cameras in train stations

Europe may subject travelers to lie detector tests