surveillance

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On NYC's Labor Day Weekend, a 'Sci-Fi Inspired Scenario'

NYPD says it will deploy surveillance drones to check on too-large holiday gatherings

(Newser) - Americans across the nation are gearing up for their final summer weekend, but for residents of New York City, there may be what the AP calls "an uninvited guest looming over their festivities." The NYPD announced Thursday it will deploy surveillance drones throughout Labor Day weekend to check...

China Is Once Again Busy in the Antarctic

Beijing is building a fifth facility, which is raising surveillance fears

(Newser) - China is back to building in Antarctica. Satellite images from January show new support facilities, temporary buildings, a helicopter pad, and foundations for a main building at the site of the country's fifth Antarctic research station on Inexpressible Island near the Ross Sea. China began building there in 2018...

HOAs' New Favorite Tool: License Plate Readers
HOAs' New Favorite
Tool: License Plate Readers
in case you missed it

HOAs' New Favorite Tool: License Plate Readers

Investigation by 'The Intercept' finds the devices in wide use, often without residents' knowledge

(Newser) - The HOAs are watching us. An investigation by the Intercept reveals that the practice of setting up license plate readers, often without public knowledge, is becoming the norm for homeowners associations throughout the US. The outlet has found more than 200 HOAs around the country that have installed cameras from...

US Hits Back With Blacklist Over Alleged Spy Balloon

Move comes on same day the US shot down unknown object off coast of northern Alaska

(Newser) - The United States has blacklisted six Chinese entities it said were linked to Beijing's aerospace programs as part of its retaliation over an alleged Chinese spy balloon that traversed US airspace. The economic restrictions announced Friday followed the Biden administration's pledge to consider broader efforts to address Chinese...

China: Let's Stay Calm About This Alleged Spy Balloon

It still hasn't confirmed the United States' allegations of the orb floating over Montana

(Newser) - The giant white object spotted drifting over Montana earlier this week is a spy balloon sent by China, at least according to the United States government. China, however, is urging everyone to take a deep breath and not pass judgment "before we have a clear understanding of the facts....

US: China Has a Spy Balloon Over Montana

Biden, Pentagon debate shooting it down

(Newser) - The Pentagon said Thursday it's tracking a surveillance balloon sent by China that's crossing the northern US—bringing another increase in tensions between the two nations. The balloon, described as about the size of three buses, was spotted over Montana on Thursday, ABC News reports, and officials said...

Dutch Judge Backs Worker Told to Keep Webcam on All Day

Court cites human rights decision in ruling against employer

(Newser) - An employee of a US software company, when told to keep his webcam on all day, pointed out that he already was sharing his screen, and that his boss could monitor everything he was doing on his laptop. He argued that being watched on top of that seemed like an...

Reported Secret CIA Program Sees Pushback: 'It Is Not OK'

Edward Snowden, civil rights advocates slam initiative that reportedly scooped up Americans' info

(Newser) - Facebook isn't the only entity you might need to worry about when it comes to your personal data. According to two lawmakers on the Senate Intelligence Committee, the CIA has been secretly scooping up info en masse on Americans, and civil liberties activists aren't happy about it. News...

Ex-Security Worker Alleges 'Extremely Sensitive' Britney Audio

New documentary says dad Jamie Spears had singer's phone, bedroom surveilled

(Newser) - There's a new documentary out on Britney Spears, and this one makes even more damning allegations against her father, Jamie Spears. In the New York Times' investigatory Controlling Britney Spears, released Friday on FX and Hulu , "key insiders" speak about the conservatorship she's been under since 2008,...

Court Rips Baltimore's Aerial Surveillance

Program violated the Fourth Amendment, opinion says

(Newser) - A federal court ruled Thursday that Baltimore's crime-fighting surveillance flights were unconstitutional and that police can't use any of the information gathered by the planes. The judges said the program violated the Fourth Amendment safeguard against illegal searches, the Verge reports. The planes' cameras were intended to record...

Staff Used $1B Startup's Security Cameras to Harass

No one was fired, a move Verkada's CEO defends

(Newser) - A surveillance startup boasting clients including Juul Labs, Red Lobster, and the city of Memphis has come under fire over claims that its own facial recognition system was used to harass female employees. Motherboard and the Verge are out with reports on the behavior at the Silicon Valley headquarters of...

USMS: We Sent a Plane Over Portland to Surveil Protesters

Meanwhile, violent clashes between protesters and federal officers in the Oregon city start up again

(Newser) - Thursday night marked the 84th night of protests in Portland, with clashes between protesters and federal agents once more emerging after weeks of nonviolence. The Oregonian reports that police declared the demonstration in the Oregon city a riot around 11pm local time, with a couple hundred protesters initially gathering around...

'Concerns' Prompt Air Force to Probe Use of Secretive Planes

Aircraft were deployed over DC, Minneapolis protests

(Newser) - The Air Force says its inspector general is investigating the use of Air National Guard reconnaissance aircraft during protests in Minneapolis and Washington, DC. Air Force spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder says the investigation is being conducted after discussions about "shared concerns" with Defense Secretary Mark Esper. The investigation...

IBM: It's Time to Talk About Police Use of Facial Recognition Tech

Company says it will no longer offer the technology

(Newser) - IBM says it is turning away from facial recognition technology—and the company thinks it's time for the country to take a hard look at its use by law enforcement. The company said in a letter to Congress that it will no longer offer, or research, "general purpose"...

Step Outside in This City, Get Recorded Everywhere

Aerial surveillance in Baltimore meant to deter homicides, but irks ACLU, privacy advocates

(Newser) - Starting Friday, the roughly 600,000 people living in Baltimore will be constantly recorded whenever they step out under the open sky. For the next six months, up to three airplanes outfitted with wide-angle cameras will sweep over Baltimore in daytime flights designed to capture movements across about 90% of...

Baltimore Revives Surveillance Flights

Civil liberties groups oppose the pilot program, as they did last time

(Newser) - Starting with a trial run in May, Baltimore will become the first city in the country to use private surveillance planes to battle crime. The announcement reflected a change of heart by the city's police commissioner, the Sun reports, after a lobbying campaign. Michael Harrison had said the program...

Secretive Court Rebukes FBI Over Errors in Russia Probe

Order could lead to surveillance changes

(Newser) - The chief judge of a secretive surveillance court said Tuesday that the FBI provided "unsupported" information when it applied to eavesdrop on a former Trump campaign adviser and directed the bureau to report back by next month on what steps it was taking to fix the problems. The four-page...

Surveillance Balloons Are Floating Over 6 States

Devices being tested can track scores of vehicles at once

(Newser) - The Pentagon is conducting high-altitude surveillance in six Midwestern states, testing a system designed to track vehicles 24/7 regardless of weather conditions. As many as 25 balloons outfitted with radar and video systems are in flight at altitudes as high as 65,000 feet, the Guardian reports. Their 250-mile flight...

This City Could Be First in US to Ban Police Use of Facial Recognition

San Francisco supervisors will vote on bill Tuesday

(Newser) - San Francisco is on track to become the first US city to ban the use of facial recognition by police and other city agencies, reflecting a growing backlash against a technology that's creeping into airports, motor vehicle departments, stores, stadiums, and home security cameras, the AP reports. Government agencies...

With Surveillance Limits Ending, ACLU Sues Everyone

Feds aren't revealing anything about surveillance, suit says

(Newser) - A civil rights group has sued the US government, saying it needs more information about surveillance of Americans' phone and financial records to guide the public debate over what will happen when the law that regulates the scrutiny expires next year, the AP reports. The American Civil Liberties Union sued...

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