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An AI firm harvested billions of photos without consent. Britain is powerless to act

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:31:10 GMT

LONDON — Britain’s top privacy regulator has no power to sanction an American-based AI firm which harvested vast numbers of personal photos for its facial recognition software without users’ consent, a judge has ruled.The New York Times reported in 2020 that Clearview AI had harvested billions of social media images without users’ consent. After the privacy scandal engulfed the company, it withdrew from the U.K. and several other European markets.The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) took action against Clearview last year, alleging it had unlawfully collected the data of British subjects for behavior-monitoring purposes. The firm was slapped with a £7.5 million fine and also ordered to delete the data of U.K. residents from its trove of more than 20 billion facial images.But it’s unclear whether Clearview ever deleted the data. Lawyers have pointed out that the company was under no obligation to purge Brits’ pictures from its database until the appeal was determined — a...

Woman allegedly involved in series of carjackings extradited from Massachusetts to face charges in New Hampshire

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:31:10 GMT

Authorities say a woman alleged to have taken part in multiple carjackings in New Hampshire earlier this month has been extradited to the Granite State to face charges there.The Salem, NH Police Department announced that 40-year-old Jessica Tirone of Newburyport, Mass., was brought to Rockingham County Jail to face charges related to a series of car thefts that took place in October.Tirone was the alleged accomplice of Nathan Saben, 35, who has been accused of using a rifle to steal several vehicles over the span of a week after allegedly fleeing a drug bust in Seabrook, NH, on Sept. 29.The two were taken into custody in Dracut, Mass. on Thursday, Oct. 5, following a pursuit that ended with police tackling Saben on Route 110.According to Salem PD, Tirone was to be arraigned at Rockingham Superior Court on Wednesday on charges that include:Conspiracy to Commit Armed Robbery with a FirearmReceiving Stolen Property over $1,500Possession of a Controlled Drug Schedule 1-4; SubsequentAllo...

Norton police investigating after suspects wielding ‘large knives’ rob convenience store

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:31:10 GMT

Authorities in Norton are investigating after two men armed with knives robbed a convenience store Tuesday night.The Norton Police Department said it was around 8:40 p.m. when officers were called to Michelle’s Corner Store on West Main Street for a reported armed robbery.Speaking with the store clerk, police learned that two suspects described as white males “wielding large knives” entered the store and demanded cash from the employee.According to authorities, no injuries were reported, but the two suspects were able to flee the store on foot with a small amount of cash and cigarettes.Norton PD shared two images of the suspects on their Facebook page and described one as a male wearing black sweatpants, black sneakers with white soles, and a blue hooded sweatshirt.The other suspect was described as wearing camo-style pants with a gray hooded sweatshirt and black backpack.Both men were said to have been wearing “half-face masks” at the time of the robbery.Any...

Fantasy Fixer: Week 7

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:31:10 GMT

7’s Morey Hershgordon has the inside scoop on who to start and sit this week in Fantasy Fixer. Go set your lineups!

Boston city councilor’s description of Hamas attack as ‘massive military operation’ sparks outrage

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:31:10 GMT

Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson’s resolution calling on Boston to declare the Hamas terrorist organization a “militant group” that launched a “massive military operation” in Israel has infuriated some of her council colleagues.Her call for de-escalation and a cease-fire in Israel and “occupied Palestine” was introduced at a Wednesday City Council meeting in response to one filed earlier in the week by Councilor Michael Flaherty, who wanted to condemn “Hamas and their brutal terrorist acts against Israel.”“To call them a militant group that launched a massive military operation is completely absurd and disgusting,” Flaherty told the Herald. “That wasn’t a military operation. That was a terrorist attack — and it was the worst barbaric aggression towards innocent Jews and innocent Jewish people since the Holocaust.”Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada and the European Union.The City Council briefly discussed, but chose not to vote ...

