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Microsoft will pay $20M to settle U.S. charges of illegally collecting children’s data

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:58:10 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Microsoft will pay a fine of $20 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it illegally collected and retained the data of children who signed up to use its Xbox video game console. The agency charged that Microsoft gathered the data without notifying parents or obtaining their consent, and that it also illegally held onto the data. Those actions violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, the FTC stated.In a blog post, Microsoft corporate vice president for Xbox Dave McCarthy outlined additional steps the company is now taking to improve its age verification systems and to ensure that parents are involved in the creation of child accounts for the service. These mostly concern efforts to improve age verification technology and to educate children and parents about privacy issues.McCarthy also said the company had identified and fixed a technical glitch that failed to delete child accounts in cases where the account creation process never...

Ottawa police officer confronted child for flipping the bird: human rights lawyer

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:58:10 GMT

The actions of an Ottawa police officer are under review after cops allegedly pulled over a school bus because a boy gave them the middle finger.Anne Levesque was with her daughters standing at a downtown Ottawa bus stop May 9 when two police officers in a cruiser suddenly pulled over an elementary school bus filled with children.Levesque, a human rights lawyer, says one officer entered the bus and scolded a boy for gesturing rudely at the police.She says another officer standing guard outside the bus falsely explained to a concerned parent that the vehicle was stopped for safety reasons because the children were jumping in the bus.Both Levesque and the boy’s father have filed complaints against the officer who entered the bus.The province’s Office of the Independent Police Review Director says an investigation into the matter by the Ottawa Police Service’s professional standards department is to be completed within 120 days.Levesque says the officer who spoke to t...

Speranza Scappucci to become Royal Opera’s principal guest conductor

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:58:10 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Speranza Scappucci will become principal guest conductor of London’s Royal Opera starting with the 2025-26 season.Her appointment was announced by the company on Monday.The 50-year-old Italian, a graduate of the Santa Cecilia Conservatory in Rome and the Juilliard School in New York, made her Royal Opera debut last year in Verdi’s “Attila.” The Royal Opera has not had a principal guest conductor since Daniele Gatti from 1994-97.She will work alongside Jakub Hrůša, who succeeds Antonio Pappano as music director for the 2025-26 season. The house said Scappucci will be involved in works by Verdi and Puccini along with bel canto.Scappucci was music director of Belgium’s Opéra Royal de Wallonie-Liège from 2017-22 and has debuted with the Metropolitan Opera, the Vienna State Opera, Milian’s Teatro alla Scala and the Paris Opéra.The Associated Press

Police in South Florida arrest 3 suspects in Memorial Day beach shooting

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:58:10 GMT

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (AP) — Police in South Florida arrested two men over the weekend and a third on Monday suspected of going on a Memorial Day shooting spree along a busy beachside promenade that injured nine people.Detectives from the Hollywood Police Department took Ariel Cardahn Paul into custody on Sunday night and Lionel JeanCharles Jr. on Monday afternoon, the agency said in a news release. On Saturday, Hollywood detectives and the U.S. Marshal’s Task Force arrested Jordan Burton. JeanCharles, Paul and Burton have been identified by police as the shooters, the agency said. They will each face charges of attempted first-degree murder, eight counts of attempted murder in the second degree and one count of carrying a concealed firearm.Two men who were involved in the altercation that led to the shooting — Morgan Deslouches and Keshawn Stewart, both 18 — were arrested last week on firearms charges, police said. Five handguns have been recovered, with one of them reported stolen...

Illinois Google users to receive $95 payments in privacy settlement

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:58:10 GMT

CHICAGO, Ill. (WTVO) — Illinois Google users who filed as part of a class action lawsuit can expect to see payments of about $95 each.The Chicago Tribune reported more than 687,000 current and former Illinois residents are eligible for the payment.Google was accused in the complaint of violating the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act. The complaint accused Google of using a face regrouping tool in the Google Photos app to sort photographs without user consent. When will Facebook settlement payments be sent out? Here’s what we know Google reached a settlement of $100 million in the case.Class-action members who appeared in a photo in the Google Photos app between May 1, 2015, and April 25, 2022, were eligible for a cut of the settlement.The payments were delayed while the claims were verified.“We’re pleased to resolve this matter relating to specific laws in Illinois, and we remain committed to building easy-to-use controls for our users,” a Google spokesperson said.Th...

