Predictim AI babysitter screening raises accuracy and bias concerns
Jessie Battaglia used Predictim, an online service that claims to use AI to assess babysitters' risk of drug abuse, bullying, or bad attitude. The service analyzes social media profiles and other online data. Experts have raised concerns about the accuracy and potential bias of the AI assessments. Predictim's CEO defended the service, saying it provides additional information for parents.
- Company involved
- Predictim
- AI system involved
- Predictim
10 source articles · read the reporting →
CFPB fines General Information Services for inaccurate background checks
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau took action against General Information Services and its affiliate e-Background-checks.com for failing to ensure the accuracy of employment background screening reports. The companies allegedly provided inaccurate criminal history information to employers, potentially affecting job applicants' eligibility and causing reputational harm. The CFPB ordered the companies to provide $10.5 million in relief to harmed consumers and pay a $2.5 million penalty.
- Company involved
- General Information Services
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Bankrate Publishes AI-Generated Article with Numerous Factual Errors, Deletes After Futurism Inquiry
Bankrate published an AI-generated article about the best places to live in Colorado that contained multiple factual errors, including incorrect median home prices and unemployment rates. The article was removed after Futurism pointed out the mistakes. A Bankrate spokesperson blamed the errors on outdated data from an internal database, claiming the article was editor-reviewed. The incident follows a previous scandal where CNET and Bankrate paused AI content after similar errors, but the company has resumed AI article publication.
- Company involved
- Bankrate
1 source article · read the reporting →
Microsoft Recall still captures credit cards and passwords despite filter
The Register tested Microsoft Recall's sensitive information filter and found it frequently fails to block credit card numbers, passwords, and other personal data. The AI-powered screenshot tool, which is enabled by default on some new PCs, could expose users to identity theft if an attacker gains access. Microsoft declined to comment but has previously acknowledged the filter is not perfect and promised improvements. Privacy advocates warn that vulnerable users, such as domestic violence victims, could be particularly at risk.
- Company involved
- Microsoft
- AI system involved
- Recall
2 source articles · read the reporting →
Deloitte to refund Australian government after AI-generated report errors
Deloitte used generative AI (Azure OpenAI GPT-4o) to help produce an independent assurance review for Australia's Department of Employment and Workplace Relations. The report, published in July 2025, contained multiple errors including non-existent academic references and a fabricated court case. After the errors were flagged, Deloitte acknowledged the AI use and agreed to refund the final instalment of the A$439,000 contract. The report was corrected, but its substance and recommendations remained unchanged.
- Company involved
- Deloitte
- AI system involved
- Azure OpenAI GPT-4o
5 source articles · read the reporting →
France: CNAF's discriminatory risk-scoring algorithm must be stopped
Amnesty International and coalition partners filed a complaint with the Council of State against CNAF's risk-scoring algorithm used to detect benefit overpayments. The algorithm assigns risk scores based on criteria that discriminate against vulnerable groups, including those with disabilities, single parents, and low-income households. The complaint alleges the system violates human rights to equality and privacy. The EU AI Act's social scoring ban may apply, but its definition remains unclear.
- Company involved
- CNAF
2 source articles · read the reporting →
KPMG drops AI report after false case studies exposed
KPMG removed a global report on AI after multiple case studies were found to be inaccurate and apparently generated from AI hallucinations. The report falsely claimed that UBS, NHS Greater Manchester, Swiss Federal Railways and Transport for London used AI agents in various ways. The companies denied the claims, and KPMG took the report down while reviewing its production.
- Company involved
- KPMG
3 source articles · read the reporting →
RFK Jr.'s MAHA Report Riddled with AI-Generated Fake Citations
An investigation found dozens of errors in the White House's 'Make America Healthy Again' commission report, including broken links, wrong authors, and entirely fictitious sources. The presence of 'oaicite' markers in URLs strongly suggests that ChatGPT was used to generate citations, leading to AI hallucinations. The White House described the errors as a 'formatting issue' and updated the report to correct some of them, while defending the report's substance.
