Google has been slapped with a $60 million fine for some misleading consumers about the collection and use of their personal location data on Android phones between January 2017 and December 2018.
The consumer watchdog, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), took Google to the Federal Court last year, saying the issue may have affected about 1.3 million Australian customers.
The Federal Court found Google represented to some Android users that the setting titled Location History was the only account setting that affected whether Google collected, kept and used personally identifiable data about their location.
But there was another account setting, titled Web & App Activity, which also enabled Google to collect personal information, which was turned on by default.
Google fixed the issue by December 2018.
The descriptions of the Location History setting and the Web & App Activity setting offered up to Android mobile users between 30 April 2018 and 19 December 2018.(Supplied: ACCC)
‘Used by Google to target ads to some consumers’
The ACCC and the overseas arm of Google jointly agreed on the penalty of $60 million.
ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said the hefty penalty was appropriate for the compromise to such sensitive information.
“[It] sends a strong message to digital platforms and other businesses, large and small, that they must not mislead consumers about how their data is being collected and used,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.
“Google, one of the world’s largest companies, was able to keep the location data collected through the ‘Web & App Activity’ setting and that retained data could be used by Google to target ads to some consumers, even if those consumers had the ‘ Location History’ setting turned off.”
The Federal Court also ordered Google to adjust its policies to ensure a commitment to compliance, and to give training to staff about Australian Consumer law.
Google will also have to pay some of the ACCC’s costs.
Google Australia has been spared a separate penalty because it had no role in preparing the messages about location data, which the court found was a breach of the law.
A Canberra man arrested in spectacular circumstances last month, after police seized more than $10 million in assets and cash, has appeared for the first time in the ACT Magistrates Court.
Key points:
Mr Talwar was arrested as a part of a joint AFP-FBI investigation
Police seized eight ACT properties, four luxury cars and more than $1 million in cash
Police allege Mr Talwar laundered money and cryptocurrency from the sale of personal identification information, illegal goods and scams
Karan Talwar, 35, is facing three charges of dealing with property reasonably suspected of being the proceeds of crime.
Police allege Mr Talwar laundered money and cryptocurrency through complex transactions from the sale of personal identification information, illegal goods and scams.
It is alleged he has accumulated a significant number of assets with the money he has made.
Police have seized eight Canberra houses, four cars, luxury goods including handbags and more than $1 million in cash.
Four high-end cars were seized by police. (Supplied)
Police also targeted 28 bank accounts and about $600,000 in cryptocurrency.
At the time of the arrest, police searched two homes and a storage unit seizing documents and devices as well as cash.
Mr Tulwar was identified as part of an international investigation into money laundering involving the FBI.
He did not enter a plea and will return to court next month.
Mr Talwar (left) is on police bail after he was arrested last month. (ABC NewsEmma Thompson)
Jane Harriss has been fighting for a permanent surgical service for gynecological cancers in Canberra for almost two decades — with good reason.
“My mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer some years ago and she died with it, after having survived for seven years,” Ms Harriss said.
“She was one of those people, who had to go to Sydney for her surgery.”
The metastasising cancer saw Ms Hariss’s mum, Erica, make three trips to Sydney for separate surgeries, with follow-up appointments in Canberra, through a fortnightly clinic provided as a fly-in-fly-out service by Sydney’s Royal Hospital for Women.
Work is now under way to remove that travel requirement and deliver the capital’s first permanent gyneacological surgery service.
“Canberra Health Services has just been working through what the model of care will look like, what supports will be required to ensure that that can occur,” ACT Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith said.
The FIFO service has faced an uncertain future for months, since the surgeon announced he would be retiring at the end of the year and Canberra-based doctor, Leon Foster, put his hand up to run a permanent clinic if funding was found.
At a media conference on June 17, Ms Stephen-Smith suggested funding was not the issue.
“It’s more a question of assessing when the number of people that are having to travel interstate is actually sufficient that we can bring that service into the ACT,” she said at the time.
But on Monday, she confirmed Canberra Health Services had advertised for a full-time specialist surgeon and a “merit-based recruitment process” was required.
