*With files from Samira Balsara*
Australia releases a draft of its Online Privacy Bill that seeks to protect kids from social media, Tesla pulls its latest FSD software due to false collision warnings, and a British-built robot has been released from Egyptian authorities.
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That’s all the tech news that’s trending right now, welcome to Hashtag Trending! It’s Tuesday, October 26 and I’m your host, Tom Li.
Australia’s federal government has released an exposure draft for its Online Privacy Bill to enhance online privacy protection through an expansion of the country’s Privacy Act. The Bill is looking to expand the Privacy Act to allow the government to create a privacy code that regulates social media, data brokers, and large online platforms. According to ZDNet The proposed privacy code would make it mandatory for social media companies to verify the age of users, get parental consent for those under 16 before collecting or disclosing personal information of the child, and prioritize acting in the best interests of children in their approach to handling data. These rules pertain to social media organizations as it has been revealed how damaging social media can be to children’s mental health.
Over the weekend, Tesla pulled its latest version of its Full Self-Driving (FSD) beta software after users complained of false collision warnings among other issues. Tesla has been dealing with constant scrutiny over the safety of its semi-autonomous driving tech. According to an article from Reuters, Tesla vehicles with the latest 10.3 software repeatedly provided Forward Collision Warnings when there was no danger. Some cars also automatically applied brakes for no reason according to users’ social media posts. Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced via Twitter that the company was rolling back to an older version of the software “temporarily.”
And finally, a British-built robot that uses cameras and a robotic arm to make abstract art has been released from Egyptian authorities after it was detained at customs. The robot, named Ai-Da, after Ada Lovelace was seized at the border due to concerns that the robot may have been hiding covert spy tools. According to a BBC article, officials held the robot for 10 days. The creator of the robot said border guards seized Ai-Da because they were suspicious of her modem and later raised issues with her camera. Ai-Da was created in 2019 and her artwork “self-portrait with no self” has been displayed at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
That’s all the tech news that’s trending right now. Hashtag Trending is a part of the ITWC Podcast network. Add us to your Alexa Flash Briefing or your Google Home daily briefing. Make sure to sign up for our Daily IT Wire Newsletter to get all the news that matters directly in your inbox every day. If you have a suggestion or tip, please drop us a line in the comments or via email. Thanks for listening, I’m Tom Li.