The U.S. needs data security legislation, which could strengthen FTC civil penalty authority and deter repeat offenders, Chairman Joe Simons and Commissioner Rohit Chopra told the House Digital Commerce Subcommittee Wednesday (see 1807160051). During the new commission’s first official appearance on Capitol Hill, House Commerce Committee ranking member Frank Pallone, D-N.J., said that despite Uber’s infractions in two data breaches, the FTC couldn't levy civil penalties (see 1804120056).
Karl Herchenroeder
Karl Herchenroeder, Associate Editor, is a technology policy journalist for publications including Communications Daily. Born in Rockville, Maryland, he joined the Warren Communications News staff in 2018. He began his journalism career in 2012 at the Aspen Times in Aspen, Colorado, where he covered city government. After that, he covered the nuclear industry for ExchangeMonitor in Washington. You can follow Herchenroeder on Twitter: @karlherk
Social media platforms continue to struggle with distinguishing legitimate posts from harmful content, resulting in bias against conservatives, House Judiciary Committee Republicans told witnesses from Facebook, Twitter and YouTube Tuesday (see 1807130061). Democrats dismissed that as false and criticized the majority for not addressing President Donald Trump’s denial of Russian interference online in the 2016 election.
Expect the House Digital Commerce Subcommittee's Wednesday hearing to focus on whether the FTC has proper authority to protect consumers’ digital privacy (see 1807110060), members told us. “I want to see more authority given to the Federal Trade Commission,” said ranking member Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill. “Unfortunately, they don’t have the authorities that are needed in order to provide the kind of data security that we need. I think it’s the appropriate agency to do it, but presently they don’t have the capacity.”
Given the patchwork of state and international privacy laws developing with the EU general data protection regulation and California’s new measure (see 1806290043), Senate Republicans told us they are open to legislating. And that chamber's Democrats seek such a regime.
House lawmakers said artificial intelligence and machine learning have a high level of potential to solve scientific problems and improve human life. During a joint hearing Thursday between the Energy and the Research and Technology subcommittees, House Science Committee Chairman Lamar Smith, R-Texas, listed some notable AI efforts: the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory are experimenting with machine learning-based approaches; Argonne National Laboratory researchers are creating a 3D map of human brain neurons; and Carnegie Mellon University’s NextManufacturing Center is combining 3D printing and machine learning for monitoring “the quality of manufactured components in real-time.” Energy Subcommittee Chairman Randy Weber, R-Texas, cited Rice University in his district, where researchers are using machine learning to address geological science. Weber cited the Department of Energy’s goal of fielding exascale computing systems capable of a great many calculations per second by 2021. “With the immense potential for machine learning technologies to answer fundamental scientific questions … it’s clear we should prioritize this research,” Weber said. Research and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Barbara Comstock, R-Va., discussed DOE’s joint effort with the Department of Veterans Affairs, the MVP-Champion program. The program seeks to use advanced computing and machine learning to analyze health records for more than 20 million veterans. “The potential for AI to help humans and further scientific discoveries is immense,” Comstock said. Argonne National Laboratory researcher Bobby Kasthuri told the committee that advanced computing has the potential to transform mental illness and disease treatment, revolutionize computers and algorithms and bolster artificial intelligence capabilities and national and economic security. Carnegie Mellon University professor Anthony Rollett suggested U.S. government agencies be given the capability to support data storage systems, allowing data to be shipped on a “terabyte scale.”
The search of a person’s smartphone is more revealing than the search of that individual's home, said Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., Wednesday during a hearing on Department of Homeland Security border search policies. DHS allows customs and border officials to seize and search, without warrant or suspicion of wrongdoing, U.S. citizens’ smartphones and devices when they travel internationally. Paul and Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., are authors of the Protecting Data at the Border Act (S-823) to prohibit these searches. Lawmakers discussed the practice at a Senate Federal Spending Oversight and Emergency Management Subcommittee hearing. Chairman Paul said authorities have to worry about bad actors attacking the U.S., but “without question,” the Fourth Amendment should protect U.S. citizens. Wyden, who isn't a full committee member, said at the hearing that digital is “truly different,” calling the Supreme Court’s recent Carpenter (see 1807050025) decision “a step in the right direction.” Ranking member Gary Peters, D-Mich., also cited Fourth Amendment protections. Georgetown University Law Center professor Laura Donohue said “border searches of electronic devices are increasing at an alarming rate,” and the “time is ripe for Congress to take action.” American Civil Liberties Union Legislative Counsel Neema Singh Guliani called on Congress to pass S-823 and press DHS to amend its policy to “comport with the Constitution.” Cato Institute Director-Project on Emerging Technologies Matthew Feeney spoke against the “border exception” to the Fourth Amendment.
The tech industry’s lack of disclosure to the federal government about computer processor design flaws was “baffling” and “inexcusable,” said Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Bill Nelson, D-Fla., Wednesday during a hearing on Spectre and Meltdown vulnerabilities (see 1807100057). He told us later that Intel’s absence gives him little confidence industry will alert the government in a “timely fashion” on future vulnerabilities.
Senate Commerce Committee members Wednesday will weigh two newly discovered computer processor design flaws, one of which a researcher described as “probably one of the worst CPU [central processing unit] bugs ever found” (see 1807060015 and 1801260009).“I don’t think there are any solutions right now for what we’re going to be talking about,” Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., told us when asked about Wednesday’s hearing on Spectre and Meltdown vulnerabilities. “Hopefully, we’ll come up with some solutions. ... Maybe some of the professors can come up with something.”
Language the Senate Judiciary Committee included in its version of the Music Modernization Act (S-2334) (see 1806280062, 1806110051 and 1806080034) ensures DOJ would have proper oversight if the department were to try to eliminate the ASCAP and BMI consent decrees, said representatives from the MIC Coalition. But a music industry attorney accused Congress of catering to the coalition, pitting wealthy companies against songwriters.
The Supreme Court’s Carpenter decision is a victory for privacy advocates, said experts and observers in recent interviews, but the court didn't address some emerging police surveillance technologies in its narrow decision (see 1806220052 and 1806290064).