Privacy

Last week, we released #LibreOffice 25.8. But it's not just a major update of the free office suite – it's a strategic asset for organisations, governments and enterprises focused on digital sovereignty and #privacy: https://blog.documentfoundation.org/blog/2025/08/25/libreoffice-25-8-backgrounder/ #foss #open #freesoftware

Outside supermarkets or in festival crowds, millions are now having their features scanned by real-time facial-recognition systems in the UK -- the only European country to deploy the technology on a large scale.

At London's Notting Hill Carnival, where two million people are expected to celebrate Afro-Caribbean culture over Sunday and Monday, facial-recognition cameras are being deployed near entrances and exits.

The police said their objective was to identify and intercept wanted individuals by scanning faces in large crowds and comparing them with thousands of suspects already in the police database.

The technology is "an effective policing tool which has already been successfully used to locate offenders at crime hotspots resulting in well over 1,000 arrests since the start of 2024," said Metropolitan Police chief Mark Rowley.

The technology was first tested in 2016 and its use has increased considerably over the past three years in the United Kingdom.

Some 4.7 million faces were scanned in 2024 alone, according to the NGO Liberty.

YouTube secretly used artificial intelligence to modify creators' videos without notification or consent, making subtle changes to their appearance[^1]. According to Rick Beato, who runs a YouTube channel with over 5 million subscribers, he noticed strange alterations in his videos - his hair looked different and it appeared he was wearing makeup[^1].

The AI modifications included sharpening skin in some areas while smoothing it in others, defining wrinkles in clothing more clearly, and causing subtle warping of features like ears[^1]. YouTuber Rhett Shull, who investigated the changes, said "If I wanted this terrible over-sharpening I would have done it myself... I think that deeply misrepresents me and what I do and my voice on the internet"[^1].

The unauthorized AI enhancements represent a concerning trend where artificial intelligence increasingly mediates reality before it reaches viewers, potentially eroding authentic connections between creators and their audiences[^1].

[^1]: BBC - YouTube secretly used AI to edit people's videos. The results could bend reality

Does it exist? Or do i have to use another password manager only for passkeys?

Grok, Elon Musk's AI chatbot, has exposed hundreds of thousands of private user conversations through Google search indexing. When users click the "share" button to create a URL for sharing their chat, the conversation becomes publicly searchable - often without users realizing it[^1][^2].

Google has indexed over 370,000 Grok conversations, including sensitive content like medical questions, personal information, and at least one password[^2]. Unlike OpenAI's ChatGPT, which quickly removed a similar feature after backlash, Grok's share function does not include any warning that conversations will become public[^3].

According to Forbes, some marketers are already exploiting this feature by intentionally creating Grok conversations to manipulate search engine rankings for their businesses[^2].

[^1]: TechCrunch - Thousands of Grok chats are now searchable on Google

[^2]: Forbes - Elon Musk's xAI Published Hundreds Of Thousands Of Grok Chatbot Conversations

[^3]: Fortune - Thousands of private user conversations with Elon Musk's Grok AI chatbot have exposed on Google Search

I actually discovered this via a Nebula video, but Nebula requires a subscription. But here’s the video if you’re curious.

https://nebula.tv/videos/morningbrew-partiful-is-the-weirdest-company-weve-made-a-video-about/

Cybersecurity firm Koi Security revealed that FreeVPN.One, a Chrome VPN extension with over 100,000 users, has been secretly capturing and transmitting screenshots of users' browsing activity to remote servers[^1][^2].

The spyware functionality was introduced in July 2025 after earlier updates expanded the extension's permissions. According to researcher Lotan Sery from Koi Security, "FreeVPN.One shows how a privacy branding can be flipped into a trap"[^3].

When confronted, the developer claimed screenshots were only taken of suspicious sites and were encrypted, but researchers found evidence of capture on trusted sites like Google Photos[^5]. The extension's "AI Threat Detection" feature discloses taking screenshots, but Koi Security found most surveillance occurred silently in the background[^8].

The case highlights growing risks with free VPN services, particularly as demand increases due to new online safety regulations in the UK requiring age verification[^3].

[^1]: GIGAZINE - Chrome VPN Extension Accused of Secretly Capturing User Screenshots

[^2]: It's FOSS - Google Verified FreeVPN Caught Red-handed Spying on its Users

[^3]: VARINDIA - Chrome VPN Extension Accused of Secretly Capturing User Screenshots

[^5]: It's FOSS - Google Verified FreeVPN Caught Red-handed Spying on its Users

[^8]: Instagram - Dhaka Chronicles post about FreeVPN.One spying

Danish source: https://www.computerworld.dk/art/292063/saadan-vil-regeringen-bekaempe-deepfake-du-faar-ophavsret-til-dit-eget-udseende

The Artificial Intelligence Unit will be made up of police officers and agents from other security forces. Its tasks will include “patrolling open social platforms, applications and websites,” where it will seek to “detect potential threats, identify movements of criminal groups or anticipate disturbances.” It will also be dedicated to “analyzing images from security cameras in real time in order to detect suspicious activities or identify wanted persons using facial recognition.” The resolution also awards it powers worthy of science fiction: “Using machine learning algorithms to analyze historical crime data and thus predict future crimes.” Another purpose will be to discover “suspicious financial transactions or anomalous behavior that could indicate illegal activities.”

The new unit will not only deal with virtual spaces. It will be able to “patrol large areas using drones, provide aerial surveillance and respond to emergencies,” as well as perform “dangerous tasks, such as defusing explosives, using robots.”

A digital policy specialist says, the initiative essentially means “illegal intelligence disguised as the use of ‘modern’ technologies.” Among the implicit risks, that there will be little control and many different security forces with access to the information that’s collected.

A Russian state-backed messenger application called Max, a rival to WhatsApp that critics say could be used to track users, must be pre-installed on all mobile phones and tablets bought in the country starting next month, the Russian government said on Thursday.

The decision to promote Max comes as Moscow, locked in a standoff with the west over Ukraine, is seeking greater control over the internet. The Kremlin said in a statement that Max, which will be integrated with government services, would be on a list of mandatory pre-installed apps on all “gadgets”, including mobile phones and tablets, sold in Russia from 1 September.