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    Conservatives halt digital ad campaigns after daily spend plunged

    Sign up to our free weekly IndyTech newsletter delivered straight to your inboxSign up to our free IndyTech newsletterThe Conservative Party has paused its digital advertising on major platforms, having spent tens of thousands of pounds a day in the early period of the election.The party has halted all its campaigns on Google and Meta platforms – which include YouTube, Facebook and Instagram – in a move that may suggest the party is changing its political strategy ahead of the general election on 4 July.As of 7 June, the Conservatives are not spending to promote adverts, according to the tech companies’ transparency platforms. At the end of May, spending peaked, with the party paying out £100,000 in just one day, according to Who Tracks Me, a group that monitors online political advertising.The Conservative Party has not responded to a request for comment on the advertising pause. It comes as Mr Sunak faces considerable criticism for his decision to return to the campaign trail before the end of the D-Day commemoration events in France, which were attended by other world leaders. Rishi Sunak spoke in Portsmouth for the 80th anniversary of D-Day, before facing criticism for missing some events in France. (Neil Hall/PA) More

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    AI is coming to help national security – but could bring major risks, official report warns

    Sign up to our free weekly IndyTech newsletter delivered straight to your inboxSign up to our free IndyTech newsletterAI could have profound implications for national security – including posing a host of risks, a new government-commissioned report warns.Artificial intelligence is a valuable tool to help senior officials in government and intelligence make decisions, it says. But it could also lead to inaccuracies, confusion and other dangers, it warns.Senior officials must be trained to spot those problems, and there is a critical need for any AI systems to be carefully watched and continuously monitored to ensure they don’t lead to more bias and errors, it warns.Problems may arise, for instance, because some officials believe that AI is far more capable and certain than it actually is. In fact, artificial intelligence often works on probabilities – and can be wildly wrong, it warns.Choosing not use AI comes with its own risks, including missing patterns across data that could be central to keeping people safe, the report says.But the vast risks of using it also means that there could be more bias and uncertainty. “There is a critical need for careful design, continuous monitoring, and regular adjustment of AI systems to mitigate the risk of amplifying human biases and errors in intelligence assessment,” the report says.Those are the conclusions of the new report from the Alan Turing Institute, the UK’s national research organisation for AI. It was commissioned by British intelligence agencies, the Joint Intelligence Organisation (JIO) and Government Communication Headquarters (GCHQ).The official report did not give any information on how much AI is currently used by intelligence agencies, or how mature that technology is. But it urged that work to counteract the potentially major dangers should begin immediately, to ensure that any future introduction of AI is done safely.The government said that it would consider the recommendations of the report and that it was already working on combating the potential dangers that the technology could bring.“We are already taking decisive action to ensure we harness AI safely and effectively, including hosting the inaugural AI Safety Summit and the recent signing of our AI Compact at the Summit for Democracy in South Korea,” said Oliver Dowden, the deputy prime minister.“We will carefully consider the findings of this report to inform national security decision makers to make the best use of AI in their work protecting the country.”The report was written by the Centre for Emerging Technology and Security (CETaS), which is based within the Alan Turing Institute. Officials there noted the importance of decision makers ensuring that they understand the nature of information that has been informed by artificial intelligence.“Our research has found that AI is a critical tool for the intelligence analysis and assessment community. But it also introduces new dimensions of uncertainty, which must be effectively communicated to those making high-stakes decisions based on AI-enriched insights,” said Alexander Babuta, director of The Alan Turing Institute’s Centre for Emerging Technology and Security.“As the national institute for AI, we will continue to support the UK intelligence community with independent, evidence-based research, to maximise the many opportunities that AI offers to help keep the country safe.”GCHQ, which jointly commissioned the report, said that it saw great potential in AI – but that it was important to work on safe uses of it too.“AI is not new to GCHQ or the intelligence assessment community, but the accelerating pace of change is,” said Anne Keast-Butler, director of GCHQ. “In an increasingly contested and volatile world, we need to continue to exploit AI to identify threats and emerging risks, alongside our important contribution to ensuring AI safety and security.” More

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    New ‘magical thinking’ law puts everyone’s privacy at risk, warns Signal president

    For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Upcoming UK internet legislation is based on “magical thinking” that puts everyone’s privacy at risk, the head of secure messaging app Signal has warned. Meredith Whittaker, Signal’s president, […] More

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    UK banning TikTok on official devices

    For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails The UK government will ban TikTok on official devices. A review by the National Cyber Security Centre will advise that the Chinese-owned app should be barred from government […] More

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    UK considering fully banning TikTok, minister says

    For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails TikTok could be fully banned in the UK, the security minister has suggested. The app has faced a range of bans in countries across the world, including the […] More