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Flock Reportedly Tried to Turn Uber Drivers Into Mobile Snitches
                Flock Safety’s automatic license plate reader cameras have become targets of public ire and, increasingly, vandalism, with people stealing or destroying them in the dead of night. The company at one point had a plan to keep its eyes open in a way that would be harder to detect, according to 404 Media: by equipping dashcams on rideshare and delivery vehicles with the ability to scan plates while on the road. In a pitch presentation apparently prepared for the Georgia Office of the Attorney General, Flock reportedly talked up a planned partnership with Nexar, a popular dashcam manufacturer. The theoretical deal would have used Nexar’s network of cameras to scan vehicle plates as drivers went about their business. Flock apparently suggested that it would create a network of more than 350,000 Uber, Lyft, and other delivery service drivers who would all serve as eyes for the company. Flock’s partnership with Nexar never came to fruition. But the fact that it failed doesn’t really minimize the concern that the company tried to make it happen. Importantly, it’s not clear that drivers would have been made aware of the fact that their camera was serving as a snitch or not—it’s possible the scans would have taken place without any obvious indication that what was being captured on their dashcam was being shared with Flock—and presumably with law enforcement.

 Gizmodo reached out to Flock for additional information but did not receive a response at the time of publication. Nexar is already engaged in a pretty massive project of collecting data from its drivers. The company claims to anonymize data collected from its dashcams and sells it to third parties and publishes a fully user-generated, real-time map called CityStream. Whether drivers are aware of the fact that they are contributing to this or not is unclear—per 404 Media, in some jurisdictions, users are automatically contributing their data to CityStream and have to opt out of sharing.

 Flock also isn’t the only company to apparently think up the idea of turning vehicles into mobile surveillance for “safety” purposes. Earlier this year, a company called BusPatrol—which uses cameras on school buses to identify people who blow past the “Stop” sign arm deployed—came under fire when it was revealed that it was planning to let law enforcement use those cameras to scan license plates. Given the abuses that law enforcement across the country have already committed with access to Flock cameras, seems the last thing they need is more camera angles to sift through.      #Flock #Reportedly #Turn #Uber #Drivers #Mobile #Snitchesartifical intelligence,Dashcams,flock,Flock Safety,license plate readers,Lyft,Uber

Flock Reportedly Tried to Turn Uber Drivers Into Mobile SnitchesFlock Reportedly Tried to Turn Uber Drivers Into Mobile Snitches
                Flock Safety’s automatic license plate reader cameras have become targets of public ire and, increasingly, vandalism, with people stealing or destroying them in the dead of night. The company at one point had a plan to keep its eyes open in a way that would be harder to detect, according to 404 Media: by equipping dashcams on rideshare and delivery vehicles with the ability to scan plates while on the road. In a pitch presentation apparently prepared for the Georgia Office of the Attorney General, Flock reportedly talked up a planned partnership with Nexar, a popular dashcam manufacturer. The theoretical deal would have used Nexar’s network of cameras to scan vehicle plates as drivers went about their business. Flock apparently suggested that it would create a network of more than 350,000 Uber, Lyft, and other delivery service drivers who would all serve as eyes for the company. Flock’s partnership with Nexar never came to fruition. But the fact that it failed doesn’t really minimize the concern that the company tried to make it happen. Importantly, it’s not clear that drivers would have been made aware of the fact that their camera was serving as a snitch or not—it’s possible the scans would have taken place without any obvious indication that what was being captured on their dashcam was being shared with Flock—and presumably with law enforcement.

 Gizmodo reached out to Flock for additional information but did not receive a response at the time of publication. Nexar is already engaged in a pretty massive project of collecting data from its drivers. The company claims to anonymize data collected from its dashcams and sells it to third parties and publishes a fully user-generated, real-time map called CityStream. Whether drivers are aware of the fact that they are contributing to this or not is unclear—per 404 Media, in some jurisdictions, users are automatically contributing their data to CityStream and have to opt out of sharing.

 Flock also isn’t the only company to apparently think up the idea of turning vehicles into mobile surveillance for “safety” purposes. Earlier this year, a company called BusPatrol—which uses cameras on school buses to identify people who blow past the “Stop” sign arm deployed—came under fire when it was revealed that it was planning to let law enforcement use those cameras to scan license plates. Given the abuses that law enforcement across the country have already committed with access to Flock cameras, seems the last thing they need is more camera angles to sift through.      #Flock #Reportedly #Turn #Uber #Drivers #Mobile #Snitchesartifical intelligence,Dashcams,flock,Flock Safety,license plate readers,Lyft,Uber

Flock Safety’s automatic license plate reader cameras have become targets of public ire and, increasingly, vandalism, with people stealing or destroying them in the dead of night. The company at one point had a plan to keep its eyes open in a way that would be harder to detect, according to 404 Media: by equipping dashcams on rideshare and delivery vehicles with the ability to scan plates while on the road.

