Tuesday, May 6, 2025

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The Swedish government launches AI inquiry

Published 26 September 2024
– By Editorial Staff

The Swedish government has decided to review legislation on the use of AI in Sweden to ensure that Swedish rules are in line with the new EU AI Regulation.

The new EU AI Regulation, which came into effect on 1 August this year, will create a common set of rules for the development and use of AI systems in the EU. It aims to ensure a high level of safety, health and protection of fundamental rights for all EU citizens.

The government has now decided to set up an inquiry to examine “the need for national adjustments” in Swedish laws to bring them into line with the regulation.

– We are in the midst of a technological change where AI has great potential to change the way we work in many sectors and in many parts of society. With this inquiry, we are taking an important step to ensure that AI is used in a way that is safe, reliable and in line with our fundamental values, said Minister for Civil Affairs Erik Slottner in a press release.

The inquiry will propose any necessary legislative changes, as well as measures for transparency and control. Helena Rosén Andersson has been appointed as the investigator and will report no later than 30 September 2025.

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Swedish government replaces US aid with millions for Soros-funded media

Published today 12:40
– By Editorial Staff
Moderate Party leader Ulf Kristersson together with Minister for International Development Cooperation Benjamin Dousa (M).

Swedish taxpayers will now have to cover the funding shortfall that arose when the US withdrew its aid to the international journalism group OCCRP – Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project

The government has announced that it will provide SEK 70 million (€6.4 million) in new support to the network, which was previously funded largely by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and has also received millions from George Soros’ notorious Open Society Foundations and the CIA-linked National Endowment for Democracy.

The Swedish aid is officially justified by the desire to “strengthen freedom of expression and democracy” in repressive environments. Critics, however, argue that the initiative is completely irrelevant to Swedish taxpayers and that the support is rather an expression of the Swedish government’s ideological and geopolitical loyalties

– Strengthening freedom of expression and democracy is an important part of the government’s reform agenda for aid. Support for OCCRP is part of this work, asserts Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Benjamin Dousa (M) in a press release.

The OCCRP, which describes itself as a network for investigative journalism, is particularly active in Eastern Europe, especially in Ukraine. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the organization’s work has contributed to the development of analysis and background information for Western sanctions against Russia. When US aid via USAID was suspended according to previous information, amounting to over a third of the OCCRP’s total budget—the organization’s activities were hit hard.

Now Sweden is stepping in to cover a large part of the shortfall. The government’s press release states that it wants to “continue to support human rights and democratic forces such as independent media in vulnerable environments as a central part of Sweden’s long-term democracy support”, especially in countries that are “constantly exposed to Russian disinformation campaigns and other attempts to influence”.

Destabilization and propaganda

However, the fact that Swedish tax money is now replacing US cuts in support for a globally active NGO with clear links to George Soros and American influence campaigns has led to criticism and questions about the priorities of Swedish aid policy and has been highlighted by establishment-critical media.

The criticism is not just about the amount. OCCRP’s close ties to both the US propaganda apparatus and Soros’ Open Society Foundations have led several observers to question its impartiality. The organization has received significant sums from, among others, USAID, the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), and other US government agencies with stated foreign policy ambitions.

Both the Soros networks and the US intelligence services have also been accused of systematically using propaganda media to destabilize countries, reduce public confidence in political leaders they want to remove, and try to lobby for systemic change in a more globalist and US-friendly direction.

Billions for “democracy and human rights”

Support for the OCCRP is no exception, but part of a larger trend. According to the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs’ own figures, Sweden is currently the world’s third largest donor of aid to foreign “free and independent media”. In total, support for “democracy and human rights” amounted to SEK 6.6 billion (€600 million) in 2024 – equivalent to a quarter of Sweden’s entire foreign aid budget. In addition, there is further Swedish tax money distributed by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs – often to organizations with links to the UN

In the same year, the government also decided to increase funding for other related organizations, such as the European Endowment for Democracy and the Prague Civil Society Center. The former’s support increased from SEK 20 million (€1.8 million) to SEK 35 million (€3.2 million), while the latter’s was doubled.

Although politicians are keen to point out the importance of promoting press freedom in allegedly authoritarian states, critics argue that it is highly questionable whether Swedish taxpayers’ money should be used to finance this type of politically charged activity far beyond Sweden’s borders – and further question how it will be possible to determine in retrospect whether the initiative has produced the desired results.

Criminal networks plunder Sweden – Economic Crime Authority warns of collapse

organized crime

Published today 9:50
– By Editorial Staff
According to Jermsten, "the basic functions of society" are now threatened by the rise of organized crime.

