The best movie rewatches happen when you revisit a film you know you liked, but don’t really remember. That happened to me last week with Steven Spielberg’s 2002 sci-fi film Minority Report. I saw it in theaters when it was released 20 years ago this week but have probably only seen it once since then. So I was…
Jason Ravnsborg is accused of lying to investigators and abusing the power of his office after he struck and killed a pedestrian.
New iOS devices will soon be able to skip some of the most annoying CAPTCHA login security protocols thanks to a new process developed by Apple for iOS 16.
With gas prices still rising, and little sign of motorists getting relief at the pump any time soon, finding the cheapest gas nearby could save you big money.
A popular YouTuber has given Android fans their first detailed look at the design of the upcoming Nothing Phone (1), specifically its unique light strips.
AI has the potential to revolutionize society, but that may not be a good thing if it leads to robots that harbor harmful stereotypes from humans.
Warner Bros. has opened its bag to just keep adding more and more names to its blockbuster sci-fi franchise as Léa Seydoux joins the ensemble for Dune: Part Two. Deadline reports she is set to play Lady Margot in the upcoming sequel based on Frank Herbert’s sci-fi epic from Denis Villeneuve, who is returning as…
Meta has agreed to settle 2019 charges that it enabled housing discrimination through ad targeting. The deal with the Justice Department will have the company end use of a “Special Ad Audiences” tool that allegedly used a discrimination-prone algorithm to widen the reach of housing ads on Facebook. Meta is instead developing a new method, the “variance reduction system,” to ensure home ads match their eligible targeted viewers.
The decision to retire Special Ad Audiences also applies to credit and employment ads, Meta added. The company said all three categories were part of a “deep-rooted problem” with discrimination in the US.
This is the first time the DOJ has used a case to tackle algorithmic biases under the Fair Housing Act, according to officials. Meta said it collaborated with the Department of Housing and Urban Development for over a year to more accurately target ads and avoid discrimination. The new system will also be subject to DOJ approval and monitoring.
The firm had already limited ad targeting in 2019 after settling another lawsuit accusing it of violating housing discrimination law. Advertisers haven’t been allowed to target campaigns based on age, gender or ZIP code. Special Ad Audiences was launched at the same time to help address issues with a previous system, but Meta said its algorithms needed to adapt to ensure fairness.
A settlement isn’t shocking. Meta has faced other accusations of allowing problematic ad targeting in fields like politics. Other tech heavyweights have also faced penalties. The Federal Trade Commission slapped Twitter with a $150 million fine for reportedly “deceptive” ad targeting that relied on sensitive contact information. The agreement could help Meta avoid similar punishments, and suggests it’s willing to cooperate when ad systems come under scrutiny.
Downloads of the most recent versions of Windows have stopped in Russia, according to a new report from Bleeping Computer. Microsoft hasn’t publicly clarified why this is happening, though we’ve reached out to the company for comment and will update our story if they respond.
An influential group of experts is recommending that people not take beta carotene or vitamin E supplements in hopes of preventing cancer or cardiovascular disease, arguing that they provide no clear benefits and may actually raise the risk of these health problems. They’ve also concluded that there’s not enough…
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