In a pitch presentation apparently prepared for the Georgia Office of the Attorney General, Flock reportedly talked up a planned partnership with Nexar, a popular dashcam manufacturer. The theoretical deal would have used Nexar’s network of cameras to scan vehicle plates as drivers went about their business. Flock apparently suggested that it would create a network of more than 350,000 Uber, Lyft, and other delivery service drivers who would all serve as eyes for the company.

Flock’s partnership with Nexar never came to fruition. But the fact that it failed doesn’t really minimize the concern that the company tried to make it happen. Importantly, it’s not clear that drivers would have been made aware of the fact that their camera was serving as a snitch or not—it’s possible the scans would have taken place without any obvious indication that what was being captured on their dashcam was being shared with Flock—and presumably with law enforcement.

Gizmodo reached out to Flock for additional information but did not receive a response at the time of publication.

Nexar is already engaged in a pretty massive project of collecting data from its drivers. The company claims to anonymize data collected from its dashcams and sells it to third parties and publishes a fully user-generated, real-time map called CityStream. Whether drivers are aware of the fact that they are contributing to this or not is unclear—per 404 Media, in some jurisdictions, users are automatically contributing their data to CityStream and have to opt out of sharing.

Flock also isn’t the only company to apparently think up the idea of turning vehicles into mobile surveillance for “safety” purposes. Earlier this year, a company called BusPatrol—which uses cameras on school buses to identify people who blow past the “Stop” sign arm deployed—came under fire when it was revealed that it was planning to let law enforcement use those cameras to scan license plates. Given the abuses that law enforcement across the country have already committed with access to Flock cameras, seems the last thing they need is more camera angles to sift through.

#Flock #Reportedly #Turn #Uber #Drivers #Mobile #Snitchesartifical intelligence,Dashcams,flock,Flock Safety,license plate readers,Lyft,Uber

Flock Safety’s automatic license plate reader cameras have become targets of public ire and, increasingly, vandalism, with people stealing or destroying them in the dead of night. The company at one point had a plan to keep its eyes open in a way that would be harder to detect, according to 404 Media: by equipping dashcams on rideshare and delivery vehicles with the ability to scan plates while on the road.

In a pitch presentation apparently prepared for the Georgia Office of the Attorney General, Flock reportedly talked up a planned partnership with Nexar, a popular dashcam manufacturer. The theoretical deal would have used Nexar’s network of cameras to scan vehicle plates as drivers went about their business. Flock apparently suggested that it would create a network of more than 350,000 Uber, Lyft, and other delivery service drivers who would all serve as eyes for the company.

Flock’s partnership with Nexar never came to fruition. But the fact that it failed doesn’t really minimize the concern that the company tried to make it happen. Importantly, it’s not clear that drivers would have been made aware of the fact that their camera was serving as a snitch or not—it’s possible the scans would have taken place without any obvious indication that what was being captured on their dashcam was being shared with Flock—and presumably with law enforcement.

Gizmodo reached out to Flock for additional information but did not receive a response at the time of publication.

Nexar is already engaged in a pretty massive project of collecting data from its drivers. The company claims to anonymize data collected from its dashcams and sells it to third parties and publishes a fully user-generated, real-time map called CityStream. Whether drivers are aware of the fact that they are contributing to this or not is unclear—per 404 Media, in some jurisdictions, users are automatically contributing their data to CityStream and have to opt out of sharing.

Flock also isn’t the only company to apparently think up the idea of turning vehicles into mobile surveillance for “safety” purposes. Earlier this year, a company called BusPatrol—which uses cameras on school buses to identify people who blow past the “Stop” sign arm deployed—came under fire when it was revealed that it was planning to let law enforcement use those cameras to scan license plates. Given the abuses that law enforcement across the country have already committed with access to Flock cameras, seems the last thing they need is more camera angles to sift through.

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#Flock #Reportedly #Turn #Uber #Drivers #Mobile #Snitches

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The actor recently appeared alongside his son, Jack, in a campaign for The Macallan. Here, he chats with us about everything from fatherhood to personal style and what qualifies something for heirloom status.

