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Mind Blowing Monday: Copiers that spy on people, people who spy on people

Molly Wood Oct 18, 2010
HTML EMBED:
COPY

Mind Blowing Monday: Copiers that spy on people, people who spy on people

Molly Wood Oct 18, 2010
HTML EMBED:
COPY

It doesn’t always get the attention that, say, smartphone technology does but surveillance technology is making big leaps. And raising big issues and a bunch of eyebrows in the process. Today, another of our Mind Blowing Mondays with Jonathan Zittrain. He’s the co-founder and co-director of Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society. He teaches law at Harvard Law, and teaches computer science in the computer science department there. So, yeah, smart guy.

Jonathan tells us about new software in Canon copier/printers that can recognize particular words or phrases in whatever is being copied and block it from being copied. It can then send a copy of the attempted material to an administrator. He also let us know about a program that allows anyone to monitor the safety of drivers on the road and make money reporting violations. And in England, they need volunteers on home computers to watch surveillance video and flag any illegal activities (you can make a few quid if you catch someone).

Also in this show, we talk about a new website that tracks celebrities using social media, Google Maps, and a belief that such a thing is the right thing to make.

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