Welcome to the March 24, 2025 edition of ACM TechNews, providing timely information for computer professionals three times a week.

HEADLINES AT A GLANCE

• China Issues Facial Recognition Technology Guidelines
• AlexNet Source Code Is Open Sourced
• Executive Order Consolidates Federal IT Contracting Under GSA
• Madrid Plans to Limit Computer, Tablet Use in Primary Schools
• Security Protocol Protects Wireless Medical Implants from Cyberthreats
• Facebook to Stop Targeting Ads at U.K. Woman After Legal Fight
• NOAA Launches Storm Surge Virtual Reality Experience
• Automakers, Tech Industry Urge U.S. to Speed Self-Driving Car Deployment
• Sensory Training Robot Helps Pianists Break Skill Limits
• As AI Nurses Reshape Hospital Care, Human Nurses Push Back
• Ransomware Attacks Surged 50% in February
• AI-Driven Weather Prediction Breakthrough Reported

China Issues Facial Recognition Technology Guidelines

The Cyberspace Administration of China and that nation’s Ministry of Public Security on Friday jointly issued detailed measures for the application of facial recognition technology. Due to take effect on June 1, the measures stipulate that use of the technology should have a specific purpose and sufficient necessity, while minimizing the impact on personal rights and implementing strict protective measures.
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AlexNet Source Code Is Open Sourced

The Computer History Museum (CHM), in partnership with Google, has released the source code to AlexNet, an artificial neural network created to recognize the contents of photographic images. Developed in 2012 by then University of Toronto graduate students Alex Krizhevsky and Ilya Sutskever and their faculty advisor, ACM A.M. Turing Award laureate Geoffrey Hinton, the source code is available as open source on CHM’s GitHub page.
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Executive Order Consolidates Federal IT Contracting Under GSA

According to an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on March 20, the contracting of common goods and services, including IT, will be consolidated under the General Services Administration (GSA). GSA will assume the role of executive agent of all government-wide acquisition contracts for IT within 30 days. The GSA administrator can "defer or decline" being the executive agent of IT government-wide contracts "when necessary to ensure continuity of service or as otherwise appropriate."
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Madrid Plans to Limit Computer, Tablet Use in Primary Schools

Madrid, Spain's regional government has proposed limits on the use of computers and tablets in primary schools, which will go into effect in September. Children up to age 3 will be prohibited from using screens, and students aged 3 to 6 will be permitted one supervised hour of computer time per week. The maximum computer time per week will rise to 90 minutes for students in years three and four of primary school and two hours for students in years five and six. Additionally, teachers will be restricted from assigning homework that involves the use of devices "outside the school timetable."
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Security Protocol Protects Wireless Medical Implants from Cyberthreats

An authentication protocol developed by Rice University researchers was designed to protect wireless implants from cyber threats while enabling emergency access. The magnetoelectric datagram transport layer security (ME-DTLS) protocol leverages a flaw in wireless power transfers in which lateral or side-to-side movements trigger a signal misalignment. Explained Rice's Kaiyuan Yang, "We turned it into a security feature by transmitting binary values to specific movements with full awareness of the patient."
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Facebook to Stop Targeting Ads at U.K. Woman After Legal Fight

Facebook has agreed to stop targeting advertisements at a U.K. woman who sued Meta in 2022 to stop using her personal data to fill her social media feeds with targeted ads based on topics in which it thought she was interested. The case was based on the argument that Facebook's targeted advertising system was covered by the U.K.'s definition of direct marketing, giving individuals the right to object, with which the Information Commissioner's Office agreed.
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NOAA Launches Storm Surge Virtual Reality Experience

A new virtual reality simulation funded by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows how quickly rising waters from a storm surge can threaten lives and structures. Created with help from researchers at the University of Georgia and Clemson University, the "Weather the Storm" simulation was designed to improve storm surge preparedness by dramatizing what happens in a beach house during an intense hurricane.
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Automakers, Tech Industry Urge U.S. to Speed Self-Driving Car Deployment

In a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, a group of automakers and tech groups called for the speedy implementation of a national performance-based framework for self-driving vehicles. Among other things, the letter asked the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration be deemed sole regulator of self-driving vehicle hardware, software, and operation. The groups also want the U.S. Transportation Department to not require human drivers to operate self-driving commercial motor vehicles.
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Sensory Training Robot Helps Pianists Break Skill Limits

A team led by Shinichi Furuya at Sony Computer Science Laboratories invented a robotic device that focuses on “sensory training,” to help pianists exceed their perceived limits. The device fits over a person’s hand and fingers like a glove and moves the wearer’s fingers automatically to a pre-programmed musical piece, reinforcing sensory input. Said Furuya, who once aspired to be a professional pianist, “I want to use science to improve the quality of practice, unlock hidden potential, and bring musicians the joy of achieving what once seemed impossible."
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As AI Nurses Reshape Hospital Care, Human Nurses Push Back

Hospitals increasingly are using AI to perform tasks previously handled by nurses. The hospitals say AI helps nurses work more efficiently while addressing burnout and understaffing, but nurses argue the technology is overriding their expertise and degrading care quality. National Nurses United, the largest nursing union in the U.S., is pushing for greater input into how AI can be used, and protection from discipline if nurses decide to disregard automated advice.
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Ransomware Attacks Surged 50% in February

Global ransomware levels increased by 50% last month compared to January, driven primarily by attacks from the cybercriminal operation dubbed Clop, according to a report by cybersecurity company NCC Group. February attacks reached an all-time monthly high of 886, compared to 590 in January, with nearly 40% of the incidents attributed to Clop activities.
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AI-Driven Weather Prediction Breakthrough Reported

An AI model can replace the numerical solver step in the weather prediction process to generate faster and more accurate predictions than today's supercomputers, according to researchers at the University of Cambridge in the U.K. Aardvark Weather, trained on raw data from weather stations, satellites, weather balloons, ships, and planes, uses only 10% of the input data required by conventional systems.
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