Beyond our Shores - October

This is the ODPA's monthly round-up of data-related developments from around the world.

On 4 October, Texas sued TikTok, accusing the social media platform of violating children's privacy and state law by sharing children's personal identifying information without consent from their parents or legal guardians:  Texas sues TikTok for violating children's privacy | Reuters

On 5 October, Business Insider reported on the use of Meta Ray-Bans to do facial recognition: Harvard students used Meta Ray-Bans to do facial recognition. Meta execs once thought this was a good idea. (msn.com)

On 11 October, internal TikTok communications were made public which nonprofit media organisation NPR says show a company “unconcerned with the harms the app poses for American teenagers”:  TikTok knows its app is harming kids, new internal documents show : NPR

On 12 October, the UK data protection watchdog issued huge fines to two companies making unlawful marketing calls to individuals registered with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS). These calls were made to people who had explicitly opted out of receiving marketing communications, violating their privacy and in some cases causing significant distress: £120k issued in fines to two companies for predatory marketing campaigns | ICO

On 13 October, the Guardian reported on the next-generation robot conductor who made her debut this weekend in Dresden, Germany:  Three-armed robot conductor makes debut in Dresden | Germany | The Guardian (ampproject.org)

On 14 October, a BBC investigation looked into claims that online bank Revolut’s security measures failed to prevent a theft: Revolut customers say e-money firm failed them after being scammed - BBC News

On 15 October Google has signed a “world first” deal to buy energy from a fleet of mini nuclear reactors to generate the power needed for the rise in use of artificial intelligence: Google to buy nuclear power for AI datacentres in ‘world first’ deal | Google | The Guardian

On 17 October, communications watchdog Ofcom announced that Social media companies will face punishments for failing to keep children safe on their platforms. Services like Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp could face fines from the regulator if they do not comply with the new Online Safety Act - which comes into force early next year - Ofcom chief executive Dame Melanie Dawes, told the BBC. Online Safety Bill: Social media faces big changes under new Ofcom rules - BBC News

On 28 October, a student who used AI technology "in the worst possible way" to turn photographs of real children into "depraved" indecent images was jailed for 18 years: Man who made 'depraved' child images with AI jailed for 18 years - BBC News

On 28 October, the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office joined global counterparts including the ODPA to highlight how social media companies can better protect personal information: Global privacy authorities issue follow-up joint statement on data scraping after industry engagement | ICO