Page 24 - aruba-today-20190615

A24 TECHNOLOGY
Saturday 15 June 2019

Hong Kong protesters wary of Chinese surveillance technology

By CHRISTOPHER BODEEN they had most recently vis-
Associated Press ited, including mosques,
HONG KONG (AP) — Young hotels and restaurants.
Hong Kong residents pro- The database appeared to
testing a proposed extra- have been recording peo-
dition law that would al- ple’s movements tracked
low suspects to be sent to by facial recognition tech-
China for trial are seeking nology, logging more than
to safeguard their identities 6.7 million coordinates in
from potential retaliation a span of 24 hours. It illus-
by authorities employing trated how far China has
mass data collection and taken facial recognition
sophisticated facial recog- and served as a reminder
nition technology. of how easily technology
Agnes, a second-year col- companies can leave sup-
lege student who declined posedly private records ex-
to give her surname, said posed to global snoopers.
she donned a face mask Chinese authorities have
as soon as she left a sub- also begun deploying a
way train in the downtown new surveillance tool that
Admiralty district to join uses people’s body shapes
Wednesday’s overnight and how they walk to iden-
protest by pro-democracy tify them, even when their
demonstrators. In this photo taken on Wednesday, June 12, 2019, protesters wear protection gears and use faces are hidden from
“Everybody coming out is umbrellas to shield themselves as they gather near the Legislative Council in Hong Kong. cameras. Already used by
wearing masks because Associated Press police on the streets of Bei-
you don’t know what peo- The semi-autonomous Chi- Attitudes among younger Hong Kong police offi- jing and Shanghai, “gait
ple will do with the informa- nese territory has installed Hong Kong residents such cials on Thursday said they recognition” is part of a
tion,” Agnes said as friends thousands of security cam- as Agnes reflect a growing made 11 arrests among push across China to de-
nodded in agreement. eras but the data is mostly sophistication among gov- Wednesday’s protesters velop artificial intelligence
None of them would give kept private. In mainland ernment critics since mas- and defended their right to and data-driven surveil-
their names, saying they China, the government sive 2014 protests that shut track down those who had lance that is raising concern
worried about how school openly uses the technol- down much of the down- been sent to hospitals for about how far the technol-
authorities would react if ogy to track down people town area in a demand treatment of injuries. ogy will go. “I don’t give it
Hong Kong or China’s cen- considered politically unre- for universal suffrage but Chinese authorities were too much thought,” said
tral government asked for liable, particularly among ultimately fizzled without recently discovered to be Andy Lau, an engineering
information about them. Muslim Uighurs, Tibetans achieving their goals. Since maintaining real-time data professor at a Hong Kong
To further protect their pri- and other minority groups. then, the government has on more than 2.5 million polytechnic who was pass-
vacy, the group was buy- In addition to closed-circuit sentenced many of the people in western China, ing out leaflets calling for
ing single-trip train tickets television cameras spaced leaders of what has be- updated constantly with an end to police attacks
with cash rather than using throughout the city, dozens come known as “Occupy GPS coordinates of their and the resignation of the
their stored-value electron- of television stations and Central” or the “Umbrella precise whereabouts. current Hong Kong gov-
ic cash cards that forward other news outlets have Movement” to prison on Alongside their names, ernment amid a crowd of
information on travel and been broadcasting and vague charges of causing birthdates and places of protesters on a pedestrian
locations to a central re- publishing images of pro- public disturbances or incit- employment, there were bridge opposite the Legis-
pository. testers. ing other people to do so. notes on the places that lative Council. q

Florida law to allow autonomous cars _ when they’re ready

By BRENDAN FARRINGTON state anytime soon. Self- states had passed laws re- to take control of its ro- to law enforcement or that
Associated Press driving vehicles without a lated to autonomous vehi- botaxis in emergencies. the vehicles have a system
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — human operator are large- cles, according to the Na- Las Vegas and other cities in place to report them.
Self-driving vehicles with ly still in the testing stage. tional Conference of State have used autonomous ve- Florida is hoping to siphon
no humans on board will DeSantis and state law- Legislatures. They range hicles with human “safety high-paying technology
be able to operate in Flor- makers said they want to from authorizing testing to drivers” in case of a vehicle jobs away from California,
ida — once they’re finally show that Florida will be allowing the vehicles to op- malfunction. where dozens of compa-
ready for prime time — un- ready when the cars are. erate without humans. Two Florida’s new law will al- nies have already been
der a bill signed Thursday “As soon as companies other states besides Florida low self-driving cars with- testing autonomous ve-
by Gov. Ron DeSantis. are ready to roll them out, that allow people-free ve- out humans on all of the hicles with backup drivers
DeSantis said he hopes to they’ll be able to get onto hicles are Michigan and state’s roads as long as the on public roads for several
use the law to lure compa- our roadways,” said Re- Texas. vehicles meet insurance years.
nies that test and build the publican state Rep. Jason It may be quite some time and safety requirements “With this bill, Florida official-
cars. The measure, which Fischer, who sponsored the before any state sees its outlined in the legislation. It ly has an open-door policy
takes effect July 1, also bill. Fischer called the legis- streets populated by cars requires that owners of au- to autonomous vehicle
opens the door for on-de- lation “the best law in the driven with no human help. tonomous vehicles have a companies and I encour-
mand ride companies such country.” Waymo, an offshoot of minimum of $1 million in in- age them to relocate from
as Lyft and Uber to eventu- “This will allow ultimate flex- Google, had operated a surance coverage, regard- California to Florida,” De-
ally deploy fleets of the ve- ibility for companies,” he very limited program using less of whether the vehicles Santis said before signing
hicles in Florida. That does said. autonomous vehicles with are for personal or com- the legislation at a state-run
not mean, however, that As of March, the most re- no drivers in the Phoenix mercial use. The law also autonomous vehicle test
such cars will appear on cent month for which in- area, but now requires a requires that the owner im- track in the central Florida
public streets around the formation is available, 29 human behind the wheel mediately report crashes city of Auburndale.q