May 3, 2016

Tech Policy Lab to Co-Host White House Artificial Intelligence Workshop

The Tech Policy Lab is delighted to announce a public workshop on the law and policy of artificial intelligence, co-hosted by the White House and UW’s School of Law. The event places leading artificial intelligence experts from academia and industry in conversation with government officials interested in developing a wise and effective policy framework for […]

March 1, 2016

Computer Security and the Internet of Things – Faculty Co-Director Tadayoshi Kohno presents at Usenix Enigma 2016

Computers are now integrating into everyday objects, from medical devices to children’s toys. This integration of technology brings many benefits. Without the appropriate checks and balances, however, these emerging technologies also have the potential to compromise our digital and physical security and privacy. Tech Policy Lab Faculty Co-Director Kohno’s talk explored case studies in the design […]

February 20, 2016

Federal Trade Commission Start With Security Seattle

The one-day event continued the FTC’s work to provide companies with practical tips and strategies for implementing effective data security. The event brought together experts to provide insights on how startups and other small companies can secure the software and products they develop, and how important it is to do so. FTC Commissioner Julie Brill kicked things off with opening remarks. The day included panels on Building a Security Culture, Integrating Security into the Development Pipeline, the Business Case for Security, and Securing the Internet of Things. Links to panel videos can be found in the news item.

January 22, 2016

Toys That Listen and the Internet of Things

Hello Barbie, Amazon Echo, and the home robot Jibo are part of a new wave of connected toys and gadgets for the home that listen. Different than the smartphone, these devices are always on, blending into the background until needed by the adult or child user. We do not yet know all the information our new toys are collecting, storing, or disclosing. With an intended audience of designers and regulators, this project brings an interdisciplinary group of experts together to build a set of consumer protection best practices for design and user control of connected devices in the home.

October 13, 2015

Augmented Reality: A Technology and Policy Primer

This whitepaper is aimed at identifying some of the major legal and policy issues augmented reality (AR) may present as a novel technology, and outlines some conditional recommendations to help address those issues. Our key findings include: AR exists in a variety of configurations, but in general, AR is a mobile or embedded technology that […]

July 16, 2015

How Information Asymmetry Helped Find Abducted Kids

Washington Post

Lab Co-Director Ryan Calo is featured in a Washington Post article describing how police used Spotify and other streaming services to located abducted kids in Mexico.

July 15, 2015

Understanding Journalists Information Security Choices

This blog post, cross-posted from the Tow Center, describes recent work studying computer security in journalist-source communications, a collaboration between Susan McGregor at the Columbia Journalism School, UW HCI+D Masters students Polina Charters and Tobin Holliday, and TPL affiliated faculty member Franziska Roesner. Understanding Journalists Information Security Choices by Susan McGregor In the roughly two years since the Snowden revelations, information security […]

May 15, 2015

Lab members research on Teleoperated Robots Featured by MIT Tech Review

MIT Tech Review

Lab members Tamara Bonaci and Howard Chizeck's work on the security of Teleoperated robots has recently been featured in a number of science news reports including MIT Tech, Popular Science, and Ars Technica. "Tamara Bonaci and pals at the University of Washington in Seattle examine the special pitfalls associated with the communications technology involved in telesurgery. In particular, they show how a malicious attacker can disrupt the behavior of a telerobot during surgery and even take over such a robot, the first time a medical robot has been hacked in this way."

May 1, 2015

How Technology Impacts Civil Liberties with Co-Director Ryan Calo

Newly-emerging technologies affect us all in a multitude of ways and today’s turned-on, always-connected world has reached an all-time high. O’Connor, president of the Center for Democracy & Technology, will discuss how the internet and interconnected world shape our lives, impact our civil liberties, and inform our daily decisions. Other panelists include Ryan Calo, faculty […]

April 20, 2015

Watch We Robot 2015

Not able to make it to We Robot 2015? Want to watch your favorite panel again? Below are links to all of the talks that made We Robot 2015 great.