Tag: ban

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Iceland is considering legislation to ban the use of deepfakes on dead people

Iceland is considering introducing restrictions on the use of artificial intelligence to “revive” dead people. It comes after the national broadcaster used AI to “resurrect” the beloved comedian in a music video that aired during the country’s New Year celebrations.

The clip, featuring comedian Harman Gunnarsson, who died in 2013, was shown on Áramótaskaupin, a New Year’s variety show that is one of Iceland’s most popular annual television events. The video was created with the help of Icelandic startup OverTune, an app for creating music tracks on your phone that also has artificial voice capabilities.

“Overtune made headlines in Iceland with our AI music video for the National New Year’s Festival in collaboration with the National Broadcasting Station of Iceland. 5 voice AI models and 16 faces were trained. Characters include politicians, union leaders, a former president of Iceland on a tricycle, and Björk,” wrote Sigurdur Arnason, founder of OverTune. “We discussed the ethical and legal implications of this project, especially since we were bringing a beloved late comedian back to life.”

The debate in this country is reminiscent of the one that unfolded in the United States after a company created a “new” George Carlin comedy video using artificial intelligence.

In Iceland, Bjorn Levi Gunnarsson, a member of parliament from the Pirate Party, proposed a bill that would make it illegal to use deepfake technology and create digital doubles of any person without their permission, and make it illegal to revive a dead person using AI without the permission of their family.

In an interview, Arnason said most of the country’s controversy has focused on the national broadcaster, not OverTune.

“We are just a platform for making music, not knockoffs. But we did it, and the response was such that it basically shook the whole country. Parliament now puts it this way: ‘We must avoid this happening again.’”

Icelandic media reports that some members of the comedian’s family knew that he would be used for the video, but due to the “Christmas madness” not all of his children were aware of exactly how.

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Amazon tightens its return policy and begins to ban those who abuse it


Return a product on Amazon It is one of the simplest things in the world, and that has become a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it has caused a good image in the company that recently just boasted of having surpassed 100 million members with Prime membership. And on the other, it has caused some abuses by people who seek to take advantage of this situation. Well, apparently Amazon will be more strict on this issue.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Amazon has tightened its return policy, which has led to blocking those users who abuse this measure, either only prohibiting returns and in some cases blocking indefinitely the possibility of buying on the site.

Blockages without notice

Amazon explains in its terms and conditions that returns are allowed on “most products” up to 30 days after delivery. However, nowhere does it specify that there is a limit on returns per user.

Regarding this, Amazon stated the following:

“We want everyone to be able to use Amazon, but there are rare times when someone abuses our service for an extended period. We never make these decisions lightly, but with more than 300 million customers worldwide, we take action when appropriate to protect the experience of all our clients. If a client believes that we have made a mistake, we will ask them to contact us directly so that we can review their case and take the appropriate action. “

On the other hand, former Amazon employees claim that the company does block users requesting too many refunds, return the wrong items or violate the terms of use by writing product reviews after receiving money. An algorithm is said to flag questionable activity, and then everything is reviewed by a human, who determines if there are signs of fraud.

As for the users who have been banned from Amazon, there is nothing clear, since some say that it was clothing and in all cases they were returns for incorrect sizes. In fact there is a user who says that he only did six returns after 50 products purchased in the last year, and when trying to make a seventh return, he received an email asking him to explain the reason why he was returning the products.

@amazon – wow, great customer service, so personal and caring! Do u even read my return reasons (like 6 purchases in the last year … and that’s too many?) And a replacement for something I NEVER rec’d. #BadCustomerExperience #onlineshopping #Horrible #ShopLocal #BoycottAmazon pic.twitter.com/2DY1qHmFka

– Claire Bochner (@cmbochner) April 17, 2018

The reality is that this is not entirely new, in 2016 the first data of people banned for requesting refunds and returns emerged. But now, just by doing a search on Twitter, we will realize that this has been growing significantly so far this year, which could mean three things: that Amazon has tightened its policy; that now there are more people who abuse this measure; or the two above.

In Engadget | When Amazon’s return policy is so generous it allows you to steal $ 1.2 million

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Is your Xbox controller disconnecting? The reason is a ban from Microsoft itself


The Xbox support page has confirmed that it has started banning devices without an official license

Having an official controller for any console is a guarantee against any possible setback, and it is something that many users have experienced first-hand this week. In recent days, several Xbox players have taken to social networks and forums to talk about some problems, ensuring that Xbox controller keeps disconnectingpreventing you from enjoying your games.

Specifically, all users who have reported this type of problem are talking about third-party wireless controllers, not the official console controller. Apparently, all of them have seen how they were prohibited from using the controller after two weeks of purchasing the device, something that led many users to talk about this problem en masse. However, it seems that everything has an explanation.

Xbox console-related product Issue Update pic.twitter.com/QK0N41LmHW

— Brook Gaming (@brookgamingfans) October 20, 2023

Xbox controller disconnects due to lack of official license

Xbox’s own support page has confirmed that if the Xbox controller disconnects due to error 0x82d60002, it is because it is an accessory that “was not manufactured by Microsoft or another Xbox licensed hardware partner”. Therefore, this means that Microsoft has banned all devices that do not have an official license from the brand.

One of the accessories you are trying to connect was not manufactured by Microsoft or another Xbox licensed hardware partner.

The account of Brook Gaming on Twitter, confirming that several of its products will stop working or will be partially affected by the aforementioned error. In fact, it is confirmed that the models that the company cites will receive a countdown of two weeks from when they are connected to the console for the first time, after which their use will be permanently blocked in it, changing the code. error for a 0x82d60003.

Which brands are free from Microsoft ban?

Apparently, the change was introduced in the penultimate update that Xbox consoles received in the month of October, causing unlicensed controllers to disconnect after the stipulated time. This will lead many of you to ask What are the brands that currently have an Xbox license?. Well, currently, some of the brands that will continue to operate are the following:

  • Razer
  • Turtle Beach
  • Power-A

  • Thrustmaster

  • Victrix
  • PDP
  • HyperX

  • ASUS ROG

Whenever you come across an Xbox controller that incorporate the “licensed by Xbox” message, you will be sure that you will be able to continue using them in the future. Therefore, if you have recently considered the possibility of purchasing a new controller for your Xbox, it is important that you pay attention to these types of things, in order to avoid disappointment just two weeks later.