New fully open and transparent large language model launches -- it’s Swiss, of course
The Swiss have something of a reputation for being methodical -- particularly when it comes to things like banking -- so it’s no surprise that they take a similar approach to creating a large language model.
EPFL, ETH Zurich and the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre (CSCS) have today released Apertus, a large-scale, open, multilingual LLM. Apertus -- Latin for ‘open’ -- the name highlights its distinctive feature, that the entire development process, including its architecture, model weights, and training data and recipes, is openly accessible and fully documented.
Ensuring transparency when deploying AI [Q&A]
There are many factors to consider when deploying AI into an organization, not least of which is maintaining transparency and trust in the process.
We spoke to Iccha Sethi, VP of engineering at Vanta, to learn more about why transparency is so important and how governments and enterprises are responding to this challenge.
Key developments and challenges in LLMs [Q&A]
Large language models (LLMs) have undergone rapid evolution in recent years, but can often be viewed as something of a 'black-box' as a lack of transparency makes it difficult to identify how decisions are made, trace errors, or understand biases within the model.
We spoke to Pramod Beligere, vice president -- generative AI practice head at Hexaware, to discuss this along with the tools that are being developed, such as explainable AI and interpretable models, to make AI systems more understandable, trustworthy and accountable.
Google is making YouTube and other services delightfully free of political ads... in Europe
The nature of modern-day politics means that parties of all colors, all leanings, spend millions on advertising -- it is something that was painfully apparent during the run-up to the US presidential election. Technology firms and social media platforms are under a lot of pressure to take steps to prevent election interference, and to increase transparency.
This is something that has been playing out in Europe with regulation on Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising (TTPA) due to come into force in the EU. With concerns about the, “operational challenges and legal uncertainties” this could lead to, Google has announced that it will not only will stop serving political advertising in the European Union, but will do so before the TTPA comes into force.
How radical transparency paves the way to more effective vulnerability management
Vulnerability management is one of the most painful challenges of cybersecurity. The lack of transparency in our industry isn’t helping matters. Vendors often work behind the curtain to fix the identified security flaws without effective communication or -- if they do communicate -- with significant delays in reporting.
However, there are signs of positive steps toward this much-needed transparency. In July, for example, the Microsoft Security Response Center announced that it will start issuing Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) for critical cloud service vulnerabilities. There have also been moves from legislators to ensure greater rigor in reporting, such as the EU's Cyber Resilience Act, which mandates that manufacturers of all connected and IoT devices report serious cyber incidents and unpatched vulnerabilities. This is essential for building trust among vendors, businesses, and stakeholders alike. Greater resilience starts with a common understanding.
Google launches new Transparency Center as a central hub for policy information
Google has announced a new online hub called Transparency Center, where it will provide information about the policies that relate to its various products and services, including AI-related policies.
The company says that in the Transparency Center, visitors can find details about the decisions and processes that resulted in certain policies, access transparency reports and more. The hub can also be used to report policy violations to Google.
Apple launches Beats Studio Buds + with the help of female rapper Cardi B
Today, with a special video by female rapper Cardi B (seen below), Apple launches the all-new Beats Studio Buds +. These wireless earbuds offer an exceptional true wireless experience, catering to both iOS and Android users. With a sleek and transparent design, these buds not only look stunning but also come packed with major improvements in features like Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), Transparency, call performance, and battery life.
Oliver Schusser, the Vice President of Beats and Apple Music, expressed his enthusiasm for the product, stating, "As our fastest-selling product ever since its launch, Beats Studio Buds are beloved earphones for so many people around the world, and we're thrilled to be taking them to the next level."
CISA director says Microsoft and Twitter should be more like Apple in terms of security
In a speech that lauded Apple for not only its security practices but also its transparency, Jen Easterly from the CISA said that Microsoft and Twitter needed to do more to keep their users secure.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency director was speaking at Carnegie Mellon University where she made particular reference to multifactor authentication. Easterly praised Apple for enabling MFA by default while describing Microsoft and Twitter as "disappointing" in this area.
Security: 2FA adoption is incredibly low with Twitter users
In a recently published transparency report, Twitter has revealed figures that show a disappointing adoption of 2FA (two-factor authentication) by users.
While the number of users choosing to secure their account with 2FA is on the increase, it "remains relatively low", says Twitter. And we are talking low numbers here -- a mere 2.3 percent of the Twitter userbase is concerned enough about security to enable two-factor authentication.
Read the Microsoft Edge Privacy Whitepaper here
Microsoft has published a whitepaper about privacy in its Edge browser. The paper goes someway to answer the questions user may have about the data Edge is collecting about users.
The company says that the whitepaper is an exercise in transparency which "explains how Microsoft Edge features and services work and how each may affect your privacy". Microsoft insists that it practices data collection minimization, and it uses the whitepaper to come clean about just what data the browser is gathering.
Now it's easier to see just what data Facebook and Instagram are collecting about you
It's no secret that Facebook gathers staggering amounts of information about its users across its various products. This is something that many people just accept, but there is a slight discomfort in not knowing quite what is being collected.
To add a little balm to this aching fear, Facebook has announced updates to its Download Your Information tool on Facebook and Download Your Data tool on Instagram. The updates mean that while you can do little to stop Facebook from tracking you, you can at least download and see what data it is collecting about you.
Microsoft updates cloud contracts after EU privacy complaints
Microsoft has announced changes to its Online Services Terms for commercial cloud customers after an EU investigation raise concerns about existing policies' compliance with European regulation.
The company bills the changes as the introduction of "more privacy transparency" in the wake of a probe into potential violations of GDPR relating to telemetry data collected from Office 365 users. Microsoft says the new contractual terms will be offered to customers globally, not just within Europe.
Apple refreshes its privacy portal and seeks to differentiate itself from Google, Facebook et al
All of the big names in technology have faced questions and criticism over privacy. Apple is no different, and with an updated privacy website it seeks to distance itself from the controversy-addled likes of Facebook and Google.
The company has refreshed its privacy portal to provide a one-stop-shop for everything it feels people might want to know about the way it collects and handles data. While there are no changes to privacy policies, the updated site aims to present information in a more accessible and transparent format.
Open letter signed by Mozilla demands Facebook take 'real action' against disinformation
Mozilla has sent an open letter to Facebook calling on the social network to do more to fight disinformation and asking for increased transparency about political advertising.
The letter -- also signed by 32 other organizations including human rights and press freedom groups -- has been sent to Facebook in the run-up to the 2019 EU Parliamentary Elections. It comes after Mozilla's COO wrote to the European Commission to express her concerns about the lack of transparency at Facebook.
Mozilla COO contacts European Commission voicing concerns about Facebook's lack of ad transparency
Facebook has been no stranger to controversy and scandal over the years, but things have been particularly bad over the last twelve months. The latest troubles find Mozilla complaining to the European Commission about the social network's lack of transparency, particularly when it comes to political advertising.
Mozilla's Chief Operating Officer, Denelle Dixon, has penned a missive to Mariya Gabriel, the European Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society. She bemoans the fact that Facebook makes it impossible to conduct analysis of ads, and this in turn prevents Mozilla from offering full transparency to European citizens -- something it sees as important in light of the impending EU elections.
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