‘They had to travel when they were very ill’
Most cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed in the late stages of the disease.(Rare Ovarian Cancer Incorporated)
Ms Harriss said the progress was “better late than never” and every woman she’ had met through her ovarian cancer support group had been frustrated over the absence of a permanent Canberra clinic.
“They had to travel when they were, effectively, very ill — because it’s diagnosed late-stage,” she said.
“And then they’d have to return home, within about 10 days of having massive abdominal surgery. And they would have to do this a number of times, potentially.”
Ms Harriss said she was pleased the government had chosen “to go down this path”.
“It’s wonderful in terms of women who are currently dealing with the disease and for those who potentially might be diagnosed in the future,” she said.
“It will make life … not easier, but a little bit less stressful.”
The ACT’s Drug and Alcohol Court has saved more than $14 million in jail costs, even though it has only seen eight graduates, since it was set up in 2019, according to an Australian National University study.
Key points:
Since its inception in 2019, the court has seen eight graduates
A report suggests most of those involved in the court have significantly reduced their offending
None of those who have graduated have ended back in the court
The ANU report found none of those who have graduated so far have ended up back in court.
And the findings suggest most of those still involved in the program have significantly reduced their drug and alcohol use.
The ANU research found 106 people had been referred to the program, although only 56 of those were given a drug and alcohol order, and at the time of the report, there were still 22 participants.
Court created to keep people out of jail
The court was established to divert offenders whose criminal behavior was driven by their drug or alcohol addictions, from jail to treatment.
To get into the program, offenders must plead guilty, be assessed as suitable and sign an undertaking to be part of the scheme.
The ANU analysis of the program over the past three years showed half of the participants did not re-offend while on a drug and alcohol order, with the rest caught at least eleven.
But the report showed even those who did not complete their orders were offending less often afterwards.
It found that women were more likely to offend on the program than men, although the figures were small.
The ANU research also found offenders who had committed violent crimes were less likely to complete the program, although the report authors said that they should not be used as a reason to exclude them.
But, the report said that while the court was succeeding, its work was being held back by poor resourcing in other areas.
This includes the number of rehabilitation places.
Initial research suggests the Drug and Alcohol Court has lowered rates of reoffending among participants. (ABC News: Ian Cutmore)
The research showed the lack of suitable housing was also critical.
“The lack of housing many participants face is a significant hurdle to entry onto the program and likely impacts on the chances of sobriety and successful completion, once they are on the program,” the report said.
But overall the report was positive, finding the court had saved Canberra taxpayers $14 million in jail costs by diverting participants to receive treatment for their addiction problems.
The researchers said the court had saved more than it cost to set up and was deserving of more resources.
The federal government has announced $13 million in funding for a new large-scale composting facility in Canberra.
Key points:
The facility will divert 50,000 tonnes of food and garden waste from landfill annually
A new materials recovery center will also be built to improve the quality of recycled products
A recycling advocate says education is key to composting success
The facility will be built in Hume and will process food and garden waste collected from household green bins across the city.
City Services Minister Chris Steel said the new facility was an essential part of the food organics and garden organics (FOGO) rollout in the ACT.
“It will turn around 50,000 tonnes of food and organic waste into valuable compost for use in the agriculture and viticulture of our region, and gardens,” he said.
“This is incredibly important for climate change, this is our third largest source of emissions.”
‘True circular process’
FOGO collection and processing is expected to cut the ACT’s waste emissions by 30 per cent. (ABC News: Harry Frost)
About 5,000 households in Belconnen, Bruce, Cook and Macquarie are currently trialling a FOGO collection system.
Mr Steel said that service would be expanded to include all ACT households once the new facility was up and running.
“This is going to be a fantastic story,” he said.
“This is Canberrans’ food waste that will be turned into compost, so that we can return those nutrients—which are otherwise going to landfill—to the soil to improve our soil and then grow our food again.
“So, it will be a true circular process.”
It’s not yet known what items will and won’t be allowed in the new FOGO processing stream. (ABC News: Harry Frost)
Mr Steel said a new $23 million recycling facility would also be built in Hume.
