The IRS website will soon require facial recognition to log in to your account
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has implemented a biometric verification for its website login process. The website cross-checks a user-uploaded photo ID and a video selfie to authenticate a user. The IRS has partnered up with ID.me, a startup with facial recognition software, to enable this feature. IRS’s partnership with ID.me has raised privacy concerns. ID.me acknowledged that it checks user identity against an internal database of faces to identify “members of organized crime.” Despite privacy concerns and user inconvenience, IRS plans to replace ID and passcode system with the facial recognition software this summer.
Epic's battle with Apple takes a turn as 35 states throw support behind Fortnite maker
35 states’ attorney generals filed amici curiae in support of Epic Games in its appeal against Apple over the Fortnite case. Epic previously filed a lawsuit over Apple’s tight control over the in-app payment solutions and app distribution. Although a district judge ruled that Apple’s control was anti-competitive, the injunction to ease Apple’s control was delayed by the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit last December. While Apple expects that Epic’s appeal will not be successful, Microsoft also filed a brief arguing against Apple’s control over the iOS ecosystem. The US Department of Justice declined to weigh in on the merits of each party’s claims, but it filed a brief saying that the District Court read Sherman Act “narrowly and wrongly.”
Cryptocurrency Miners: Nvidia's Lite Hash Rate Limiter Did Little to Stop Us
Nvidia implemented a software handicap called Light Hash Rate (LHR) on its new RTX 3000 graphics cards to discourage cryptocurrency miners when it was released a year ago. Nvidia’s effort underscores the shortage of GPU supplies and the rising retail price of graphics cards due to cryptocurrency miners. Even with the handicap, however, miners could make profit using RTX 3000 GPUs to mine Ethereum. Another GPU manufacturer AMD created an underperforming RX 6500 XT in response, but its lackluster performance did not even appeal to gamers. Although Ethereum is expected to phase out mining later this year, it is unclear how LHR or GPU prices would be in the near future.
FTC Reports 'Huge Surge' in Social Media Scams
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reported surge in scams on social media platforms, amounting to $770 million reported losses in 2021. These losses amount to a quarter of all fraud losses that were reported in 2021. The largest number of reports in 2021 were made in the online shopping scams category. However, the costliest losses came from the categories of investment scams and romance scams. In particular, the FTC saw “a massive surge in reports” for investments involving cryptocurrency on social media in 2021. The FTC emphasized that adjusting privacy settings and doing due diligence before transactions on social media could help guard oneself from social media scams.
Lawsuits Accuse Google of Surveilling Customers, Profiting From Their Data
Attorney generals of Indiana, Texas, Washington, and Washington D.C. filed a lawsuit against Google for repeated violation of D.C.’s Consumer Protection Procedures Act. According to D.C.’s complaint, Google made it unclear how much location data it obtains from users and how to opt out of such collection with confusing interfaces. All four states ask for a ban on the deceptive practices and disgorgement of profits. Google has since implemented auto-delete features for user location and web & app activity stored in Google servers.