- Company involved
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
- AI system involved
- ChatGPT
3 source articles · read the reporting →
Banjo's Live Time system overstated capabilities and posed privacy risks for Utah public safety data
The Utah State Auditor reviewed the contract for Banjo's Live Time public safety application. The system was found to lack advertised AI technology and posed security risks due to direct database queries to PSAP databases. Banjo also overstated its capabilities in its response to the RFP. The auditor concluded that personally identifiable information was unlikely accessed but recommended more rigorous vetting and better security practices.
- Company involved
- Utah Attorney General's Office
- AI system involved
- Live Time
5 source articles · read the reporting →
Macy's sued for using Clearview AI facial recognition without consent
A Chicago woman, Isela Carmean, filed a class-action lawsuit against Macy's, alleging the department store used Clearview AI facial recognition technology to identify customers without their consent, violating Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act. The lawsuit claims Macy's sent customer images from store surveillance to Clearview's database to obtain personal information. Macy's declined to comment on the pending litigation.
- Company involved
- Macy's
- AI system involved
- Clearview AI
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Proctortrack data breach exposed student data from online proctoring
Proctortrack, an online proctoring service used by universities, suffered a data breach in September 2020 when its source code was leaked online. An analysis by Consumer Reports found that the code contained hard-coded passwords and exposed the names and email addresses of over 150 students. The company acknowledged the leak but said no harm resulted. Students had been required to use the software, which performed facial recognition and recorded video during exams.
- Company involved
- Proctortrack
- AI system involved
- Proctortrack
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Study finds Italian car insurers charge more based on birthplace
A study by the Universities of Padua, Udine and Carnegie Mellon found that Italian car insurers, including Genertel, Mps, Quixa and Con.Te, use birthplace and citizenship in pricing algorithms, charging some drivers over €1,000 more. The practice was ruled against in a 2018 decree involving Linear, but the study says it continues. The companies contacted denied or explained the findings.
- Company involved
- Genertel, Mps, Quixa, Con.Te
8 source articles · read the reporting →
Portland Metro ends Replica partnership over data privacy concerns
Portland Metro, an elected regional government in Oregon, ended its pilot project with movement data company Replica after a disagreement about data sharing. Portland Metro requested raw, disaggregated data, which Replica refused to provide, citing user privacy concerns. The partnership was terminated without payment.
- Company involved
- Portland Metro
- AI system involved
- Replica
10 source articles · read the reporting →
FTC settles with Sitejabber over reviews from customers who had not received goods
The US Federal Trade Commission has charged Sitejabber, an AI-enabled review platform, with deceiving consumers by publishing ratings and reviews submitted at the point of purchase, before buyers had received or experienced the products. The FTC alleges this artificially inflated average ratings and review counts for its clients. Sitejabber has agreed to a proposed consent order prohibiting it from making such misrepresentations in the future.
- Company involved
- Sitejabber
- AI system involved
- Sitejabber
10 source articles · read the reporting →
DeepScore markets facial and voice analysis app for trustworthiness scoring despite experts' doubts
DeepScore, a Tokyo-based company, is marketing an app that uses facial and voice recognition to score people's trustworthiness for lenders and insurers in Japan, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. The company says the app can detect deception with 70 per cent accuracy, but researchers and privacy advocates say there is no reliable scientific basis for such judgments and warn of discrimination and privacy harms. The chief executive said the system is only one part of lenders' and insurers' decision-making and that people can choose not to use it. Critics respond that an unequal balance of power makes consent difficult.
- Company involved
- DeepScore
- AI system involved
- DeepScore
6 source articles · read the reporting →
Facebook Allowed Age-Targeted Credit Card Ads Violating Its Policy
The Markup found that four companies—Aspiration, Hometap, Chime, and Varo Bank—ran Facebook ads for credit cards and home equity loans that were targeted by age, excluding users under 25 or 35. This practice violates Facebook's own anti-discrimination policy and may violate the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and California's Unruh Civil Rights Act. Facebook did not respond to requests for comment, and some advertisers said they would review their ad targeting.
- Company involved
- Facebook
- AI system involved
- Facebook Ad Platform
9 source articles · read the reporting →
University of Chicago report finds US healthcare algorithms rife with bias
A University of Chicago report alleges that algorithms used by hospitals, insurers and other businesses across the US are biased along racial and economic lines. The algorithms help triage patients, predict diabetes and flag those needing extra care, but the report says flawed products were introduced with little oversight. It says inequitable treatment has continued for more than a decade.