“We were partnering with [the federal government] to upgrade the existing facility to process our plastic, aluminium, paper and cardboard products, as well as glass,” he said.
“But as we’ve progressed through the design process, we’ve now come to the conclusion that it would be better for us to build a new state-of-the-art materials recovery facility adjacent to the existing site.”
He said the government would now go through a procurement process and he hoped both facilities would be operational within 18 months, though he noted the unpredictably of the current construction market.
Education key to FOGO success
Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume.
Zero Waste Evolution chair Mia Swainson discusses the new Canberra composting facility.
Zero Waste Evolution chair Mia Swainson welcomed the funding injection and said a simple, targeted education program would be essential ahead of the FOGO facility coming online.
“The key is bringing Canberrans on the journey, making sure that people know what can go into the processing and what can’t,” she said.
“Depending on the technology, there’ll be different food and garden waste from around the house that can go in and some that can’t.
“So, keeping that contamination level down low will be really key to success.”
Ms Swainson said success would require a new way of thinking about waste for many Canberrans.
“Globally the trend is for… all of the organic waste to be recycled and reprocessed,” she said.
“Yes, it’s a bit of a change and a cultural shift, but, overtime people get used to it and it’s just how we build our lives.”
Page Oval is far from Canberra’s best-known sports arena.
But its fields are home to a football club that, for some new Canberrans, plays a much bigger role than sport does in most lives.
Key points:
Afghan refugees founded the Canberra Kangaroos in 2013
The club is playing in the ACT state leagues this year
Players face significant off-field difficulties, including uncertain futures
The Canberra Kangaroos was founded nine years ago by a group of Afghan refugees. It entered the annual refugee tournaments held around Australia.
But this year it’s gone mainstream. For the first time, the club is toughing it out in Canberra’s state league competitions.
Its secretary, Ali Ekhtyari, said that while the Afghan community began the club, it now had players from Pakistan, Brazil, South Sudan, Iraq and Iran.
“This club is based on inclusion, to prevent isolation that refugees and migrants often face,” he said.
“It’s really helpful for those migrants who don’t know what to do, how to come out of the isolation, from loneliness.
“This is a good place to be with each other.”
Pitch battles a relief compared with off-field stresses
The club began with Afghan players but is now open to all refugees.(Supplied)
Some of the club’s players face tough challenges away from football.
Goalkeeper Rohullah Hassani has a temporary visa and is fighting hard to bring his family to Australia.
“We have been separated from our family a long time, a decade now,” he said.
“It’s very hard. Every day it’s depressing and we are worried … back home, it’s not very safe, mentally we have lots of stress.
“We are just hoping for [the] new government to give us a chance to bring our family and start a life here.”
However, Mr Hassani said finding a welcoming community in Australia had softened his situation.
“I feel proud and I feel much better since I joined this club,” he said.
Reserves coach Mohammad Aamir said bringing together so many cultures had presented communication challenges.
“It was difficult at the start, I’m not gonna lie,” he said.
“A lot of the boys, they’ve come here maybe a year or so ago, and some of them have been here a bit longer,” he said.
“[Seeing] the guys who’ve been here for a bit longer… bring the other boys in and show them the way, it’s what’s brought the team together more.
“We all understand football to be a universal language and it’s been really good just getting the boys together and understanding their stories, where they come from and how they’re able to transfer that onto the field.”
One of the new players, Hekmat Frotan, moved to Australia last year.
“The most important thing when you come to a new country is to make new friends, to make connections and then, whenever you find something difficult or whenever you face a problem, there should be somebody who [can] help you,” he said.
“It is more than a football game for me — I came, I met new people, I made new friends, I made a new family actually, which is brilliant.”
The family of Canberra woman Brontë Haskins has asked the ACT coroner to make adverse findings about several people involved in her case before and after her suicide in 2020.
