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Law enforcement relied too heavily on AI, falsely arrested a suspect, ACLU argues

A Fort Myers man and the ACLU of Florida are suing Jacksonville Beach for relying too heavily on an artificial intelligence program that fingered him as a suspect in a now-dropped 2023 child luring investigation. The ACLU said in a 66-page federal lawsuit that Robert Dillon had been arrested “for a crime he never committed in a city he’d never been to.” Dillon filed suit against the Jacksonville Beach Police Department and the Jacksonville and Pinellas Sheriff’s offices on Wednesday in a case centering around what the ACLU calls a “faulty facial recognition match” in 2023 and an arrest eight months later. The now-dropped charges claimed that Dillon, a commercial crabber from Fort Myers, tried to lure a child at a McDonald’s in Jacksonville Beach, five hours from his home. “The night I spent in jail after they arrested me for a crime I did not commit still haunts me to this day. I will never get over how terrified and worried I was, wondering if I’d ever go home to my wife and daughter again,” Dillon said in a news release. Dillon’s attorneys explain that law enforcement put security camera footage into facial recognition technology operated by the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, comparing the image to millions of photos in a database to find matches. It returned a 93% match to an image of Dillon. “Over a year later, I’m still picking up the pieces of my life, all because the police relied on this dangerous technology instead of doing their jobs and actually investigating,” Dillon said. “Florida police must implement safeguards and ensure this never happens to anyone else, because until they do, nobody is safe.” The 2023 investigation centered on the idea that the suspect was a regular at the McDonald’s and that witnesses picked a picture

Safe, smart or surveilled? The AI question for student accommodation

In June, students at San Diego State University (SDSU) discovered through their student newspaper that more than 1,300 AI-enabled cameras had been installed across campus over the previous two years, including more than 330 in residence halls. The cameras, made by Avigilon, are capable of facial recognition, licence plate reading, behaviour analysis and crowd density tracking. SDSU says the advanced AI features are switched off, and the system is there to keep students safe. However, students say they were never told what the cameras could do, and that knowing they could be watched in those ways, including in the buildings where they live, changes how the environment feels. While the SDSU story is set in the United States, the underlying questions it raises are relevant to student accommodation providers worldwide. As AI-enabled and data-driven technology moves from the back office into buildings, and from buildings into residential settings, providers need to be clear and able to explain where the line lies between care, convenience, safety and surveillance. AI as a student companion and coach For a growing number of students, AI is already part of how they manage their own wellbeing, with or without their accommodation provider’s involvement. HEPI’s 2026 student generative AI survey found that around 15% of UK students are already using general-purpose AI tools for companionship, advice, or to address loneliness. It also found that 8% of students use counselling or therapy services provided solely by AI, and 4% use services where counselling or therapy is provided partly by AI. This does not mean that student accommodation providers should rush to replace human support with chatbots. If anything, it points in the opposite direction. Students are already experimenting with these tools, so the sector needs to be clear about what AI can safely do, what it should

First AI World Cup in history: What technology innovations are used during sports' biggest stage?

The 2026 World Cup in the US, Mexico, and Canada will be the main sporting event of the year, but it will also be the first one to work like a live giant laboratory for sports technology. Almost every action on the pitch will generate digital data, from player positions, ball movement, contact points, refereeing decisions, crowd movement, broadcast output for viewers, and even tactical analysis for the teams. Behind a match that looks simple to the eye, layers of cameras, servers, algorithms, mobile devices, and AI systems will operate, turning the World Cup into something The current tournament is the first to feature 48 national teams and includes 104 matches across 16 host cities. Technologically, that scale changes the rules of the game. A World Cup like this cannot rely only on referees, television cameras, and traditional broadcasting. It requires a distributed computing infrastructure, load management, near-real-time video transfer, data-analysis tools for all the teams and systems that can make decisions or assist in decision-making within seconds. In other words, the 2026 World Cup is no longer just a sporting event. It is a global computing event. Most advanced Video Assistant Referee ever One of the main technologies in the tournament is the advanced semi-automated offside system. A previous version of the technology was used at the 2022 World Cup, but in 2026, it is taking a leap forward. Instead of offside information reaching only the VAR room, in clear cases, the system will be able to send an alert directly to the on-field referees. The result is less time between a player going offside and the flag being raised, especially in relatively simple situations. FIFA stressed that the system does not replace referees in every case, does not rule on its own in complex cases involving influence on