Justin Fields won’t practice with the Chicago Bears today, leaving rookie QB Tyson Bagent in line to make his 1st NFL start

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:31:10 GMT

As expected, Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields will not practice Wednesday as the team continues preparing for Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Soldier Field. That leaves undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent in line to make his first start this week.Fields dislocated the thumb on his throwing hand while being sacked in the third quarter of last week’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings. A timetable for his recovery and return remains cloudy.Coach Matt Eberflus reiterated Wednesday morning that Fields’ reduced grip strength remains the primary issue and the team is monitoring that as the week progresses.Eberflus said the swelling in Fields’ right hand continues to go down, but he didn’t dismiss the possibility of Fields opting to have surgery on the thumb.“I believe we’ll have some clarity later in the week hopefully,” Eberflus said. “Again, nothing is off the table and nothing is on the table with that. We just h...

Woman arrested after trying to get close to Donald Trump at New York civil fraud trial

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:31:10 GMT

By JENNIFER PELTZ and MICHAEL R. SISAK (Associated Press)NEW YORK (AP) — A woman was arrested Wednesday after she stood up at former President Donald Trump’s New York civil fraud trial and walked toward the front of the courtroom where he was sitting.The woman, later identified as a court employee, retreated after a court officer told her to return to her seat. A short time later, officers escorted the woman out of the Manhattan courtroom and arrested her. She was charged with contempt of court for disrupting a court proceeding, state court spokesperson Lucian Chalfen said.Chalfen said the woman had been yelling out to Trump that she wanted to help, though reporters in the courtroom did not hear her raise her voice. She was later heard screaming in the courthouse lobby as officers removed her from the building.“None of the parties were ever in any danger,” Chalfen said.The woman, whom Chalfen did not name, works in a different state courthouse. She has been...

United Airlines rolling out plan that lets passengers in economy class with window seats board first

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:31:10 GMT

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN and DAVID KOENIG (AP Business Writers)United Airlines will start boarding passengers in economy class with window seats first starting next week, a move designed to reduce the time planes spend sitting on the ground.The airline said in an internal memo that it will implement the plan on Oct. 26. The plan – called WILMA, for window, middle and aisle — was tested at several locations and deemed to shave up to two minutes off boarding time.Variations of the WILMA approach have existed for many years.“It spreads people out along the aisle of the airplane so that more people can put their luggage away at the same time. That’s the main thing that speeds up the boarding process,” says Jason Steffen, an associate professor of physics at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, who designed his own boarding model a decade ago.The change will begin with passengers in the fourth boarding group. Customers in first class and business class will se...

Body found as crews respond to brush fire off Interstate 5

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:31:10 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A vegetation fire off Interstate 5 led to the discovery of a dead body Wednesday morning, the Highway California Patrol confirmed to FOX 5.CHP says a call came in around 4:55 a.m. reporting a deceased individual was found in the area of the State Route 905 eastbound connector, near Beyer Boulevard. The southbound I-5 ramp to eastbound SR-905 is blocked as an investigation takes place, said Caltrans. The Tacoyo Avenue off-ramp is also closed due to this investigation.There's no word yet on how long the ramps will be closed. 1 person dead, another wounded in South Bay shooting San Diego Fire-Rescue crews are no longer on the scene.There is no further information at this time. CHP is handing the investigation.This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Lawsuit dropped after school board changes course, adopts Youngkin’s transgender student policy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:31:10 GMT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A Washington-based attorney confirmed Wednesday his firm was dropping litigation it filed last month regarding Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s new policies on transgender students because the school board his firm sued has since adopted guidelines consistent with the governor’s. But the firm could potentially still bring other litigation in districts that are bucking the administration’s guidance, said Charles Cooper of Cooper & Kirk, which is widely known for its work on conservative legal causes.Attorneys from the firm represented two parents who sued the Virginia Beach School Board seeking the enforcement of Youngkin’s policies, which roll back many accommodations for transgender students urged by the previous Democratic administration.The policies have prompted an outcry from LGBTQ advocates and Democratic lawmakers, who say they codify discrimination and could harm an already vulnerable population. Republicans, religious groups and other...