Key points:
Brontë Haskins, 23, took her own life in 2020 after suffering from substance abuse and mental illness
Her mother has called for the ACT coroner to find several people failed her before her death
The lawyer for Ms Haskins’s family says if she was triaged correctly she would have been assessed by a trained mental-health clinician
Ms Haskins, 23, died in hospital after several days on life support.
Her death came while she was on bail after a stint in jail for drug driving.
Ms Haskins had suffered both substance abuse and mental illness, something her mother said was not taken seriously enough by authorities.
In the lead-up to her death she had been staying at her mother’s home, while she was on bail.
A coronial inquest into Ms Haskins’s suicide heard her mother called police and mental health services when she became delusional, believing the unit where she was staying was a gas chamber.
Several issues have been raised in the case before the ACT Coroner’s Court, including the family’s claim that a mental-health nurse failed to give the case the priority it required and failed to follow up a call from Ms Haskins’s mother, Janine.
Lawyer Sam Tierney who represented Ms Haskins’s family referred to the staged triage system — where category A is the most serious, and category G requires more information — when criticizing the way the case was handled by mental-health nurse Karina Boyd.
The inquest heard Brontë Haskins’s case was not triaged correctly.(Supplied)
“Had Ms Boyd not incorrectly triaged Brontë as category G, Brontë would have more likely than not been assessed face to face by a trained mental-health clinician within 72 hours and certainly prior to her death,” Mr Tierney said.
Counsel assisting the coroner Andrew Muller also took aim at the way the case was triaged.
“Brontë should have been assessed as a category C or D, resulting in some urgent follow-up,” Mr Muller said.
“What is material is that, on any view of the available information, Brontë was incorrectly assessed for triage purposes.”
Mr Muller has recommended an overhaul of the triage system.
But in its submissions, the ACT defended Ms Boyd’s decision, saying she had not been able to speak to Ms Haskins and her only contact was with her mother.
“She had been told that the AFP had been called and she assumed that the police would contact her if they thought Brontë needed a risk assessment or mental-health service,” the territory submissions said.
Court hears CCTV footage of minutes before attempt to take life missing
Ms Haskins’s family have called for greater transparency in passing on confidential details after the death of a mental health service user to the Coroner’s Court.(Supplied)
Another key issue was the fact police returned a CCTV recorder to Brett French, an associate of Ms Haskins, at whose home she had tried to take her life.
The court heard about 45 minutes of footage which may have shed light on the events leading up to her death was deleted
Court documents showed Mr French had admitted showing some of the CCTV to another man.
Mr Tierney told the court the family wanted an adverse finding against Mr French for his “callous” treatment of Ms Haskins on the day of her death.
Mr Tierney also identified the behavior of police investigating the death as an issue.
“A proper investigation and analysis of the CCTV recorder may have disclosed further and important information to the coroner to assist in the process of considering Brontë’s death,” he said.
He has called for a recommendation that will send a message to the AFP about the handling of coronial exhibits.
The inquiry has also looked into the management of Ms Haskins’s case and whether further detention could have prevented her death.
Mr Muller said there was evidence of better communications about her could have helped.
“Had Brontë been stopped the outcome may, of course, have been different,” Mr Muller said.
“But there was no proper reason she could be stopped.”
Other recommendations being sought by Ms Haskins’s family include greater transparency in passing on to the Coroner’s Court confidential details after the death of a mental health service user, recording of calls to the mental health line, audits of the triage system, and better information to be passed to AFP officers called to incidents.
Coroner James Stewart said he would take some time to hand down his findings.
Where we’re going, we don’t need… combustion engines?
At least, that’s the thinking behind Canberra filmmaker Ché Baker’s latest project: a documentary following the conversion of his vintage DeLorean from a gas-guzzler to an electric vehicle.
“People ask me, ‘what’s the timeline for the project?’ And I say, ‘if we hit 88 miles an hour, it doesn’t matter’,” he said.
Mr Baker’s DeLorean featured prominently in his most recent film, Blue World Order, which saw a fleet of the cars race across the then dried-up Lake George, just outside Canberra.
And he said none of his pride and joy would go to waste as a result of the conversion — the engine will be donated to the Australian DeLorean community for parts.
