The European Commission is considering measures to impose a temporary ban on facial recognition technologies used by both public and private actors, according to a draft white paper on Artificial Intelligence obtained by EURACTIV. If implemented, the plans could throw current AI projects off course in some EU countries, including Germany's wish to roll out automatic facial recognition at 134 railway stations and 14 airports. France also has plans to establish a legal framework permitting video surveillance systems to be embedded with facial recognition technologies. The Commission paper, which gives an insight into proposals for a European approach to Artificial Intelligence, stipulates that a future regulatory framework could "include a time–limited ban on the use of facial recognition technology in public spaces." The document adds that the "use of facial recognition technology by private or public actors in public spaces would be prohibited for a definite period (e.g. More generally, the draft White Paper, the completed version of which the Commission should publish towards the end of February, features five regulatory options for Artificial Intelligence across the bloc. A Voluntary Labelling framework could consist of a legal instrument whereby developers could "chose to comply, on a voluntary basis, with requirements for ethical and trustworthy artificial intelligence." Should compliance in this area be guaranteed, a'label' of ethical or trustworthy artificial intelligence would be granted, with binding conditions. Option two focuses on a specific area of public concern – the use of artificial intelligence by public authorities – as well as the employment of facial recognition technologies generally. In the former area, the paper states that the EU could adopt an approach akin to the stance taken by Canada in its Directive on Automated Decision Making, which sets out minimum standards for government departments that wish to use an Automated Decision System. As for facial recognition, the Commission document highlights provisions from the EU's General Data Protection Regulation, which give citizens "the right not to be subject of a decision based solely on automated processing, including profiling." In the third area which the Commission is currently priming for regulation, legally binding instruments would apply only "to high–risk applications of artificial intelligence.

The European Union is considering new legally binding requirements for developers of artificial intelligence in an effort to ensure modern technology is developed and used in an ethical way. The EU's executive arm is set to propose the new rules apply to "high-risk sectors," such as healthcare and transport, and suggest the bloc updates safety and liability laws, according to a draft of a so-called "white paper" on artificial intelligence obtained by Bloomberg. The European Commission is due to unveil the paper in mid-February and the final version is likely to change. The paper is part of the EU's broader effort to catch up to the U.S. and China on advancements in AI, but in a way that promotes European values such as user privacy. While some critics have long argued that stringent data protection laws like the EU's could hinder innovation around AI, EU officials say harmonizing rules across the region will boost development.

A new Google artificial intelligence model appears capable of more accurately spotting breast cancer in mammograms than radiologists; Fox News contributor Dr. Manny Alvarez reacts. The Silicon Valley libertarians at Google are spending a lot of money these days to keep the government out of the company's business. But their sudden aversion to government regulation is a newfound religion for Google: the company has been profiting for years off of a sweetheart deal with the government struck in 1996 -- a government subsidy which Google no longer deserves. Blockbuster reporting from the Wall Street Journal reveals that Google is no longer the neutral search platform they have long led consumers to believe they were. "It is not possible for an individual employee or a group of employees to manipulate our search results," Google CEO Sundar Pichai told Congress. "We don't manually intervene on any particular search result."

The conventional tools to ensure cybersecurity are not sufficient in today's world especially in 2020 where using just anti-malware software or login audits will not work at par with rising threats. Organisations need more resources and powerful infrastructure to resist any type of data breach. To enable such strength, they need to embrace AI/ML and automation to fortify their company and company data against malicious intentions. In an interview to Tech Republic, Greg Martin, general manager of the Security Business Unit at Sumo Logic, said, "AI/ML and automation greatly enhance endpoint protection, but where we see the most benefit in the technology is guiding security operations in what exactly to do with those threats once they hit the enterprise. The ever-increasing sophistication and persistence of cybercriminal activity is requiring security operations teams to rethink how they use people, processes, and technology."

The European Commission has revealed it is considering a ban on the use of facial recognition in public areas for up to five years. Regulators want time to work out how to prevent the technology being abused. The technology allows faces captured on CCTV to be checked in real time against watch lists, often compiled by police. Exceptions to the ban could be made for security projects as well as research and development. The Commission set out its plans in an 18-page document, suggesting that new rules will be introduced to bolster existing regulation surrounding privacy and data rights.

We are collecting more data than ever. Organisations gather huge amounts of data, but they don't always know its value. We help them uncover the power and insight hidden in their data, optimising the potential for machine learning, artificial intelligence, and analytics. The time and expertise of our distinguished researchers is available in the form of consultancy, training and events each of which is funded through the work of the Centre. Projects that require greater support can gain access to funding through a Data Analytics Innovation Voucher (DAIV).

NAIROBI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Countries are rapidly developing "killer robots" - machines with artificial intelligence (AI) that independently kill - but are moving at a snail's pace on agreeing global rules over their use in future wars, warn technology and human rights experts. From drones and missiles to tanks and submarines, semi-autonomous weapons systems have been used for decades to eliminate targets in modern day warfare - but they all have human supervision. Nations such as the United States, Russia and Israel are now investing in developing lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS) which can identify, target, and kill a person all on their own - but to date there are no international laws governing their use. "Some kind of human control is necessary ... Only humans can make context-specific judgements of distinction, proportionality and precautions in combat," said Peter Maurer, President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

The European Commission is considering a temporary ban on the use of facial recognition technology, according to a draft proposal for regulating artificial intelligence obtained by Euroactiv. Creating rules to ensure AI is'trustworthy and human' has been an early flagship policy promise of the new Commission, led by president Ursula von der Leyen. But the leaked proposal suggests the EU's executive body is in fact leaning towards tweaks of existing rules and sector/app specific risk-assessments and requirements, rather than anything as firm as blanket sectoral requirements or bans. The leaked Commission white paper floats the idea of a three-to-five-year period in which the use of facial recognition technology could be prohibited in public places -- to give EU lawmakers time to devise ways to assess and manage risks around the use of the technology, such as to people's privacy rights or the risk of discriminatory impacts from biased algorithms. "This would safeguard the rights of individuals, in particular against any possible abuse of the technology," the Commission writes, adding that: "It would be necessary to foresee some exceptions, notably for activities in the context of research and development and for security purposes."

We first learned that it was a missile that took down a Ukrainian airliner over Iran because of this video showing the moment of impact. All 176 people on board were killed. To find out what happened to Flight 752 after it left Tehran airport on Jan. 8, we collected flight data, analyzed witness videos and images of the crash site, to paint the clearest picture yet of that disastrous seven-minute flight. We'll walk you through the evidence, minute by minute, from the plane's takeoff to the moment it crashed. Iran has just launched ballistic missiles at U.S. military targets in Iraq in retaliation for an American drone strike that killed Iranian military leader Qassim Suleimani.

Bloomberg--The European Union is considering new legally binding requirements for developers of artificial intelligence in an effort to ensure modern technology is developed and used in an ethical way. The EU's executive arm is set to propose the new rules apply to "high-risk sectors," such as healthcare and transportation, and suggest the bloc updates safety and liability laws, according to a draft of a so-called "white paper" on artificial intelligence obtained by Bloomberg. The European Commission is expected to unveil the paper in mid-February, and the final version is likely to change. The paper is part of the EU's broader effort to catch up to the U.S. and China on advancements in AI, but in a way that promotes European values such as user privacy. While some critics have long argued that stringent data protection laws like the EU's could hinder innovation around AI, EU officials say harmonizing rules across the region will boost development.