Kansas City Chiefs honored at White House for Super Bowl win

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:58:10 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Kansas City Chiefs met the Commander in Chief at the White House on Monday while pausing to remember the matriarch of the organization Norma Hunt. Monday's trip was planned months ago to celebrate the Chiefs Super Bowl LVII win over the Philadelphia Eagles in February.Former teammates like JuJu Smith-Schuster, Chad Henne and Andrew Wylie joined Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and other current members of the Chiefs organization for the honor.Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt did not make the trip to the White House after announcing his mother, Norma Hunt, died Sunday at the age of 85. This is when Kansas City Chiefs tickets go on sale for Germany game The wife of team founder Lamar Hunt, Norma is the only woman to have attended all 57 Super Bowls, the event her husband helped create.At Monday's ceremony, Biden held a moment of silence to honor Norma Hunt.Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce present Pres...

Anna Shay, star of Netflix's 'Bling Empire,' dies

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:58:10 GMT

(KTLA) - Anna Shay of the Netflix hit "Bling Empire" has died. Her family issued a statement and explained the "loving mother, grandmother, [and] charismatic star" passed away after suffering a stroke. She was 62. “Anna taught us many life lessons on how not to take life too seriously and to enjoy the finer things," the statement obtained by People read. “Her impact on our lives will be forever missed but never forgotten.”"Bling Empire" follows the lives of a group of wealthy Angelenos of Asian descent. Robert Hanssen, FBI agent convicted of spying, dies in Colorado supermax prison Ever since she appeared on the first season of the reality show back in 2021, her lavish lifestyle and no-nonsense attitude won over fans. Shay starred in the show's three seasons. She also ended up being a mother figure to some of her castmates. Her costar Kelly Mi Li took to social media to pay homage to the matriarch following her passing. "RIP @annashay93. You are truly one of a kind and we wil...

United Airlines to launch bag drop 'shortcut' at AUS

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:58:10 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — United Airlines is partnering with Austin-Bergstrom International Airport to make it easier for passengers to get off the ground. Austin airport expects record-breaking number of summer travelers In the next two weeks, United is unveiling a new "bag drop shortcut" for customers with the United app at AUS.How it worksInside the app, customers can choose how many bags you're checking. Once you get to the airport, go to the specific United bag drop shortcut kiosk.Then, customers can place their bag on the scale and scan their boarding pass. From there, the agent will check ID and take the bag.United said its goal is to get people's bags checked in faster, in order to get them through TSA and to their gates quicker.In 2023, AUS expects to break its summer passenger record set last year. In May 2022, AUS saw more than 2.02 million travelers, a record-breaking month for the airport. This summer, airlines are offering more destinations and are selling between 4-7% more se...

After strong start, Stillwater’s Ben Warian misses out on U.S. Open qualifying

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:58:10 GMT

Stillwater native Ben Warian made a strong push for U.S. Open qualification Monday in Lakewood, Wash., before falling off late in what’s known as “the longest day in golf.”Twelve U.S. Open qualifiers — all 36 holes — were held in North America on Monday, a week ahead of the U.S. Open. The Gophers junior competed at Tacoma Country and Golf Club, where the top-two finishers out of 54 competitors would qualify for men’s golf’s third major championship of the year.Warian fired a 2-under round of 69 over his first 18 holes. That had him inside the top two and on the verge of punching his U.S. Open ticket. Warian — who qualified for NCAA Regionals for Minnesota this spring — moved his aggregate score to 3 under through the first five holes of his second round, only to go four over through a four-hole stretch that included a double bogey on a par-5.Warian shot a 5-over round of 76 in his second round of 18. His 3 over cumulative score l...

One dead, several injured in South St. Paul head-on car crash Monday afternoon

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:58:10 GMT

One person is dead and two others injured after a head-on crash in South St. Paul Monday afternoon that authorities say involved a suspected drunk driver.Police gave the following details about the 3:20 p.m. crash at Concord Street near Chestnut Street on the department’s Facebook page:A 55-year-old Oakdale man driving a truck north on Concord Street was struck head on by the driver of a minivan who had crossed over from the southbound lanes. The driver of the truck suffered serious injuries and was taken to the hospital.Two passengers in the minivan were critically injured and taken to an area hospital, where one person was pronounced dead. The driver of the minivan, a 53-year-old woman from Menomonie, Wis., was arrested on suspicion of probable cause criminal vehicular operation and was taken to an area hospital. Authorities believe alcohol played a role in the crash.Concord Street north of Poplar Street was shut down for several hours Monday afternoon.The incident remains u...