Mr Baker featured a fleet of DeLoreans in his 2017 sci-fi film Blue World Order.(Supplied)
Mr Baker said his latest documentary would highlight how a traditional petrol car could be converted to electric, as well as exploring the state of the EV industry in Australia today.
“It’s a lot more than just the technology of electric vehicles themselves, but also how is that going to affect people’s lifestyles?,” he asked.
“How’s that going to affect the way people drive? How is that going to impact on other forms of electric transport?”
The DeLorean’s engine will be given to members of the Australian DeLorean community for parts. (Supplied: Che Baker)
Is converting my car to electric a good option?
Sure … if you have the money.
Che Baker inside his DeLorean in the moments leading up to its engine being removed.(ABC Canberra: Donald Sheil)
Mark Hemmingsen is the managing director of Electric Vehicles Canberra, and is providing the technical expertise and workshop space to convert Mr Baker’s DeLorean.
He said conversion was a costly and time-consuming process.
“I would budget at least $30,000 to $50,000, and I would expect that to possibly blow out,” he said.
Mark Hemmingsen said the conversion was an opportunity to give apprentices invaluable experience.(ABC Canberra: Donald Sheil)
“On a good year, we could probably do 12 conversions a year.
“The big problem is that we’re reliant on other local industries to do fabrication for things like battery boxes and motor mounts, and if those companies are busy as well then we’re going to be delayed a little bit by that.”
Electric conversion has gathered enormous momentum for classic car owners who want to preserve their pride and joy in a sustainable way.
For the everyday city driver, though, Mr Hemmingsen said second-hand EVs were the best option.
Mr Hemmingsen said replacing the batteries of existing EVs was very important to keep them out of landfill.(ABC Canberra: Donald Sheil)
Mr Hemmingsen said not only was buying an EV going to be cheaper in the future, but there would also be a growing second-hand market and the ability to replace the batteries as technology evolves.
“If we’re going to prevent them going to landfill, we take the battery out, we swap it over, we’re actually replacing it with a battery that’s twice the capacity of the original battery that was in there,” he said.
The battery of this Mitsubishi i-Miev will be replaced by a new, better one. (ABC Canberra: Donald Sheil)
He said specialized conversion kits for petrol cars would likely drive down the cost in coming years, but that replacing batteries for existing electric cars for the second-hand market would likely remain the best entry-point for consumers.
Are mechanics prepared for the impending EV boom?
Probably not, according to Australian Electric Vehicles Association president Chris Jones.
“We do need to skill-up in that field… your average three-year mechanic apprentice, they won’t have that experience,” he said.
“And there are only a handful of units within TAFE programs that give those trades exposure to electric vehicle technology, it needs more work.”
Mr Hemmingsen’s apprentices help replace the battery of an EV.(ABC Canberra: Donald Sheil)
Mr Hemmingsen said he was using the DeLorean conversion as an opportunity to give his apprentices invaluable practical experience, to make up for the lack of formal training in the industry.
Mr Jones said the “right to repair” debate surrounding smartphones and other appliances was also likely to gain a new battleground in the form of EVs, if battery replacements and other upgrades were made more difficult by manufacturers in the future.
Ché Baker is using his DeLorean as a head-turning hook for his EV documentary.(ABC Canberra: Donald Sheil)
“They’d rather you went and bought a new car again, they’ve got all sorts of reasons for that, but mostly they’ll just make more money selling you a new car than they would by doing upgrade parts,” he said .
“In my experience, these old electric vehicles have nobody that’s interested in doing the work on them.
“We feel very confident in doing the work, and we can pick up these old vehicles that the current industry is not really interested in keeping going.”
From mid-2023, Canberra residents will have access to free medical and surgical abortions up to 16 weeks’ gestation.
Key points:
ACT Minister for Women Yvette Berry says the move will allow Canberrans “to make a choice … without being influenced by financial barriers”
Free access to abortion services will also be available to ACT residents without a Medicare card
The government expects the services will be available without out-of-pocket costs by mid-next year
The ACT government said the decision to remove out-of-pocket costs for abortion services ensured that Canberrans who became pregnant could “make decisions about their healthcare based on what [was] best for them and their bodies.