An intelligent SCADA-integrated deep learning framework for bird-safe offshore wind farm operation

Abstract The rapid expansion of offshore wind energy has intensified concerns regarding avian collisions with turbine blades, particularly for migratory and high-risk bird species. Conventional mitigation approaches—including radar monitoring, manual intervention, and acoustic deterrents—are often limited by high false alarm rates, delayed response times, and the lack of species-level identification. To address these challenges, this study proposes an intelligent framework that integrates a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system with a Deep Convolutional Neural Network (DCNN)-based Bird Detection and Classification (BDC) model. The proposed system performs automated image-based bird classification and translates detection outputs into SCADA-driven turbine control actions through a multi-zone proximity assessment strategy. The model is trained and evaluated on a dataset comprising 525 avian species with over 90,000 images. Comparative analysis against conventional classifiers—including Support Vector Machines (SVM), Random Forest, K-Nearest Neighbor, and VGG16—demonstrates that the proposed BDC model achieves superior performance, with an accuracy of 99.62%, precision of 99.92%, recall of 100%, and an F1-score of 99.93%. In addition to classification performance, the system demonstrates a simulation-based system, achieving inference latency below 30 ms and SCADA response execution within 40 ms. These results highlight the potential of integrating deep learning with operational control systems to enable automated, risk-aware turbine response mechanisms for wildlife protection. It is important to note that the evaluation is conducted under controlled dataset conditions, and the dataset does not fully represent real offshore environments characterized by long-distance detection, motion blur, occlusion, and complex backgrounds. Therefore, the reported performance should be interpreted as an upper-bound estimate, and future validation using real-world offshore data is required to confirm deployment robustness. Overall, the proposed framework provides a simulation-based proof-of-concept approach for bridging AI-based avian monitoring with SCADA-enabled turbine control, contributing toward environmentally sustainable offshore wind farm operation. Introduction The global transition toward low-carbon energy

David Beckham honored by wife Victoria, Tom Cruise at Walk of Fame ceremony

David Beckham honored by wife Victoria Beckham, Tom Cruise at Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony David Beckham is now immortalized on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The soccer legend received his Walk of Fame star in a ceremony on Friday, where he was honored by his wife Victoria Beckham and fellow Walk of Famer Tom Cruise. In his remarks, Cruise highlighted Beckham's illustrious career on the soccer pitch with Manchester United, where he made his most iconic shot from the halfway line against Wimbledon in 1996. "The ball was in the air for just 3 1/2 seconds," Cruise said. "But that moment has now lived for three decades in the minds of everyone who saw it and in the history of sport. And if you didn't know who he was then, you certainly did a few months later." Cruise also spoke about Beckham's iconic curling free kick for England in the 1998 FIFA World Cup. The signature technique inspired the title and premise of the film, "Bend it Like Beckham." The "Mission: Impossible" star said Beckham "inspired generations around the world to watch and play the game." When Victoria Beckham took the stage, the "Spice Girl" singer joked that she thought she was getting her star on the Walk of Fame for "Spice World." "As it turns out, earning a star takes a little more than surviving the late '90s box office," she said. "It takes vision, determination and an extraordinary amount of hard work. So to see David's name become part of that story today is incredibly special." David Beckham's star on the Walk of Fame comes as the 2026 FIFA World Cup is underway. The soccer legend, who made three World Cup appearances over the course of his storied career, said receiving the honor feels "surreal." "I've always

A cancelable ear <b>recognition</b> system via optimized deep feature fusion | Scientific Reports

