Privacy

Google Reports Self-Driving Car Mistakes: 272 Failures And 13 Near Misses

January 12, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p><strong>California regulators require self-driving car firms to report when humans had to take over from robot drivers for safety, though Google is giving only select data</strong></p> <p>“Release of the disengagement report was a positive step, but Google should also release any video it has of the disengagement incidents, as well as any technical data it collected.”</p>

Google: Self-Driving Cars Improve, But Still Need Human Help

January 12, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>LOS ANGELES _ Google’s futuristic self-driving cars needed some old-fashioned human intervention to avoid 11 crashes during testing on California roads, the company revealed Tuesday, results it says are encouraging but show the technology has yet to reach the goal of not needing someone behind the wheel.</p> <p><br /> With Google’s fleet logging tens of thousands of miles each month, the 11 instances would be the equivalent of a car having one event every three years, based on how much the average vehicle is driven in the U.S.</p>

The Most Common Reasons Real Drivers Seize Control Of A Google Self-Driving Car

January 12, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p><span>Over the course of the 1.3 million miles that Google's self-driving vehicles have cruised around public roads since September 2014, the cars failed 272 times, according to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/and%C2%A0had%20to%20be%20pulled%20out%20of%20their%20autonomous%20mode%20">a new report for the Department of Motor Vehicles that Google just published</a>. </span></p> <p>Each time, the cars "disengaged" from their autonomous mode, giving control to the the driver. </p>

Autonomous Cars Are Big At CES, But They Leave Consumers Uneasy

January 8, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<div itemprop="articleBody">From <a class="injectedLinkmain" href="http://www.autoblog.com/bmw/">BMW's</a> iVision autonomous concept to reports of a potential Ford-Google collaboration to a dozen other heralded developments in Las Vegas this week, self-driving cars have become a major attraction at CES. Collectively, companies have touted <a class="injectedLinkmain" href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/autonomous/">autonomous cars</a> as a means to delivering a safer, more fuel-efficient, more comfortable transportation experience.<br /> <br />

The Lowdown: Robot Cars At The Consumer Electronics Show

January 6, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Out in Las Vegas this week, plenty of automakers are using the <strong>Consumer Electronics Show</strong> to tout techy innovations and plug autonomous driving developments. But advocacy group <strong>Consumer Watchdog</strong> is trying to crash the party.

General Data Protection Regulation, Safe Harbor Dominate EU Outlook

January 6, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p><span>Jan. 6 —</span> Multinational companies have their eyes on two major issues in the European Union for 2016—the final adoption of a new privacy and data security framework for the EU and the move to replace the invalidated U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Program that eased the transfer of personal data from the EU.</p> <p>The new privacy regime brought by the General Data Protection Regulation would replace the 20-year-old Data Protection Directive (95/46/EC) in an attempt to bring data protection principles into the 21st Century.</p>

U.S. Government Sues Volkswagen Over Cheating On Emissions Tests

January 5, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>The U.S. Department of Justice filed a civil complaint Monday against Volkswagen over its sale of vehicles that used software to cheat on U.S. emissions tests, sharply turning up the heat on the German automaker.</p> <p><br /> The complaint, filed in federal court in Detroit on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, accused Volkswagen of violating federal law by installing the illegal software on 580,000 cars.</p>

How ‘Do Not Track’ Ended Up Going Nowhere

January 4, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Back in 2010, the Federal Trade Commission pledged to give Internet users the power to determine if or when websites were allowed to <a class="external" href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2010/12/ftc-staff-issues-privacy-report-offers-framework-consumers">track their behavior</a>.</p>

4 Competing Tax Measures To Split Voters’ Attention In November

January 3, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>With four tax initiatives on track for the November ballot, California voters are going to have to decide how much is too much.</p> <p><br /> A pair of competing measures to extend 2012's expiring Proposition 30 tax hikes, a plan to boost the tobacco tax by $2 a pack and an initiative to put additional taxes on property valued at $3 million or more are all out on the street, with supporters working to collect enough signatures to qualify for the ballot.</p>

Consumer Group Applauds Self-Driving Car Rules

December 26, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p>"Our Palo Alto team has grown significantly this year, using research and innovation to explore and develop future mobility solutions", said Ford CEO Mark Fields. Ford will test autonomously in the second half of 2016.</p> <p>Coming almost a year after its January 1st, 2014 deadline, the California Department of Motor Vehicle today released those draft rules governing the use and operation of self-driving cars on California roadways. The state of California has already pushed out the first draft policy on self-driving vehicles.</p>

Tapping Clients’ Social Networks

December 24, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p><strong>With Hearsay Social services, financial advisers can learn about life events, stay on top of news; Have you friended your insurance agent? Hearsay Social asks</strong></p> <p class="loose"><span class="SS_L3"><span class="verdana">Financial advisers and insurance agents may be among the few Facebook users who want to see more baby photos in their feeds.</span></span></p> <p class="loose"><span class="SS_L3"><span class="verdana">Such images - or news of new jobs, houses or cars - can be valuable information for agents. </span></span></p>

The Promise and Peril of Facial-Recognition Technology

December 22, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In 2011, John H. Gass received a disconcerting message from the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles: His license had been revoked, and he had to refrain from driving immediately. </span></p>