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पचमढ़ी में शुरू हुई प्रसिद्ध नागद्वारी यात्रा, श्रद्धालुओं के लिए प्रशासन ने की विशेष तैयारियां | Nagdwari Yatra Pachmarhi Administration Special Arrangements Fo Pilgrims

Reddit’s legacy experience may be under threat.

The internet’s home page is constantly undergoing little changes here and there, but as Engadget reported, there’s reason to believe Old Reddit might not be long for this world in its current state.

The legacy version of the message board website, which some users prefer to the modern interface, will see unspecified “changes” over time, according to an official blog post. The idea is to combat AI scraping, which has been rampant on Reddit over the last few years.

Reddit has already made some changes to Old Reddit in this regard, as you currently can’t use Old Reddit without being logged into a real account.

One Reddit admin admitted recently that the company “can’t promise it will be around forever.” However, that doesn’t necessarily mean a total shutdown; CEO Steve Huffman also recently said Reddit is looking into limiting access or rebuilding it with modern tech rather than getting rid of it wholesale.

So, not only is AI making everything more expensive, but it’s also making it harder for older websites to exist. At a certain point, one has to wonder if it’s all worth it.

#Reddit #chopping #block #Heres">Old Reddit might be on the chopping block. Here’s why.
                                                            Reddit’s legacy experience may be under threat.The internet’s home page is constantly undergoing little changes here and there, but as Engadget reported, there’s reason to believe Old Reddit might not be long for this world in its current state. The legacy version of the message board website, which some users prefer to the modern interface, will see unspecified “changes” over time, according to an official blog post. The idea is to combat AI scraping, which has been rampant on Reddit over the last few years.
        
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        SEE ALSO:
        
            Reddit is ramping up its AI moderation tools. Moderators aren’t happy.
            
        
    
Reddit has already made some changes to Old Reddit in this regard, as you currently can’t use Old Reddit without being logged into a real account. One Reddit admin admitted recently that the company “can’t promise it will be around forever.” However, that doesn’t necessarily mean a total shutdown; CEO Steve Huffman also recently said Reddit is looking into limiting access or rebuilding it with modern tech rather than getting rid of it wholesale. 
So, not only is AI making everything more expensive, but it’s also making it harder for older websites to exist. At a certain point, one has to wonder if it’s all worth it.

                    
                                            
                            
    
        Topics
                    Artificial Intelligence
                    Reddit
            

                        
                                    #Reddit #chopping #block #Heres

Reddit’s legacy experience may be under threat.

The internet’s home page is constantly undergoing little changes here and there, but as Engadget reported, there’s reason to believe Old Reddit might not be long for this world in its current state.

The legacy version of the message board website, which some users prefer to the modern interface, will see unspecified “changes” over time, according to an official blog post. The idea is to combat AI scraping, which has been rampant on Reddit over the last few years.

Reddit has already made some changes to Old Reddit in this regard, as you currently can’t use Old Reddit without being logged into a real account.

One Reddit admin admitted recently that the company “can’t promise it will be around forever.” However, that doesn’t necessarily mean a total shutdown; CEO Steve Huffman also recently said Reddit is looking into limiting access or rebuilding it with modern tech rather than getting rid of it wholesale.

So, not only is AI making everything more expensive, but it’s also making it harder for older websites to exist. At a certain point, one has to wonder if it’s all worth it.

#Reddit #chopping #block #Heres">Old Reddit might be on the chopping block. Here’s why.

Reddit’s legacy experience may be under threat.

The internet’s home page is constantly undergoing little changes here and there, but as Engadget reported, there’s reason to believe Old Reddit might not be long for this world in its current state.

The legacy version of the message board website, which some users prefer to the modern interface, will see unspecified “changes” over time, according to an official blog post. The idea is to combat AI scraping, which has been rampant on Reddit over the last few years.

Reddit has already made some changes to Old Reddit in this regard, as you currently can’t use Old Reddit without being logged into a real account.

One Reddit admin admitted recently that the company “can’t promise it will be around forever.” However, that doesn’t necessarily mean a total shutdown; CEO Steve Huffman also recently said Reddit is looking into limiting access or rebuilding it with modern tech rather than getting rid of it wholesale.

So, not only is AI making everything more expensive, but it’s also making it harder for older websites to exist. At a certain point, one has to wonder if it’s all worth it.

