This Week In Digital Trust

In this special episode of This Week in Digital Trust we feature an interview by our friend Jonathan Gadir with Ari Ezra Waldman, a professor of law and computer science and widely published author of "Industry Unbound: The Inside Story of Privacy, Data, and Corporate Power". Jonathan and Professor Waldman discuss the book and a range of related topics including why privacy matters, the limitations of privacy laws and compliance approaches, and ideas for a more outcome-focused approach to privacy.  Links:  Industry Unbound: The Inside Story of Privacy, Data, and Corporate Power How Big Tech Turns Privacy Laws Into Privacy Theater Twitter: Ari Ezra Waldman Twitter: Jonathan Gadir

This week, Arj and Jordan discuss how effective Australia's News Media Bargaining Code has been in addressing power imbalances between publishers and tech platforms. They revisit a favourite topic - the indiscretions of Clearview AI - after yet another ruling against the facial recognition startup. Links: Reset Australia report into News Media Bargaining Code WSJ article about Facebook blocking news pages in Australia ACLU victory over Clearview AI Washington Post article about Clearview AI contacting mothers of dead Russian soldiers  VICE story about Planned Parenthood data 

This week, Arj and Jordan discuss the deeper privacy implications and associations of the US Supreme Court draft opinion seeking to overturn the Roe V Wade precedent. They also explore the significance of a leaked Facebook document that revealed the social media giant has poor visibility and control over the data it holds. Links: Daniel Solove tweet: https://twitter.com/DanielSolove/status/1521712924980613120 IAPP story about privacy implications: https://iapp.org/news/a/leaked-roe-v-wade-opinion-sparks-right-to-privacy-concerns/ VICE story about abortion data: https://www.vice.com/en/article/m7vzjb/location-data-abortion-clinics-safegraph-planned-parenthood VICE story about Facebook: https://www.vice.com/en/article/akvmke/facebook-doesnt-know-what-it-does-with-your-data-or-where-it-goes

This week, Arj and Jordan offer their take on Elon Musk's proposed acquisition of Twitter and his plans to take it private in the name of free speech. They also discuss the growing use of consultants by governments to delivery tech projects, as opposed to the public service.  Links: InnovationAus coverage: https://www.innovationaus.com/regulator-to-closely-watch-twitter-following-musk-takeover/ Senate Inquiry report into undermining of public sector capability and performance: https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/committees/reportsen/024628/toc_pdf/APSIncunderminingpublicsectorcapabilityandperformance.pdf;fileType=application%2Fpdf

This week, Arj and Jordan break down the ideas and arguments behind two big ticket keynote addresses from the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) Global Privacy Summit, which took place on April 12-13 in Washington DC. They discuss how Apple CEO Tim Cook used the opportunity to oppose competition law reform, arguing that Apple's ability to protect its users privacy relies on the maintainence of its App store monopoly. They also dig into what US Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan's address signals about her approach to privacy and competition regulation, and how she'll be pushing for more substantive limits on the ways in which dominant firms condition access to critical technologies. Links: IAPP recording of Tim Cook's keynote - https://iapp.org/news/video/keynote-tim-cook-apple-ceo-iapp-global-privacy-summit-2022/ IAPP coverage of Tim Cook's keynote - https://iapp.org/news/a/apples-tim-cook-protecting-privacy-most-essential-battle-of-our-time/ IAPP coverage of Lina Khan's keynote - https://iapp.org/news/a/ftc-chair-touts-interdisciplinary-approach-to-data-privacy-security/ IAPP recording of Lina Khan's keynote - https://iapp.org/news/video/keynote-lina-khan-chair-of-the-federal-trade-commission-iapp-global-privacy-summit-2022/

This week, Arj and Jordan look at how exemptions in our current privacy regime play a role in the use of microtargeting by political parties in the current Australian election campaign, and the impact of this tactic on democracy. With mixed feelings, they talk once again about notorious facial recognition start-up Clearview AI, which is once again in the press promoting a new use for its technology. Finally, a new report investigating the use of AI in policing in Australia provides some intriguing takeaways for safe and sustainable use of the technology. Links: How political parties are using microtargeting to sway voter choices ahead of the federal election.  https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-04-06/political-parties-leverage-microtargeting-for-federal-election/100958682 The Australian Ad Obervatory https://www.admscentre.org.au/adobservatory/ Artificial intelligence and policing in Australia https://www.aspi.org.au/report/ai_policing_australia Face scanner Clearview AI aims to branch out beyond police https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-technology-business-europe-national-governments-4a4db5b7340792f8a8b08c41c4653f5a FTC Takes Action Against Company Formerly Known as Weight Watchers for Illegally Collecting Kids’ Sensitive Health Data https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/03/ftc-takes-action-against-company-formerly-known-weight-watchers-illegally-collecting-kids-sensitive

This week, Arj and Jordan assess how far the Federal Budget cash splash extends to the realms of cyber security and privacy. They also take a closer look at the underlying reasons hackers managed to get their hands on data of customers of Apple and Meta, and discuss recent investigations into the murky worlds of shadow lobbying and PR by the big tech platforms.

This week, Arj and Jordan dig into why we haven't seen the big cataclysmic cyber war in Ukraine that defence hawks have long warned us to expect. A couple of new AI initiatives also bring to focus conflicting philosophies in how we should think about AI, while a new court action against Meta lays bare the contradictions between Facebook as a "neutral platform" and as a sophisticated data-driven machine capable of precise targeting.

This week, Arj and Jordan dissect Clearview AI's incursion into the war between Ukraine and Russia, as it seeks to further promote its facial recognition technology. The war has also created complications for Meta, particularly in relation to content moderation -  an area that's becoming increasingly topical in Australia as we head towards a Federal election. The guys also get wonky about a couple of new initiatives aimed at bringing more cross-domain coordination to tech policy and regulation in Australia, and the respective merits of each of these ideas.

This week, Arj and Jordan talk about the human impact of law enforcement uses of facial recognition, and check in again on the Social Media (Anti-Trolling) Bill after a damning round of Senate committee hearings. They also cover the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner's (OAIC) current funding challenges and complaints backlog, and talk about why adequate funding for the OAIC is critical, especially now, as other regulators (such as the Australian Competition and Consumer Comission) are becoming more active in the privacy space.