Safety
Generative AI makes stuff up. It can be biased. Sometimes it spits out toxic text. So can it be “safe”? Rick Caccia, the CEO of WitnessAI, believes it can. “Securing…
Hinge is adding a “Hidden Words” feature to its app, which will filter out likes with comments containing those phrases or words. It pretty much works like a mute filter…
Algorithms can detect takeoff and landing times, and alert family members when you connect to the network post-landing.
k-ID launches a solution that helps game developers comply with ever-changing child safety regulations
Making a video game successful is already hard. Doing so while complying with the growing number of child safety laws and regulations around the world is an almost insurmountable task.…
If you ask Gemini, Google’s flagship GenAI model, to write deceptive content about the upcoming U.S. presidential election, it will, given the right prompt. Ask about a future Super Bowl…
Most humans learn the skill of deceiving other humans. So can AI models learn the same? Yes, the answer seems — and terrifyingly, they’re exceptionally good at it. A recent…
Companies are increasingly curious about AI and the ways in which it can be used to (potentially) boost productivity. But they’re also wary of the risks. In a recent Workday…
Google Play tightens up rules for Android app developers to require testing, increased app review
Google today is announcing strengthened protections for Android developers publishing apps to its Google Play store. The changes are a part of Google’s broader efforts at keeping low-quality and unsafe…
Snapchat today is announcing a series of new safeguards for its app, aimed at better protecting teen users, similar to other efforts introduced earlier by other social apps, like Facebook…
Pinterest rolls out new teen safety features, including wiping followers from users 15 and under
Pinterest today introduced a series of new safety features aimed at better protecting teens using its service. The features — which include things like private profiles, more control over followers…
Tech nonprofit Garbo announced today it’s ending its formal partnership with Match Group, the dating app giant behind Tinder, Plenty of Fish, Match and other apps. The two companies first…
Featured Article
The other DWI: Driving while immersed
I believe that putting virtual reality headsets in cars will kill people. VR is the most distracting medium ever invented.
New usernames aren’t the only change coming to the popular chat app Discord, now used by 150 million people every month. The company is also testing a suite of parental…
Qualcomm acquires Autotalks to boost Snapdragon’s automotive safety technology, reportedly for $350-400M
Qualcomm’s longer term bet on the automotive sector as a lucrative customer base for its chips and related communications technology is getting a significant push today: The company announced that…
Apple and Google team up on industry spec to make Bluetooth tracking devices, like AirTag, safer
After numerous cases of Bluetooth trackers like Apple’s AirTag being used for stalking or other criminal apps, Apple and Google today released a joint announcement saying they will work together…
After an investigation exposes its dangers, Pinterest announces new safety tools and parental controls
Following last month’s NBC News investigation into Pinterest that exposed how pedophiles had been using the service to curate image boards of young girls, the company on Tuesday announced further…
TikTok introduces a strike system for violations, tests a feature to ‘refresh’ the For You feed
TikTok today is announcing several changes to its service, including what it claims will be increased enforcement against bad actors as well as tests of new user-facing tools that will…
Twitter today dispersed the Trust & Safety Council, which was an advisory group consisting of roughly 100 independent researchers and human rights activists. The group, formed in 2016, gave the…
Ring today announced that local government agencies will be able to have an official presence on the company’s Neighbors app. Beginning with the City of North Port and Pinellas County…
Executives from four of the biggest social media companies testified before the Senate Homeland Security Committee Wednesday, defending their platforms and their respective safety, privacy and moderation failures in recent…
Featured Article
A huge Chinese database of faces and vehicle license plates spilled online
A massive Chinese database storing millions of faces and vehicle license plates was left exposed on the internet for months before it quietly disappeared in August. While its contents might seem unremarkable for China, where facial recognition is routine and state surveillance is ubiquitous, the sheer size of the exposed…
Uber is introducing a new option to its safety toolkit, a section of Uber’s app where users can contact emergency services, report a safety issue to the company, verify rides…
The U.S. government said it will offer up to $10 million for information related to five people believed to be high-ranking members of the notorious Russia-backed Conti ransomware gang. The…
Industrial robots are big, hulking things. They are, at once, designed to operate alongside humans, while also posing potential bodily risk to our soft, fleshy exterior. It’s precisely for this…
Data centers, which drive the apps, websites and services that billions of people use every day, can be hazardous places for the workers that build and maintain them. Workers sometimes…
Behavioral cybersecurity platform CybSafe raises $28M Series B led by Evolution Equity Partners
Last year, U.K. cybersecurity startup CybSafe, a “behavioral security” platform, raised a $7.9 million Series A. This SaaS product with a per-user-based, subscription licensing model has a “behavior-led” platform that…
Today’s cybersecurity landscape requires an agile and data-driven risk management strategy to deal with the ever-expanding third-party attack surface.
Cloaked, a Boston-based startup that allows users to generate unique email addresses and phone numbers when creating online accounts, has secured $25 million in Series A funding. Founded in 2020…
Following suicides and lawsuits, Snapchat restricts apps building on its platform with new policies
After a bullied teen died by suicide, a grieving mother last year sued the platform where the abuse had taken place — Snapchat — for not doing enough to protect…
Lost-item tracker and AirTag competitor Tile is today introducing its first anti-stalking safety feature, called “Scan and Secure.” The technology was first announced in October with a promised arrival date…