7 source articles · read the reporting →
Study finds credit score algorithms less accurate for minorities
A study of 50 million US consumers found that credit scoring algorithms used by mortgage lenders are less accurate for minority and low-income applicants due to sparse credit data, leading to higher rejection rates. The inaccuracy is due to noise in the data, not bias, so fairer algorithms cannot fix it. The study suggests that adjusting for bias had no effect, and that addressing the inaccuracy could reduce disparities by 50%.
- Company involved
- Mortgage lenders (unnamed)
- AI system involved
- Credit scoring algorithms
6 source articles · read the reporting →
LoanDepot algorithm denied mortgage to Black couple in Charlotte
In August 2019, Crystal Marie and Eskias McDaniels, a Black couple, were denied a mortgage for a house in Charlotte, North Carolina, by loanDepot's automated underwriting algorithm. The algorithm rejected the application because Crystal Marie was a contractor, not a full-time employee, despite her high credit score and income. After the couple enlisted their real estate agent and employer to intervene, the lender reversed the decision and cleared them to close. The couple alleged that race played a role in the denial, which loanDepot denied.
- Company involved
- loanDepot
- AI system involved
- Classic FICO and Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac automated underwriting software
10 source articles · read the reporting →
ScaleFactor reportedly failed to deliver promised automated bookkeeping software
ScaleFactor, an Austin-based startup, is reported to have failed to deliver the automated, real-time bookkeeping tools it promised customers, instead relying on human bookkeepers and a Filipino contract accounting firm. The company told Forbes in June that it was shutting down, initially blaming the pandemic, but Forbes later reported that its problems predated Covid-19. Investors reportedly came to see the company as more of a services business than a software platform, and pulled funding after a pivot to a marketplace model. No legal or regulatory action is reported.
- Company involved
- ScaleFactor
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Cigna StressWaves Test found unreliable and invalid in independent study
A study published in Scientific Reports evaluated the Cigna StressWaves Test (CSWT), an AI tool that claims to assess psychological stress from speech. The study found that the CSWT had poor test-retest reliability and poor validity compared to the Perceived Stress Scale. The authors warned that widespread availability of the tool could lead to misleading results and negative consequences for users making healthcare decisions. Cigna has not publicly responded to the findings.
- Company involved
- Cigna
- AI system involved
- Cigna StressWaves Test
4 source articles · read the reporting →
California EDD's automated fraud detection wrongly suspended 600,000 legitimate unemployment claims
In January 2021, the California Employment Development Department used Thompson Reuters automated batch review software to flag 1.1 million unemployment claims as potentially fraudulent. EDD stopped payments on those claims without prior notice. Later, over 600,000 were confirmed as legitimate after claimants used ID.me to verify their identity. The incident highlights the trade-off between fraud prevention and timely benefit access.
- Company involved
- California Employment Development Department (EDD)
- AI system involved
- Thompson Reuters Automated Batch Review
7 source articles · read the reporting →
OnlyFake site uses neural networks to generate fake IDs, bypasses OKX verification
An underground website called OnlyFake uses neural networks to generate realistic photos of fake IDs for $15. The journalist tested the service and obtained a convincing California driver's license. They then used another fake ID to successfully bypass the identity verification process on OKX, a cryptocurrency exchange. The article alleges that this technology could streamline bank fraud and money laundering, but reports no actual financial loss.
- Company involved
- OKX
- AI system involved
- OnlyFake
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Swedish welfare agency's AI system flags marginalized groups for fraud investigations
Försäkringskassan, Sweden's Social Insurance Agency, uses an AI risk-scoring system to flag welfare applicants for fraud investigations. The system disproportionately targets women, individuals with foreign backgrounds, low-income earners, and those without university degrees, according to an investigation by Lighthouse Reports and Svenska Dagbladet. Amnesty International has called for the system to be discontinued, citing violations of the right to equality and non-discrimination.
- Company involved
- Försäkringskassan (Swedish Social Insurance Agency)
6 source articles · read the reporting →