Abstract The rapid expansion of biometric authentication technologies worldwide has heightened the need for highly reliable and secure identification methods. This research explores the human ear as a distinctive biometric trait, capitalizing on its stable and person-specific anatomical structure. Although ear biometrics offer notable advantages, their practical use is hindered by image variations arising from changes in pose, scale, rotation, illumination, and contrast. To overcome these challenges, this paper presents an innovative deep learning-based ear recognition framework. The proposed approach employs a dual-stream feature extraction strategy that integrates two advanced Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) models MobileNetV3 and DenseNet-121 to derive rich and complementary feature representations, which are subsequently fused. The resulting high-dimensional feature space is then optimized using a Multi-Learning Strategy Golden Eagle Optimization (MLSGEO) algorithm to retain only the most discriminative features. To strengthen security and privacy, the refined feature vector is transformed into a non-invertible, cancelable biometric template using a Comb-filter–based protection mechanism. Data augmentation techniques are further applied to compensate for dataset size limitations. The framework was evaluated on five benchmark ear datasets: AMI, AWE, IITD-I, IITD-II, and UERC, achieving recognition accuracies of 99.90%, 99.64%, 99.78%, 99.32%, and 93.31%, respectively. Experimental findings show that the proposed system outperforms existing state-of-the-art methods. Overall, the integration of robust feature learning with a resilient template protection scheme demonstrates strong potential for secure and high-accuracy biometric authentication applications. Introduction The rapid expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) has reshaped modern digital ecosystems, creating networks of interconnected smart devices that automate processes and enable seamless communication across industrial, domestic, and urban infrastructures. Although these advancements deliver unprecedented convenience and efficiency, they simultaneously introduce significant security vulnerabilities, particularly in scenarios where reliable user identification remains critical. Conventional authentication methods—such as passwords, PINs, or physical tokens—are increasingly inadequate, as they can be forgotten,

Photiu Launches Free AI <b>Image</b> Upscaler to Enhance Photo Quality Without Sign-Up

NEW YORK, United States – 13th June 2026 – Photiu launched a free, browser-based AI image upscaler designed to help users enhance photo assets instantly without software installation, account creation, or subscription fees. The tool accepts common image formats including JPG, JPEG, PNG, and WEBP and applies an automated machine learning pipeline to reconstruct missing detail, remove compression artifacts, and sharpen edges. The service is intended to enhance photo files that are blurry, compressed, or low-resolution and to deliver cleaner results than conventional pixel-stretching resizing methods. Photiu’s processing approach upscales first and then downscales. When an image is uploaded, the system analyzes visual patterns, reduces noise, reconstructs textures, and redraws sharp edges before returning a resized result. That workflow is described as producing a larger, cleaner intermediate that maintains more clarity when adjusted to target dimensions. The underlying deep learning models were trained on millions of high-quality image pairs, enabling recognition and reconstruction of common visual elements such as skin tones, fabric textures, architectural lines, and natural scenery. The platform’s automatic pipeline does not require manual sliders, quality presets, or technical decisions. Users upload an image and the AI completes background processing, producing a cleaner output within seconds. The fully automatic flow is positioned to make it feasible for designers, marketers, content creators, and everyday users to upscale image resolution quickly without prior editing experience. Photiu also includes an AI-based magic eraser that removes unwanted people, objects, or distractions and fills backgrounds to match surrounding content. The eraser functions alongside resolution enhancement and noise reduction, allowing the same session to address both unwanted elements and image clarity. The noise and artifact removal component is intended to clean images that have been saved multiple times, compressed by social platforms, or captured on older devices where invisible compression damage degrades gradients and

