Good morning. It’s a new tech event-filled week. For now, let’s get into today’s tech news.
1. Mobile app for protecting Aussie data coming
Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has announced that, in the upcoming Budget, an $11 million package will be provided to establish an app and a website that protects the credentials of Australians from cyber criminals. The app and website will build on the Credential Protection Register, which was established after the Optus data breach, with the Attorney-General saying that it has helped block over 300,000 stolen credential attempts since. “The mobile application will allow an individual to be notified, in real-time, if someone is using their identity without their consent,” Dreyfus said. “Individuals will then be able to act immediately to control their identity credentials by enabling or disabling their use for verification.”
2. Speaking of privacy
The Guardian reports that Australia’s Privacy Commissioner is raising the flag on third-party suppliers, labelling them a “real weak spot” for protecting the credentials of Australians, following the NSW and ACT clubs data breach last week. “Being a point of vulnerability for others in terms of compliance with Privacy Act is very real and what we’re cautioning organisations about is ensuring that they’re passing on their obligations in the best way possible in any contract with third parties,” Privacy Commissioner Carly Kind said.
3. Google bans ads promoting deep fake porn
Google has updated its advertising policies, drawing a line in the sand for any content that links to websites and apps that make deep fake pornography, per Engadget. The rule will come into effect on May 30, giving advertisers time to adjust to the new rules, which will be brought into line with other types of sexual content – though obviously, deep fake tools have been under intense scrutiny as of late for their ability to create abuse imagery.
4. Jack Dorsey leaves Bluesky board
Jack Dorsey, the former head of Twitter, has left the board of Bluesky, the app he set up to at one point be an extension of Twitter and eventually evolved into a competitor. Dorsey confirmed that he left the board in a Tweet over the weekend, though it isn’t clear when he left the board. “With Jack’s departure, we are searching for a new board member for the Bluesky public benefit company who shares our commitment to building a social network that puts people in control of their experience. More to come!” Bluesky wrote in a statement.
5. Microsoft hits the brakes on AI features
The latest blog post from Microsoft’s Insider blog, directed at Windows users who have signed up to be early adopters of Windows updates, notes that the company will be slowing down its updates. “We have decided to pause the rollouts of these experiences to further refine them based on user feedback. Copilot in Windows will continue to work as expected while we continue to evolve new ideas with Windows Insiders.” Lmao.
BONUS ITEM: Innovation has limits.