Apple Is Lobbying Against A Bill Aimed At Stopping Forced Labor In China
(Washington Post , Nov 23, 2020)
Apple lobbyists are trying to weaken a bill aimed at preventing forced labor in China, according to two congressional staffers familiar with the matter, highlighting the clash between its business imperatives and its official stance on human rights. The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act would require U.S. companies to guarantee they do not use imprisoned or coerced workers from the predominantly Muslim region of Xinjiang, where academic researchers estimate the Chinese government has placed more than 1 million people into internment camps. Apple is heavily dependent on Chinese manufacturing, and human rights reports have identified instances in which alleged forced Uighur labor has been used in Apple’s supply chain.
Ban Public Real-time Face Biometrics, 4 In 10 Researchers Say In Ethics Survey
(Biometric Update, Nov 23, 2020)
Some face biometrics researchers are deeply concerned about the ethics of activity in the field, while others do not see any problem with academic studies, according to a survey and an accompanying article from Nature on the ethics of facial recognition. Nature surveyed 480 researchers from around the world working in facial recognition, computer vision and artificial intelligence earlier this year. Two-thirds were from Europe and North America.
Digital ID Boosted By Global Organizations And Biometrics Providers, Proposed Legislation
(Biometric Update, Nov 23, 2020)
Biometrics in support of digital ID, and the growing momentum towards digital credentials in general made up the main theme of Biometric Update’s most widely-read news of the week. One set of ICAO digital travel credential specifications have been approved, Mastercard has signed up a telecom, and buguroo has added a Policy Manager to its behavioral biometrics fraud protection, for a few examples. Meanwhile, an ambitious government ID card plan in Uganda and concerns over contracts in South Africa and DRC made headlines, and another round of earnings reports shows the industry preparing for further market growth.
Designed to Deceive: Do These People Look Real to You?
(NY Times, Nov 23, 2020)
The people in this story may look familiar, like ones you’ve seen on Facebook or Twitter or Tinder. But they don’t exist. They were born from the mind of a computer, and the technology behind them is improving at a startling pace.
Congress Is Eyeing Face Recognition, And Companies Want A Say
(Wired, Nov 23, 2020)
MICROSOFT AND IBM sent congratulatory public messages to president-elect Joe Biden this month. Both expressed hope that his administration would ease the nation’s political divisions, and suggested it consider crafting the first federal rules governing face recognition.
China Wants Passenger Tracking System for Global Travel Coronavirus Reset
(Breitbart, Nov 23, 2020)
Chinese Communist President Xi Jinping wants travelers to adopt a global QR code system to help determine their health status and travel “permissions” in a post-coronavirus pandemic travel reset. During the virtual G20 summit on Saturday, Xi called for a coronavirus “global mechanism” which involves international recognition of health certificates in the form of QR codes to allow people to travel freely, according to state media.
Technology Is The New Border Enforcer, And It Discriminates
(Aljazeer, Nov 23, 2020)
Across the globe, an unprecedented number of people are on the move due to conflict, instability, environmental disasters, and poverty. As a result, many countries have started exploring technological solutions for border enforcement, decision-making, and data collection and processing. From drones patrolling the Mediterranean Sea to Big Data projects predicting people’s movement to automated decision-making in immigration applications, governments are justifying these innovations as necessary to maintain border security. However, what they often omit to acknowledge is that these high-risk technological experiments exacerbate systemic racism and discrimination.
Russian Police To Include Both Locals And Foreigners In New Database Of Facial Images, Fingerprints And Genomic Information
(RT, Nov 23, 2020)
Russia's Ministry of Internal Affairs is planning to create a biometric data bank of facial images and fingerprints for both Russians and foreigners, allowing the authorities to identify unknown people more easily. Over the next three years, the department will develop new software, enabling the government to more efficiently store data collected about people inside the country. The agency also noted that such a database would allow quicker identification of dead bodies, if necessary. Speaking to Moscow news agency TASS, a source explained that the database will also include genomic information.
Identity And Access Management Provider BIO-key Partners with Prominic.NET to Provide Advanced, Flexible User Authentication Security for U.S. DoD Agency
(BIO-key, Nov 23, 2020)
Today announced that it has partnered with Prominic.NET, an owner and operator of data centers serving businesses running on HCL Digital Solutions (formerly IBM Collaboration) products, to deploy BIO-key's PortalGuard IAM solution to a U.S. DoD agency. PortalGuard will provide enhanced user access security to the agency’s enterprise applications and data via secure smart card authentication.
