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A few months ago, AfroTech announced the launch of the Black Founders Build with Alexa Program’s call for participants. The program is designed by Alexa Startups and the Alexa Fund to amplify Black talent and entrepreneurship and help build the next generation of voice, AI, and ambient experiences with Alexa. We are excited to share that after Amazon reviewed applications from so many incredible Black founders, the following seven North American startups were selected to be part of the Black Founders Build with Alexa 2022 cohort: MYAVANA , One Stop Wellness Inc. , Kiddie Kredit , DOSS Group Inc. , Seam Social Labs , moment.ai , and PayTalk™ Over the course of four months, each startup will build Alexa integrations, receive individualized technology support from the Alexa Startups Solution Architect and Business Development teams, and garner increased visibility through networking events, panel discussions, and demo showcases. Each startup will also have an opportunity to receive up...
It’s never too late to reinvent your career or make a pivot into the technology field. Just ask Dawn Charles, Business Support Specialist at MongoDB. Charles worked as a personal trainer for 12 years before she took an executive assistant position that eventually led to a career in cybersecurity. MongoDB is a database platform that provides the back-end infrastructure used by many popular apps, including the online game Fortnite . It’s an attractive option for tech professionals all over the world, including Black tech professionals who are looking to elevate their career. Charles spoke with AfroTech to share her experience working for MongoDB as a Black tech professional, gave advice on individuals looking to make a career switch and provided tips on how to keep your personal cybersecurity measures up-to-date. How Dawn Charles Made a Career Pivot Charles started working for MongoDB five years ago and has been a crucial part of the success of many departments at the company. When...
A huge concern for many protesters and activists on the frontlines is digital privacy. With law enforcement having access to more surveillance tools, they have the power to use such tools to track protesters and silence their movements. According to Wired , there are two aspects of digital surveillance that people should be mindful of when protesting — data that can be obtained from your cellular device and law enforcement surveillance, which includes wireless interception of text messages tracking tools, and facial recognition. Police have been documented for being violent and aggressive toward civilians during these recent protests and haven’t hesitated to attach or arrest peaceful protesters, so it’s safe to assume any digital evidence they obtain can and will be used against people. The best way for protesters to combat digital surveillance from law enforcement is to use safe practices for devices when participating in demonstrations. Follow the below tips to better equip...
As hospitals all over the country overcrowd with COVID-19 patients, small startups are stepping up to do their part for the community and 4D Healthware happens to be one of them. The Black-owned healthcare startup has developed a monitoring platform to help treat COVID-19 patients at home. The Chicago-based company created a tech-based method using its original software that allows remote monitoring, at-home treatment, and physician and lab supported diagnoses. According to ChicagoInno , the technology equips patients with pulse oximeters — which measure the oxygen levels in the blood — and Wi-Fi-enabled digital tablets programmed with the company’s software to collect biometrics including temperature, oxygen levels, and other vital data. 4D Healthware then uses this data to evaluate and treat patients without forcing them to go to hospitals for treatment, unless in the event of extenuating circumstances. “Healthcare is now recognizing the value of virtually caring for patients,”...
After Facebook introduced “Tag Suggestion” as a default feature, some users began to feel uncomfortable. Facebook’s tagging system works by utilizing facial recognition to analyze images and develop a unique number, or template, for each individual. Although users have the ability to opt-out, Facebook still launched the feature without getting people’s explicit permission. In 2015, Illinois residents filed a class-action lawsuit. Within it, the plaintiffs brought up Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA), which is one of the United States’ most powerful privacy laws. BIPA bars companies from collecting, using, or sharing a person’s biometric information without their informed consent — the plaintiffs argued that Facebook’s tagging system was in violation of the law. Facebook moved the case from Illinois to California, where the company is currently headquartered, and tried to halt the lawsuit. A recent unanimous decision from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San...
You may not always realize it, but your car can hold a lot of information about you. Holding personal contacts, location information and more, essentially makes them “roving computers.” So, how does that impact the fourth amendment? The fourth amendment is what protects you from unreasonable search and seizures. However, there’s a “vehicle exception,” which means police don’t need a warrant to search your car for physical items. Now, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) says that data isn’t covered under that exception. Spurred by the case Mobley v. State in Georgia, the ACLU argued in an amicus brief that “cops cannot conduct warrantless searches of computers — even if that computer happens to be on wheels.” The Mobley case began after a deadly car crash in Georgia. Police took data from the Event Data Recorder — or “black box” — on Mobley’s car in order to figure out his speed before the crash. They used this information to increase the severity of charges against Mobley....
Targeted ads have gotten aggressive to the point where some online users have complained about the amount of data ad agencies and other companies collect from browsers. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) recently drafted a “Do Not Track” Act to combat data tracking and allow users to opt out of having their data tracked by online services. “Big tech companies collect incredible amounts of deeply personal, private data from people without giving them the option to meaningfully consent,” Hawley said to the Verge . “They have gotten incredibly rich by employing creepy surveillance tactics on their users, but too often the extent of this data extraction is only known after a tech company irresponsibly handles the data and leaks it all over the internet.” The act would fine tech companies $1,000 a day per person for knowingly collecting users’ information despite them opting out of having their data shared. Companies that unknowingly tracked user data would pay fines of $50 a day per person. U.S....