Find out how an Argus reporter won The Traitors with zero skill

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous going to the Traitors: Live Experience considering I’d always struggled to follow the series. With my housemates, my facial recognition became such a point of contention during the last series that I eventually begged one of our tutors — the only person I knew who owned a printer — to produce twelve A4 photographs of the cast. I argued it was his pastoral duty to intervene. Four months later, the photos remain pinned up on our kitchen wall. The day of the Traitors Experience was filled with desperate anticipation. In the name of hard-hitting journalism, I briefly considered concealing both my identity and my friendship with my housemate, Meg, that was coming along for the ride. Spoiler alert: this failed almost immediately. The time was now to show what I was made of. Surely playing it would be easier than watching it? After being granted entry by bodyguards into a gothic terrace in the heart of Covent Garden, we were led to the Cloak and Dagger pub. The psychological warfare started instantly. Alliances were quietly forming before people had even finished their first drink. One woman told me I had a doppelgänger, then refused to show me a photo because apparently she “hadn’t had a glow up yet”. A surprisingly effective intimidation tactic. A couple from California were favourites from the beginning. They flirted with a couple of American stereotypes by pretending they’d never even seen The Traitors. Nobody believed them for a second. After the bar, we were led through a series of maze-like corridors. We must have walked down about four before it dawned on me: this was a ploy to disorientate us. Paranoia had already set in. When we reached the end of the maze, we were led

San Francisco Gay Bars Are Scanning Patrons' Faces and Collecting Their Data

San Francisco Gay Bars Are Scanning Patrons’ Faces and Collecting Their Data Several bars in the Castro are now using facial recognition technology that records a person’s name, address, and even their gender. Featured image: cottonbro studio/Pexels Some bars in San Francisco’s famous Castro neighborhood have installed facial recognition kiosks, which collect information from people’s addresses to their genders. According to the Gazetteer SF, at least three bars in the historically LGBTQ+ district use something called a Patronscan Guard+, which is a device by a Canadian company that collects biometric and personal data. The devices collect names, addresses, genders, and patron behavior, the outlet reports. A reporter with Gazetteer SF went to the bars after none of the establishments responded to requests for comment, noting where the device was placed at one of them. “Like most private surveillance cameras, the Patronscan kiosk at Mix hides in plain sight. In the dim light of the bar, the black machine is easy to miss. I was also not instructed to face the camera when I handed my ID to the bouncer; when I asked if I would be photographed, the bouncer told me the camera had in fact already taken my picture,” Cydney Hayes wrote. “They said Mix bouncers are not required to verbally tell each patron that they’re being photographed by the Patronscan device. Instead, they rely on a small informational plaque posted to the kiosk below eye level to inform customers what data is being collected and how it will be used.” A bouncer told Gazetteer SF that the information gathered from the Patronscan device keeps the data for about a month and then deletes it. If a person has been unruly at the bar, that information is saved. The devices have caused some bar patrons to be concerned. “I

AI editing at Apple and an indicator light for glasses – Photo News of the Week

AI editing at Apple and an indicator light for glasses – Photo News of the Week Apple adds AI tools to Photos. Meta deletes facial recognition from Ray-Ban glasses. US law demands recording light for smart glasses. WWDC 2026 brought quite a few interesting things for photographers: Apple is equipping its Photos app with three new AI-powered editing tools. While the company is still keeping details about the specific functions under wraps, the integration into OS 27 and “Apple Intelligence” at least promises that the editing will take place directly on the device – a plus for privacy-conscious users. However, whether the tools can do more than the already established AI functions of the competition will only become clear in the fall when OS 27 is rolled out. Meta secretly wipes away evidence What's happening at Meta is much more explosive: After the company vehemently denied integrating facial recognition technology into its Ray-Ban Smart Glasses, developers discovered corresponding code in the app. Shortly thereafter, this code, however, disappeared silently and without official explanation. This not only smells of a guilty conscience but also raises the question of what Meta actually intends to do with the recordings from its glasses wearers. The whole operation is reminiscent of a burglar quickly wiping away fingerprints when leaving the crime scene. Only here, millions of users are potentially affected. Meta continues to claim that it does not use facial recognition – but why the code then? And why the secret deletion? Building trust definitely works differently. Lawmakers demand visible warning lights Speaking of trust: In the US, representatives have introduced a bill that would require smart glasses with recording functions to have a clearly visible warning light. The “Smart Glasses Recording Act” is intended to prevent people from being secretly filmed – a problem

