This week:
3 – Did Australia just ban children from using YouTube?
2 – Charity fined for destroying irreplaceable documents.
1 – Why Artificial Intelligence regulation feels like Thelma & Louise.
3 – Did Australia just ban children from using YouTube?
“The Australian government has confirmed video-sharing platform YouTube will be included in the upcoming social media ban for children aged 16 and under.”
Source: TheConversation.com (via ASPI)
What’s the story?
Australia is planning to ban YouTube accounts for children under 16, aligning with similar bans on platforms like Instagram and TikTok. The change comes after the eSafety Commissioner found high harm exposure on YouTube. Despite YouTube’s arguments about its educational role, the government determined that account-based features and recommendation algorithms pose enough risk to justify inclusion.
TheConversation.com asked 5 experts what they thought about ban. Only 1 agreed with it. Many pointed out the risks of children going to less well-known sites to learn about the world, exposing them to more extreme versions of the ‘reality’ that’s presented in mainstream platforms like YouTube.
So what?
This only bans children from having YouTube accounts. It doesn’t prevent ‘general’ YouTube access as a logged-out user.
This is great news for any children addicted to watching endless YouTube Shorts videos about Minecraft and Lego.
But not such great news for the adults who have to listen to the endless noise of these videos!
2 – Charity fined for destroying irreplaceable documents.
“Whilst we acknowledge the important work charities do, they are not above the law and by issuing and publicising this proportionate fine we aim to promote compliance, remind all organisations of the requirement to take data protection seriously and ultimately deter them from making similar mistakes.”
Source: DPN Network
What’s the story?
The UK Information Commissioner’s Office has imposed an £18,000 fine on a Scottish adoption support charity, after it destroyed around 4,800 personal records, including irreplaceable handwritten letters and photographs.
The records were destroyed when the charity ran out of space for their filing cabinets. While the Board approved the destruction of ‘replaceable‘ records, irreplaceable records (such as handwritten letters and photographs) were included in the clear out.
It took 2 years for the issue to be reported to the data protection regulator.
So what?
As the regulator states, charities do important work. But they are not above the law and must take data protection seriously.
(PS I’ve been helping a number of charities in recent months to assess and improve their information security and data protection measures in ways that don’t break the bank. If you need help, you know where I am.)
1 – Why Artificial Intelligence regulation feels like Thelma & Louise.
“Around the globe, everyone is talking about artificial intelligence [..] We should change the name [..] Because it’s not artificial, it’s genius. It’s pure genius.”
Source: CBS News
What’s the story?
According to this CBS News article, these are the words of the US President as he unveiled his administration’s plan to speed up the development and adoption of “this groundbreaking technology that will determine so much about the future of civilization itself”.
The White House’s plan emphasises deregulation and removes what the administration calls “red tape” for AI development. It also states the need for safeguards against ‘Woke AI’.
The plan does not address growing concerns about the privacy risks and environmental impact of our growing use of AI, nor the small matter of the existential risks to humanity posed by these ‘Genius’ technologies.
So what?
To understand the diverging world view of USA vs Europe, we can compare and contrast the US Administration’s plans against the EU’s AI Act.
One feels like being a backseat passenger in the final scene of ‘Thelma & Louise’.
The other feels like walking alongside Thelma & Louise today, if they hadn’t decided to drive their car in a particular direction 30+ years ago!