Organized economic crime is growing rapidly in Sweden. According to the Swedish Economic Crime Authority’s new Director General Rikard Jermsten, the criminal economy amounts to more than SEK 150 billion (€13,5 billion) every year, and is today considered a systemic threat.

– It’s worse than I thought. We as a society are financing the crime that we are supposed to fight, he says.

In its latest situation report, the Swedish Economic Crime Authority describes a development where crimes are becoming increasingly complex and extensive and where profits are increasing sharply. Money laundering through advanced corporate arrangements is identified as a central part of the gang criminal economy.

– In the past, the criminal profits in our investigations could amount to tens of millions of SEK. Today, we see profits well over 100 million in individual cases, explains Jermsten.

Particularly at risk are welfare systems, where criminal networks plunder public resources through fake companies, scam invoices and identity theft. But banks, pension systems and large construction and infrastructure projects have also become targets for organized crime.

“Threatening the basic functions of society”

The often quoted figure  that the criminal economy in Sweden has a turnover of SEK 150 billion (€13,5 billion) is probably underestimated, according to Jermsten.

Economic crime is growing in scope and threatens the basic functions of society. It undermines trust in the state, weakens public finances and damages welfare systems“, the agency states in its report.

Jermsten describes the consequences as twofold: on the one hand, society loses tax revenue that would have gone to health, education and social care  and on the other hand, the money is used instead to finance other crime. If crime becomes too widespread, he also believes that honest citizens will be less willing to pay taxes.

– When criminals steal tax money from the state, we all lose out. At the same time, competition in the business world is distorted, with serious long-term consequences.

No quick fixes

There are no quick fixes, according to the agency. But to strengthen resilience, it wants to see several measures: making it harder to start or take over companies for criminal purposes, easier to control company representatives, and harder to exploit other people’s identities.

Public procurement must also be tightened up to keep organised crime out, and the supervisory authorities’ control functions need to be strengthened. The Economic Crime Authority also proposes tougher penalties for economic crime in general.

– The development is going in the wrong direction. The whole of society now needs to build up its resilience, says Rikard Jermsten.

Swedish mother cracks egg on daughter’s forehead during livestream – convicted of harassment

Published 3 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
According to the woman, it's fun to "prank" her child on social media.

Following every bizarre trend on TikTok without thinking first is not recommended – something a 24-year-old mother from Helsingborg can now attest to.

She thought it would be a funny idea to crack an egg on her five-year-old daughter’s forehead during a livestream – but the district court disagrees, and has instead convicted the woman of harassment.

It was last summer when the young mother, aspiring to become an influencer, started a livestream on her social media while she and her daughter were sitting at the kitchen table baking apple pie.

Suddenly, the mother picked up an egg and cracked it against her daughter’s forehead, causing the yolk to run down her face. The daughter expressed that it hurt and asked her laughing mother to stop.

At the time, the 24-year-old’s account was public, and the clip eventually gained around 100,000 views. After an anonymous tip, police began investigating the incident, and now the Helsingborg District Court has concluded that the woman’s actions were unlawful.

– When I saw the video, I thought: you simply don’t do that to a child. To record and humiliate the child and then broadcast it to thousands of viewers – I find that incredibly degrading, and that’s my personal opinion, prosecutor Cecilia Andersson told Sydsvenskan.

– It’s a little girl who thinks she’s going to bake an apple cake with her mom and is happy and excited about it and then all of a sudden she gets an egg cracked in her forehead. This is a reckless act, the prosecutor further argues in the state television SVT.

“We see the phenomenon increasing”

The mother admits that the incident occurred – but denies having committed any crime. She defended herself by saying she was merely following a TikTok trend and that it’s fun to “prank” your child.

– She has herself said that this is a trend on social media, that she saw it on TikTok, and that this has been a common prank people have done.

Ängla Pändel, chair of the Institute for Law and the Internet, says that up until now, it hasn’t been very common for cases like this where parents humiliate their children on social media to go as far as the courts. But she believes that will become significantly more common in the future.

– We see the phenomenon increasing, so I definitely think we will see more cases in the future.

The woman’s sentence is a fine of SEK 20,000 (€1,800) payable to her daughter.

Without consent

How parents unknowingly build surveillance files on their children.

Published 3 May 2025
– By Naomi Brockwell

Your child’s first digital footprint isn’t made by them—it’s made by you

What does the future look like for your child?

Before they can even talk, many kids already have a bigger digital footprint than their parents did at 25.

Every ultrasound shared on Facebook.
Every birthday party uploaded to Instagram.
Every proud tweet about a funny thing they said.

Each post seems harmless—until you zoom out and realize you’re building a permanent, searchable, biometric dossier on your child, curated by you.