Southwest Florida man sues Jacksonville police after AI-error leads to arrest

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A southwest Florida man, who Action News Jax first reported was wrongly arrested for trying to lure a child in Jacksonville Beach, is now suing the police department and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office for using an AI-based facial recognition system to make the arrest. We first told you about Robert Dillon’s botched 2024 arrest last July. “He just told me that I was wanted out of Jacksonville for a warrant. And when we got in the car, he told me that it was for attempted alluring of a child. And of course I’m completely dumbfounded,” Dillon said. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< Since then, we’ve documented one other wrongful arrest case here in Duval using the same technology. Jalil Richardson, from North Carolina, sat in jail here for weeks for a stolen car case. “There was no proper investigation done, um, to even reach out to me or to see if I was even in Florida,” Richardson said in a previous interview with Action News Jax. Richardson was set free after his attorney provided timesheets to show he was at work when the crime was committed. Action News Jax spoke with Dillon and his attorney about their call for a change in policy when it comes to facial recognition. He said he had never been to Jacksonville. “The only time I’ve ever even been close to Jacksonville is going up 95 towards my hometown,” Dillon said. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Dillon says neither his case nor Richardson’s should have happened. “I don’t wish this upon my worst enemy. I was taken away from my home, taken away from my wife, taken way from my child. And it put in a holding cell for hours, put in the back of a van

Why are San Francisco gay bars scanning patrons' faces?

The use of facial-scanning technology at several San Francisco gay bars has angered many in the LGBTQ+ community. At locations often frequented by people who are not publicly out, the notion of tracking patrons' whereabouts in the very havens sought for privacy raises many alarms. At least three gay bars in the Castro District have started using Patronscan Guard+, a technology intended to flag fake IDs, according to the San Francisco Gazetteer. But the experience of having a camera turned on every person entering the venues, often without warning, has left many outraged. Hart Owen told the outlet that she considers the surveillance technology a serious risk to privacy. “It’s really not great to have lists of gay people,” they said. Management at Mix, Badlands, and Toad Hall declined to speak to the Gazetteer about the issue, though bouncers pointed reporters to signage informing guests that the technology was being used. Related: Could Minneapolis welcome bathhouses back for the first time since the late 1980s? The Patronscan website offers insight into how the data can be used. The technology, according to the company, goes beyond simple document checks to validate identification and includes third-party checks. Those could flag people wanted by law enforcement or those appearing on sex offender registries. The company said it uses more than 8,500 forensic checks for every ID card scanned in bars, cross-referencing information to verify ages and names with listed addresses, “giving your front-of-house team real-time access to the patron intelligence they need.” The site also addresses privacy concerns. “We know this is one of the first questions operators ask, and we want to be clear: when a Third-Party Check runs, we use only the guest’s name and address to compare against publicly available information, such as confirming that an address exists and is

Spectrometer-free time-division multiplexed NIR time-of-flight vision system for visually ...

Spectrometer-free time-division multiplexed NIR time-of-flight vision system for visually similar material recognition - Open Access - 01.12.2026 - Article Abstract Introduction Machine vision systems have rapidly advanced across diverse fields, including automated manufacturing, robotics, and intelligent inspection. These developments have been largely driven by vision-based measurement (VBM) techniques, which integrate vision sensors, electronics, and computational algorithms1. The rise of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly machine learning (ML)-based classification and recognition methods, has significantly enhanced image analysis capabilities, improving the accuracy, reliability, and speed of measurement systems2‐7. Consequently, VBM has evolved from a simple image-processing approach into an essential tool for modern instrumentation and automation. Despite these advances, most existing vision systems still rely on RGB cameras, which provide only color and geometric information. This limits their ability to capture intrinsic material characteristics and fine surface geometry8‐11. RGB-D sensors partially alleviate this limitation by integrating active depth sensing, yet the mismatch between RGB and depth-map resolutions, along with insufficient spectral information, hinders their effectiveness in distinguishing visually similar materials12. Polarization-sensitive imaging has also been investigated as a useful modality for distinguishing visually similar materials by providing additional contrast related to scattering and surface optical properties13,14. Accurate and reliable acquisition of both material and geometric information remains a critical requirement for high-precision object recognition in production lines, recycling systems, and humanoid robotics15‐18. Anzeige The use of NIR lights (900–2500 nm) has emerged as a promising technique due to its rich material-dependent reflection and absorption features, which are more sensitive to molecular composition19‐23. Multispectral and hyperspectral imaging in the NIR range has demonstrated high effectiveness in identifying material characteristics, enabling more precise discrimination than visible-light imaging20,24‐27. However, these techniques typically rely on incoherent light sources, leading to low measurement efficiency and the inability to simultaneously capture depth information28‐31. NIR multispectral LiDAR systems have recently