#Reddit #chopping #block #Heres

The original WH-1000XM4 launched in 2020 for $349.99, while the WH-1000XM6 debuted at a much steeper $449 last year. The new 1000XM4C’s features will include ANC powered by Sony’s QN1 chip (the 1000XM6 use its newer QN3 chip), spatial audio, support for hi-res audio, and earcup touch controls. The only compromise, according to the leaks, is slightly reduced battery life on the new version. The original 1000XM4 maxed out at up to 38 hours with ANC off, or up to 30 hours with noise-canceling on. The 1000XM4C will only offer up to 34 hours of playback, or up to 27 with ANC.

Although there have been two major updates to Sony’s 1000X headphone line since the 1000XM4 first launched, there are still devoted fans of the older model’s design. Sony introduced a major redesign of the line with 2022’s 1000XM5 that eliminated the folding earcups necessitating a much larger carrying case. The company reintroduced the folding mechanism with last year’s 1000XM6 that also added a wider and more comfortable headband, but some (myself included) still prefer the 1000XM4’s design. For those of us with the aging older models suffering from reduced battery life, the 1000XM4C could be a solid replacement.

#Sony #release #cheaper #version #WH1000XM4 #headphones #leaksAudio,Gadgets,Headphones,News,Sony,Tech">Sony could release a cheaper version of its WH-1000XM4 headphones, according to leaksThe WH-1000XM4C are expected to launch in early September 2026 in black, silver, and lavender color options for €249.99 or £219.99, which is around 9 to 7 after currency conversion.The original WH-1000XM4 launched in 2020 for 9.99, while the WH-1000XM6 debuted at a much steeper 9 last year. The new 1000XM4C’s features will include ANC powered by Sony’s QN1 chip (the 1000XM6 use its newer QN3 chip), spatial audio, support for hi-res audio, and earcup touch controls. The only compromise, according to the leaks, is slightly reduced battery life on the new version. The original 1000XM4 maxed out at up to 38 hours with ANC off, or up to 30 hours with noise-canceling on. The 1000XM4C will only offer up to 34 hours of playback, or up to 27 with ANC.Although there have been two major updates to Sony’s 1000X headphone line since the 1000XM4 first launched, there are still devoted fans of the older model’s design. Sony introduced a major redesign of the line with 2022’s 1000XM5 that eliminated the folding earcups necessitating a much larger carrying case. The company reintroduced the folding mechanism with last year’s 1000XM6 that also added a wider and more comfortable headband, but some (myself included) still prefer the 1000XM4’s design. For those of us with the aging older models suffering from reduced battery life, the 1000XM4C could be a solid replacement.#Sony #release #cheaper #version #WH1000XM4 #headphones #leaksAudio,Gadgets,Headphones,News,Sony,Tech

2022’s 1000XM5 that eliminated the folding earcups necessitating a much larger carrying case. The company reintroduced the folding mechanism with last year’s 1000XM6 that also added a wider and more comfortable headband, but some (myself included) still prefer the 1000XM4’s design. For those of us with the aging older models suffering from reduced battery life, the 1000XM4C could be a solid replacement.

#Sony #release #cheaper #version #WH1000XM4 #headphones #leaksAudio,Gadgets,Headphones,News,Sony,Tech">Sony could release a cheaper version of its WH-1000XM4 headphones, according to leaks

The WH-1000XM4C are expected to launch in early September 2026 in black, silver, and lavender color options for €249.99 or £219.99, which is around $289 to $297 after currency conversion.

The original WH-1000XM4 launched in 2020 for $349.99, while the WH-1000XM6 debuted at a much steeper $449 last year. The new 1000XM4C’s features will include ANC powered by Sony’s QN1 chip (the 1000XM6 use its newer QN3 chip), spatial audio, support for hi-res audio, and earcup touch controls. The only compromise, according to the leaks, is slightly reduced battery life on the new version. The original 1000XM4 maxed out at up to 38 hours with ANC off, or up to 30 hours with noise-canceling on. The 1000XM4C will only offer up to 34 hours of playback, or up to 27 with ANC.

Although there have been two major updates to Sony’s 1000X headphone line since the 1000XM4 first launched, there are still devoted fans of the older model’s design. Sony introduced a major redesign of the line with 2022’s 1000XM5 that eliminated the folding earcups necessitating a much larger carrying case. The company reintroduced the folding mechanism with last year’s 1000XM6 that also added a wider and more comfortable headband, but some (myself included) still prefer the 1000XM4’s design. For those of us with the aging older models suffering from reduced battery life, the 1000XM4C could be a solid replacement.

#Sony #release #cheaper #version #WH1000XM4 #headphones #leaksAudio,Gadgets,Headphones,News,Sony,Tech

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