UK intelligence committee slams IP Bill for being too vague

The UK’s Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) has struck out at a controversial surveillance law being proposed by the UK government, the Investigatory Powers Bill (IP Bill). The response is notable because the Committee is one of three groups that were commissioned to look into the UK’s patchwork of laws before the IP Bill was drafted. The authors believe the new bill has “suffered from a lack of sufficient time and preparation” and doesn’t cover some important powers held by the UK’s intelligence agencies. Given the purpose of the law is to collect, update and explain these abilities, the Committee calls the bill “a missed opportunity.”

The new report delves deeper into the government’s proposed legislation, taking issue with three specific capabilities — equipment interference, more commonly known as hacking, bulk personal data datasets and communications data, which refers to peripheral information about our conversations such as where, when and how a message was sent or received. The Committee says these abilities are too broad and “lack sufficient clarity.” In addition, the group says the bill has “a rather piecemeal approach” to privacy protections and that these should be written into its own, central section. Each of the proposed powers would then need to reference this like a checklist throughout the bill.

“Taken as a whole, the draft Bill fails to deliver the clarity that is so badly needed in this area. The issues under consideration are undoubtedly complex, however it has been evident that even those working on the legislation have not always been clear as to what the provisions are intended to achieve.”

One of the biggest mysteries surrounding the IP Bill is its proposed impact on encryption. In an introductory section, the Home Office stresses that there will be “no additional requirements in relation to encryption over and above the existing obligations in RIPA.” That last acronym being the the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, which is the UK’s primary piece of surveillance legislation at the moment. It’s already a murky subject, but in the new legislation there’s also mention of a “technical capability notice” that asks for “the removal of electronic protection applied by a relevant operator to any communications or data.”

Would that affect end-to-end encryption and if so, how? The purpose of such protection is to ensure the provider can’t decrypt users’ conversations, even if they want to or receive a request from the government. Under the draft IP Bill, are they banned from offering users this encryption in the first place? Or could they simply decline based on the fact it’s impossible for them to comply? The Home Secretary Theresa May has provided some muddled answers, which worry the ISC:

“The Home Office must ensure that the legislation provides clarity as to the nature and scale of these obligations.”

The report chimes with what plenty of companies have argued during the joint committee’s investigation — the IP Bill needs to be clearer with its proposals. The government has tried to defend its position, suggesting that if it’s too specific the law will quickly become outdated. Then we’ll be in this same position again, debating minutiae back and forth for months. Of course, that’s no excuse for failing to provide adequate safeguards or a clear, accessible explanation of the general powers being awarded.

The joint committee is due to publish its own report later this week. It’s a crucial document which the government will need to review before finalising the IP Bill. Based on the evidence that’s been submitted, we’re expecting a laundry list of criticisms to rival those set out by the ISC.

Source: Intelligence and Security Committee

Uber shuts down its app in Paris to support driver protest

Uber will suspend its service in Paris today between 11 AM and 3 PM in support of a driver protest against proposed legislation from the French government. So far, the company has distanced itself from the conflict, but said it will shut down its app in support of its Paris drivers, the first time it has ever done so. The issue, of course, is about private chauffeur services and apps like Uber versus traditional taxis. The government banned the UberPop service last year, so there are no longer concerns over non-professional drivers. However, it now wants to stop a group of minicab chauffeurs from using Uber and other apps.

“Many professional drivers have been protesting in recent days — their fears are understandable — and they have asked us for support. As many as 10,000 families face financial uncertainty after the job they’d been doing was taken away from them,” an Uber representative told The Local. The company was referring to past agreements made by a private driver group that the French government now wants to rip up. “Mr. Valls Guillotined us,” said a spokesman, referring to French Prime Minister Manuel Valls.

Certaines plateformes numériques veulent imposer leur monde sans règle à la République, la République sera toujours plus forte.

— L Grandguillaume (@LGRANDGUILLAUME) January 30, 2016

Taxi drivers staged their own protest late last month, which was followed by a “funeral march” of Uber vehicles on February 3rd. The driver group, which said Uber and other apps provide up to 70 percent of its business, wants to stop new regulations that could further hamper its chauffeurs. French mediator Laurent Grandguillaume is trying to decide which new rules, if any, the government will impose on the apps. However, he recently tweeted that “some digital platforms want to impose their world without regard to the law, but the Republic will always be stronger.” As a result, many critics think he’s already made up his mind in favor of taxis.

Via: The Verge

Source: The Local

Withings Hy-result analyzes your blood pressure

Next time you open the Withings Health Mate app on iOS, you’ll find an option named “HyResult” when you click the + button in your timeline. It’s a new add-on that can analyze your blood pressure if you want to monitor it closely, developed by hypertension specialists from Hospital Georges Pompidou in Paris. If you decide to get it — note that it’ll cost you $5 — the feature will prompt you to answer a list of questions about your health, lifestyle and physical stats.

Once you’ve set it up, you’ll need to take your blood pressure thrice in the morning and thrice in the evening for five straight days. You can either use a connected device like Withing’s own Wireless Blood Pressure Monitor, or just type in the data manually. Hy-result will then assess your blood pressure data, taking into account the information you’ve given it. The feature’s final report will include your average blood pressure, color-coded to indicate if it falls within normal range or if you’re hypertensive. It’ll also include preventative measures you can take for any heart health risk and a PDF with the results that you can share with a doctor. You can see some screenshots of the in-app function right here.

Withings says it proved Hy-result’s efficacy in a clinical trial that compared its findings with those of hypertension specialists’. According to the study published in Blood Pressure Monitoring Journal, the results generated by the app were the same as the specialists’ findings 95.4 percent of the time. The feature’s now available for download through the iOS app, but (unfortunately for a lot of people) only if you’re in the US, Canada, UK or France.

Source: NCBI, Withings (1), (2)

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