Local protest and state lawsuit against federal immigration facility in Gilroy | 90.3 KAZU

In today's newscast: Rally outside the Amazon data center in Gilroy tomorrow Protestors will rally outside the Amazon data center in Gilroy tomorrow afternoon against federal plans for an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility nearby. Rebeca Armendariz previously helped organize the No Kings protest. She is connected to Santa Clara County's Community Agency for Resources, Advocacy and Services (CARAS) and the local Your Allied Rapid Response Network (YARR). "We want folks to remember the connection between ICE and data centers," said Armendariz, who adds Amazon provides cloud and data storage services to tech companies that work with ICE. These companies have provided facial recognition software and AI tools to identify potential targets for ICE arrests and deportations. For example, Armendariz says Amazon has partnered with tech company Palantir and more funding has emboldened the agency. "ICE now has an extremely large budget to hire and to build more infrastructure," said Armendariz. She also warns attempts to reopen a former federal women’s prison in Dublin, as Northern California’s first ICE detention center, could make it easier to carry out raids. "From the Central Coast to the Bay Area, having a processing center and having a detention center so nearby is gonna impact all of us. None of our communities is safe," she said. "So we need to push back and fight back everywhere from Dublin to Gilroy to the whole state and across the country.” California and Santa Clara County also fight back California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Santa Clara County have filed a joint lawsuit against the Trump administration over the proposed ICE facility in Gilroy. Santa Clara County counsel Tony LoPresti spoke at a press conference on Wednesday. "Our suit sends a simple message: in this county and in this state, the law doesn’t yield to the Trump

Fort Myers man sues Jax Beach police, JSO after AI <b>facial recognition</b> leads to wrongful ...

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – As artificial intelligence becomes a bigger part of police investigations nationwide, critics warn that the technology can still make serious mistakes. News4JAX obtained arrest video showing a Fort Myers man being taken into custody after facial recognition software wrongly identified him as a child abduction suspect. Robert Dillon, 52, is now suing multiple law enforcement agencies in federal court, alleging his civil rights were violated after he was arrested and jailed before charges were later dropped. Body-worn camera video from August 2024 shows a Lee County Sheriff’s Office deputy at Dillon’s Fort Myers home telling him Jacksonville Beach police suspected him of luring or attempting to abduct a child. Police said Dillon was identified through facial recognition software, which they described as a match. Dillon was among more than two dozen people who have been wrongfully arrested after being identified through facial recognition technology since 2019, according to his attorneys. In Dillon’s case, the criminal charges were eventually dropped after further investigation determined police had arrested the wrong man. Dillon has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the Jacksonville Beach Police Department, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office — which his lawyers say ran the facial recognition search — and the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, which also houses AI technology. Police said the facial recognition system returned what they described as a 93% match. Ann Liebschutz, a government affairs specialist, said AI tools have improved rapidly in recent years. Still, she said mistaken arrests can be avoided when investigators apply proper standards before seeking an arrest warrant. “The professional duty of care that needs to be exercised when procuring an arrest warrant can eliminate any of these challenges we have with the technology identifying the wrong person,” Liebschutz said. She said she expects fewer mistaken arrests as agencies