“This means that individuals will be supported to make a choice about having an abortion without being influenced by financial barriers,” ACT Minister for Women Yvette Berry said.
“It also means that having an abortion can occur in a time-sensitive manner without being delayed due to an inability to pay.”
These services will be accessible to people without a Medicare card and all those who use abortion services will also be eligible to receive free, long-lasting, reversible contraceptives at the time of abortion, which the government said had been shown to reduce demand for abortions in the future.
The initiative to remove out-of-pocket costs will cost the government $4.6 million over four years and aims to improve access to affordable, accessible health services as part of the ACT Women’s Plan 2016-26.
Ms Berry said it was the latest in a string of actions to improve access to safe, accessible abortion services after the procedure was decriminalized in the ACT in 2002.
One more-recent change included banning protesters outside abortion clinics in 2016.
ACT Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith said she was proud of the latest commitment from the government.
“With one in three women estimated to experience an unexpected pregnancy in their lifetime, it is essential that these services are safe, affordable and accessible, regardless of how much money you have,” she said.
Free services to be available by mid-2023
Women’s Health Matters chief executive Lauren Anthes welcomed the funding initiative to provide access to free surgical abortions within the ACT’s existing gestational limits.
“Timely access is vital as services become more expensive and harder to access over time,” she said.
“This funding will help people access surgical abortion as soon as possible.”
The ACT government said it would work with service providers on the specific arrangements to cover the out-of-pocket costs for accessing abortion services in the territory.
It said this consultation work was expected to be completed during the first half of 2023.
A Canberra drug dealer who was shot in the face during a home invasion last year says he was targeted by people who thought he was a paedophile.
Key points:
Sugimatatihuna Bernard Gabriel Mena has been charged with attempted murder while Bradley Joe Roberts and Rebecca Dulcie Parlov are charged with aggravated burglary
All three have pleaded not guilty
The victim claims Mr Mena shot him three times, injuring his face, arm and stomach
The ACT Supreme Court has heard the man had been accused of being a “kiddie fiddler” before being shot three times at a home in Spence in Canberra’s north on March 11, 2021.
The man said he had been at a friend’s house in the early hours of the morning after “catching up with people for drug deals.”
He said Sugimatatihuna Bernard Gabriel Mena, 24, Bradley Joe Roberts, 24, and Rebecca Dulcie Parlov, 25, had then all stormed his friend’s home to “whack” him.
Mr Mena has been charged with attempted murder while Mr Roberts and Ms Parlov were each charged with aggravated burglary.
They have all pleaded not guilty.
The man told the court he had armed himself with a knife for protection and had been prepared to “knuckle on” with the trio when they appeared at the home.
“I was going to stab them,” he said, before adding that he at no point used or attempted to use the knife on any of the three.
He alleged it was Mr Mena who had pulled the trigger, shooting him three times and injuring his face, stomach and arm.
He also told the court Mr Mena, Mr Roberts, and Ms Parlov were all known to him through his drug deals.
Once wounded, the man said he had retreated to the bathroom to call a friend to drive him to Calvary Hospital’s emergency department.
The friend he had called was Ms Parlov’s brother.
Defense says finger was wrongly pointed
During cross examination, defense barristers showed the court text message conversations between the victim and his partner at the time.
The messages showed the man had asked the woman for $750, telling her he had to pay off bikes otherwise they would harm him.
The defense put to the man that the reason he presented to the hospital instead of calling police when he was shot was that he was “frightened of the bikies.”
“No, I don’t like police,” the man replied.
He then confessed that the messages he had sent to his ex-partner had been lies.
“I made up whatever I wanted to get the money out of her because I’m a fiend,” he said.
“I was a druggo… I lied to her.”
The defense also put to the victim that he had falsely accused Mr Mena of being the gunman as it was easier than having to point the finger elsewhere.
But the man said: “No, I saw him do it … I saw him come through the door”, referring to Mr Mena.
