Thursday, May 14, 2020

Facebook and the Folly of Self-Regulation


"Learn how to learn from those you disagree with, or even offend you. See if you can find the truth in what they believe. "
For his 68th birthday, Kevin Kelly (Not Related to Ned) shares 68 bits of unsolicited advice. "Gratitude will unlock all other virtues and is something you can get better at"



Fraudster claimed $70,000 for virus and fire, federal police allege

The western Sydney man is due to face court in July accused of assuming 64 mostly fake identities to make false claims for government benefits this year.

Chekhov, but horny: Why viewers are hooked on Normal People

Normal People is breaking records in the UK, wooing millions worldwide, and has spawned a thirst-trap Instagram account. So what's all the fuss about?
How to Set Your Social Media to Control Who Sees What - Wired: “Social media can bring us together, and even distract us sometimes from our troubles—but it also can expose us to scammers, hackers, and…less than pleasant experiences. Don’t panic though: you can keep the balance towards the positive with just a few common-sense steps, and we have some of the most vital ones below. When it comes to staying safe on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, a lot of it is common sense, with a sprinkling of extra awareness…”


Mr Nev Power listed accelerated depreciation and investment allowances as examples of measures that could be fast-tracked through the national cabinet. By contrast, he said the bold, tax reform blueprint of economist Ken Henry had dated significantly in the 10 years since it was proposed.
"There has been a lot of changes to our business structure and, in some cases, to our tax structure since then," he said. "I think rather than go back to that, I would recommend that we look at those key areas of our tax system and regulation that can give us immediate kicks.
"We should be looking at things like incentivising businesses to invest here in Australia."
Recovery tsar eyes gas, tax and skills to get economy up and running


‘DOING BADLY’

“Everyone is doing badly, but some are doing less badly than others.” That’s how David Lewis, head of the global money-laundering watchdog, describes worldwide efforts to tackle the concealment of money flows. He says governments in 39+ countries are headed “in the right direction but there’s still a long way to go.” Lewis also suggested the global agency needs to change the way it works in order to catch criminals and firms who “operate without regard to borders.”

‘INFODEMIC’ FIGHT

Journalists are scrambling to keep up with the facts and falsehoods connected with the novel coronavirus. The glut of false information has been labeled an “infodemic” by the World Health Organization. “The problem of disinformation has never been as serious as today,” Sara Menafra, Rome-bureau chief for Open, an Italian digital media outlet told us. Just as the virus can spread globally, so can misinformation – one old video shared by an Italian soon accumulated millions of views across the world.

COVERING COVID

In case you missed the latest in our press freedom series! Reporters from around the world share the reality of covering a global pandemic. Journalists from Chile to Hungary told us they were battling secretive governments, restricted movement, and the challenges of connecting with sources too scared to meet. Expect the final installment this Thursday.
Until next week!

ZDNet – “Microsoft rolled out this week a new feature to Office 365 customers to help their IT staff detect and stop “Reply-All email storms.” The term refers to situations when employees use the Reply-All option in mass-mailed emails, such as company-wide notifications. If the number of recipients in the email chain is large, and if multiple employees hit the Reply-All button, then the ensuing event generates massive amounts of traffic that usually slows down or crashes email servers. Such events happen almost all the time, and, at one point or another, a company is going to have email servers go down because of employees participating and amplifying Reply-All storms as a prank…”

Facebook and the Folly of Self-Regulation Wired


The Crisis of a Lifetime (interview) George Soros, Project Syndicate

India releases data-use protocols for its contact-tracing app... after five weeks and 100 million downloads


Papa don't breach: Contracts, personal info on Madonna, Lady Gaga, Elton John, others swiped in celeb law firm 'hack'
The New York Times – Symptom-checking apps and fever-screening cameras promise to keep sick workers at home and hinder the virus. But experts warn they can be inaccurate and violate privacy: “…But as intensified workplace surveillance becomes the new normal, it comes with a hitch: The technology may not do much to keep people safer. Public health experts and bioethicists said it was important for employers to find ways to protect their workers during the pandemic. But they cautioned there was little evidence to suggest that the new tools could accurately determine employees’ health status or contain virus outbreaks, even as they enabled companies to amass private health details on their workers…”
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