This isn’t fearmongering. It’s the reality of a world where data is forever.
And it’s not just your friends and family who are watching.

Your kid is being profiled before they hit puberty

Here’s the uncomfortable truth:

When you upload baby photos, you’re training facial recognition databases on their face—at every age and stage.

When you post about their interests, health conditions, or behavior, you’re populating detailed profiles that can predict who they might become.

These profiles don’t just sit idle.
They’re analyzed, bought, and sold.

By the time your child applies for a job or stands up for something they believe in, they may already be carrying a hidden score assigned by an algorithm—built on data you posted.

When their childhood data comes back to haunt them

Imagine your child years from now, applying for a travel visa, a job, or just trying to board a flight.

A background check pulls information from facial recognition databases and AI-generated behavior profiles—flagging them for additional scrutiny based on “historic online associations”.

They’re pulled aside. Interrogated. Denied entry. Or worse, flagged permanently.

Imagine a future law that flags people based on past “digital risk indicators”—and your child’s online record becomes a barrier to accessing housing, education, or financial services.

Insurance companies can use their profile to label them a risky customer.

Recruiters might quietly filter them out based on years-old digital behavior.

Not because they did something wrong—but because of something you once shared.

Data doesn’t disappear.
Governments change. Laws evolve.
But surveillance infrastructure rarely gets rolled back.

And once your child’s data is out there, it’s out there forever.
Feeding systems you’ll never see.
Controlled by entities you’ll never meet.

For purposes you’ll never fully understand.

The rise of biometric surveillance—and why it targets kids first

Take Discord’s new AI selfie-based age verification. To prove they’re 13+, children are encouraged to submit selfies—feeding sensitive biometric data into AI systems.

You can change your password. You can’t change your face.

And yet, we’re normalizing the idea that kids should hand over their most immutable identifiers just to participate online.

Some schools already collect facial scans for attendance. Some toys use voice assistants that record everything your child says.

Some apps marketed as “parental control” tools grant third-party employees backend access to your child’s texts, locations—even live audio.

Ask yourself: Do you trust every single person at that company with your child’s digital life?

“I know you love me, and would never do anything to harm me…”

In the short film Without Consent, by Deutsche Telekom, a future version of a young girl named Ella speaks directly to her parents. She pleads with them to protect her digital privacy before it’s too late.

She imagines a future where:

  • Her identity is stolen.
  • Her voice is cloned to scam her mom into sending money.
  • Her old family photo is turned into a meme, making her a target of school-wide bullying.
  • Her photos appear on exploitation sites—without her knowledge or consent.

It’s haunting because it’s plausible.

This is the world we’ve built.
And your child’s data trail—your posts—is the foundation.

The most powerful privacy lesson you can teach? How you live online.

Children learn how to navigate the digital world by watching you.

What are you teaching them if you trade their privacy for likes?

The best gift you can give them isn’t a new device—it’s the mindset and tools to protect themselves in a world that profits from their exposure.

Even “kid-safe” tech often betrays that trust.

Baby monitors have leaked footage.

Tracking apps have glitched and exposed locations of random children (yes, really).

Schools collect and store sensitive information with barely any safeguards—and breaches happen all the time.

How to protect your child’s digital future

Stop oversharing
Avoid posting photos, birthdays, locations, or anecdotes about your child online—especially on platforms that monetize engagement.

Ditch spyware apps
Instead of surveillance, foster open dialogue. If monitoring is necessary, choose open-source, self-hosted tools where you control the data—not some faceless company.

Teach consent early
Help your child understand that their body, thoughts, and information are theirs to control. Make digital consent a family value.

Opt out of biometric collection
Say no to tools that demand selfies, facial scans, or fingerprints. Fight back against the normalization of biometric surveillance for kids.

Use aliases and VoIP numbers
When creating accounts for your child, use email aliases and VoIP numbers to avoid linking their real identity across platforms.

Push schools and apps for better policies
Ask your child’s school: What data do they collect? Who has access? Is it encrypted?
Push back on apps that demand unnecessary permissions. Ask hard questions.

This isn’t paranoia—it’s parenting in the digital age

This is about protecting your child’s right to grow up without being boxed in by their digital past.

About giving them the freedom to explore ideas, try on identities, and make mistakes—without it becoming a permanent record.

Privacy is protection.
It’s dignity.
It’s autonomy.

And it’s your job to help your child keep it.
Let’s give the next generation a chance to write their own story.

 

Yours in privacy,
Naomi

Naomi Brockwell is a privacy advocacy and professional speaker, MC, interviewer, producer, podcaster, specialising in blockchain, cryptocurrency and economics. She runs the NBTV channel on Youtube.

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