Debt-Limit Deal Clears Congress, Ending Threat of US Default
The Senate passed legislation to suspend the US debt ceiling and impose restraints on government spending through the
2023-06-02 16:56
Galaxy, MGM Are Said to Explore Opening Casinos in Thailand
Two of the world’s top casino operators are laying the groundwork to potentially establish gambling facilities in Thailand
2023-06-02 16:51
BofA Says AI Frenzy Drives Record Inflows Into Tech
The buzz around artificial intelligence has investors pouring a record amount of money into tech stocks, Bank of
2023-06-02 16:49
Airlines Scour Globe for Capacity as Plane Shortage Takes Toll
The massive aircraft deals announced this year — from Air India’s record 470-plane order in February to newcomer
2023-06-02 16:29
Japan privacy watchdog warns ChatGPT-maker OpenAI on user data
By Kantaro Komiya and Sam Nussey TOKYO Japan's privacy watchdog said on Friday it has warned OpenAI, the
2023-06-02 16:19
Pet Drug Maker Strikes £4.5 Billion Buyout Deal: The London Rush
It was only in November last year when Dechra Pharmaceuticals, the pet medicine maker, was a member of
2023-06-02 15:25
Take Five: Almost half-time
The hefty weight of tech megacaps, strange reporting rules for an upcoming OPEC meeting and more pain for
2023-06-02 15:17
California, New York pensions vote against Toyota chairman
By David Dolan and Daniel Leussink TOKYO Two of the largest U.S. public pension systems have voted against
2023-06-02 14:54
EQT Nears Deal for Vet Drugmaker Dechra Pharmaceuticals
EQT AB agreed to buy Dechra Pharmaceuticals Plc for about £4.46 billion ($5.6 billion), negotiating a lower price
2023-06-02 14:50
Analysis-Lufthansa's ITA deal heralds more European airline tie-ups
By Joanna Plucinska and Angelo Amante LONDON/ROME Lufthansa's purchase of a minority stake in Italy's loss-making ITA Airways
2023-06-02 14:18
Amazon staff spied on women in bedrooms and bathrooms through Ring cameras, US officials say
An employee used Amazon’s Ring cameras to spy on female users in their bedrooms and bathrooms, according to US officials. Various staff members used the company’s smart home cameras – intended to allow people to watch their own homes when they are away – to watch people without their knowledge, according to the US Federal Trade Commission. Amazon settled for $5.8 million in this case, which said that one employee had watched 81 female customers and Ring employees through their cameras. The company has been hit by two substantial fines over violating users’ privacy. The other accused of breaching childrens’ rights by failing to delete Alexa recordings, even when requested by their parents, leading to a separate $25 million fine. The FTC is also probing Amazon.com’s $1.7 billion deal to buy iRobot Corp, which was announced in August 2022 in Amazon’s latest push into smart home devices, and has a separate antitrust probe underway into Amazon. Amazon, which purchased Ring in April 2018, pledged to make some changes in its practices. “While we disagree with the FTC’s claims regarding both Alexa and Ring, and deny violating the law, these settlements put these matters behind us,” Amazon.com said in a statement. The FTC said Ring gave employees unrestricted access to customers’ sensitive video data: “As a result of this dangerously overbroad access and lax attitude toward privacy and security, employees and third-party contractors were able to view, download, and transfer customers’ sensitive video data.” In one instance in 2017, an employee of Ring viewed videos made by at least 81 female customers and Ring employees using Ring products. “Undetected by Ring, the employee continued spying for months,” the FTC said. A colleague noticed the misconduct and the employee was eventually terminated, the FTC complaint said. In May 2018, an employee gave information about a customer’s recordings to the person’s ex-husband without consent, the complaint said. In another instance, an employee was found to have given Ring devices to people and then watched their videos without their knowledge, the FTC said. As part of the FTC agreement with Ring, which expires after 20 years, Ring is required to disclose to customers how much access to their data the company and its contractors have. In February 2019, Ring changed its policies so that most Ring employees or contractors could only access a customer’s private video with that person’s consent. FTC Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya told Reuters the settlements should send a message to tech companies that their need to collect data was not an excuse to break the law. “This is a very clear signal to them,” he said. The fines, totaling $30.8 million, represent a fraction of Amazon’s $3.2 billion first-quarter profit. In its complaint against Amazon.com filed in Washington state, the FTC said that it violated rules protecting children’s privacy and rules against deceiving consumers who used Alexa. For example, the FTC complaint says that Amazon told users it would delete voice transcripts and location information upon request, but then failed to do so. “The unlawfully retained voice recordings provided Amazon with a valuable database for training the Alexa algorithm to understand children, benefiting its bottom line at the expense of children’s privacy,” the FTC said. Additional reporting by agencies Read More Twitter’s head of trust and safety resigns from Elon Musk’s platform Mark Zuckerberg reveals new VR headset ahead of Apple AI chatbot taken down after it gives ‘harmful advice’ on eating disorders Twitter’s head of trust and safety resigns from Elon Musk’s platform Mark Zuckerberg reveals new VR headset ahead of Apple AI chatbot taken down after it gives ‘harmful advice’ on eating disorders
2023-06-02 14:18
Half of China Cities Face Debt Service Difficulty, Rhodium Says
Financial stress faced by China’s local governments is limiting fiscal support for the economy’s recovery, with half of
2023-06-02 13:52