On Tuesday, San Francisco officially made history as the first city in the United States to ban government use of facial recognition technology. In a reported 8-to-1 vote , the city’s Board of Supervisors passed the Stop Secret Surveillance Ordinance. The new law restricts all city departments from using facial recognition technology and requires board approval to purchase any new surveillance devices. The Stop Secret Surveillance Ordinance expressed concerns around facial recognition’s potential to exacerbate pre-existing social issues, such as anti-Blackness and over-policing of vulnerable communities. The proposal itself noted that the “propensity for facial recognition technology to endanger civil rights and civil liberties substantially outweighs its purposed benefits”, going on to specifically cite concerns around continuous government monitoring. The coalition supporting the ordinance — made up of civil rights, racial justice, LGBTQ rights, homeless, and immigrants’ rights...
Nelson Management Group — the landlord of the 700-unit Atlantic Plaza towers in Brooklyn — is getting backlash from its tenants now that it wants to use facial recognition technology to approve and deny requests for entry, according to News 4 New York. The group wants to replace tenants’ key fobs with the facial recognition technology, but many tenants feel that it is an invasion of their privacy. A group of 130 tenants are trying to block Nelson from building it, and are now using legal action to do so, according to Patch . “It’s my biometrics, it’s my identity and we don’t want that in anyone’s hands,” Tasliym Francis, a tenant of Atlantic Plaza towers, told News 4. What’s happening in Atlantic Towers goes way beyond people being mad about the invasive nature of having facial recognition technology where they live. Tenants and lawyers are arguing that putting facial recognition tech in Atlantic Plaza is actually a violation of rent stabilization laws, which prohibit landlords from...
For those planning future travels within the European Union, your experience might become a little more interesting. Last week, the European Parliament voted to connect border-control, migration, and law enforcement systems into a database on both EU and non-EU citizens. The Common Identity Repository (CIR) will combine biographical identities, compile biometric data, and make it available to law enforcement and border authorities. In a statement , Rapporteur Jeroen Lenaers said: “Without changing access rights or endangering the data protection rules that govern them, interoperability will ensure faster, more systematic and more complete access to EU information systems for professionals on the ground: police officers, border guards, migration officers and consulate staff members, in order for them to do their job better. Better decisions can be made on the basis of better information.” Generally, biometric data refers to physical characters that can be measured or calculated. In...
From TSA unnecessarily searching Black women’s hair to their profiling of Muslims, airport security can quickly turn from a simple headache into a reminder of your status as an inherent threat. Now, airports are introducing a new, invasive security measure that is raising alarms. Throughout the United States, the US Customs and Border Protection program known as Biometric Exit is in use at departure gates in 17 airports, as reported by CNET . The program uses facial recognition technology to take pictures of people and “verify their identity.” The agency says it only holds onto the photos of citizens “until their identities have been verified” and everyone else’s for 14 days. The photos of every non-U.S. citizen are also sent to the Department of Homeland Security’s Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT), which can store information for 75 years . By 2021 the system will be used to scan 97 percent of all travelers leaving the country, according to CNET. However, facial...
In Florida, the state legislature is considering two bills, known as the Florida Biometric Information Privacy Act, that would introduce new biometric data privacy laws, as reported by Health IT Security . The bills in question, SB 1270 and HB 1153 , were introduced by State Sen. Gary Farmer, Jr. and State Rep. Bobby DuBose, respectively. They’re both meant to establish requirements and restrictions on private businesses for the use, collection, and maintenance of biometric identifiers and biometric information. “The Florida Biometric Information Privacy Act would ensure that all Floridians are notified in writing that their biometric information is being collected and what the process is for the use of those most private identifiers by organizations seeking it,” DuBose said, according to Biometric Update . What’s considered a biometric identifier can vary. Generally, biometrics are physical characteristics that can be measured or calculated. In Florida’s case, biometric identifiers...
This article originally published on February 2, 2019 We are in a world where we’re living out science fiction fantasies of the past. Like Octavia Butler’s 1993 Parable of the Talents predicting President Trump’s Make America Great Again slogan , our biggest tech fears are being realized in real time. No technological advancement is more evident of this than artificial intelligence. As AI develops and becomes more prominent, so have concerns around what purposes those tools will serve. Recently, Trump signed the American Artificial Intelligence (AI) Initiative and critics noted that it made no mention of AI’s social impact. In a 2018 report , AI Now wrote, “This year, we have seen AI amplify large-scale surveillance through techniques that analyze video, audio, images, and social media content across entire populations and identify and target individuals and groups.” It may seem strange that lawmakers would fail to mention the many social issues that come with the development of...