Weekly Roundup: Friday, 7 July, 2017
Here are some links I thought were worth sharing this week:
TRANSPORT
Just Like Bob Dylan, Volvo Is Going Electric
Volvo this week announced that from 2019 all of its cars will no longer be "solely combustion engine-powered car”. This appears to be a rather obvious trend and having a big press announcement about it looks like a pure piece or marketing. The article does make a good point about the transitional nature of the hybrid car, "the plug-in hybrid era probably won’t last too long. From a cost perspective, it’s a bit daft to have both an electric motor and a combustion engine in the car.".
DATA PRIVACY
Google DeepMind partnership with UK’s National Health Service ruled to be illegal
"The UK’s privacy body, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), has ruled that a research partnership arrangement between Google DeepMind and the National Health Service (NHS) was illegal". "Some 1.6 million patient records were shared with Google in an attempt to use AI to predict which patients would be at risk from kidney damage. While the initiative was well-intentioned, it was suggested back in May that the legal basis for the data-sharing was ‘inappropriate.’ The ICO has today found that it was in fact illegal.".
Before You Hit 'Submit,' This Company Has Already Logged Your Personal Data
This is a good piece of reporting from Gizmodo looking at how web sites capture your data from forms even before you submit them. They specifically look at a company called NaviStone "that advertises its ability to unmask anonymous website visitors and figure out their home addresses". "Businesses seem to be doing all they can to strip away consumers’ ability to anonymously browse the Web, sacrificing privacy at the altar of commerce. And it’s illustrative of the way your sense of control online can be an illusion, the “submit” feature becoming just another placebo button."
Facebook can track your browsing even after you've logged out, judge says
The most interesting things about this piece is the Guardian's headline versus the content of the article and the judgement being referred to. "A judge has dismissed a lawsuit accusing Facebook of tracking users’ web browsing activity even after they logged out of the social networking site."