🧑‍⚖️🇺🇸 Massachusetts votes to pass new privacy rights bill that bans sale of precise location data

Massachusetts lawmakers have voted to pass privacy protections that grant the state’s residents new rights over accessing and deleting their data held by big tech giants. The bill also bans companies from selling their users’ precise location data.

🗳 Lawmakers in the Massachusetts House passed the state’s Consumer Data Privacy Act in a unanimous 146-0 vote on Thursday, months after all of the Senate’s 40 lawmakers voted in favor of advancing its own bill in September. Now, the bills will be combined in the Senate, and sent to the state governor’s office, where it is expected to be signed into law.

❗️The law would block the sharing or sale of sensitive information without a user’s explicit consent. This data includes biometrics (such as health data, genetic information, and fingerprints), their precise geolocation data, and other markers about their religion, immigration status and sexual orientation.

The move makes Massachusetts the latest U.S. state to push for stronger consumer privacy rights after years of documented abuses by the wider technology, advertising and social media industries. The bill, if passed into law, will apply to companies that handle or process the personal data of more than 100,000 consumers.

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🔥 Coinbase, Ripple among over 200 crypto organizations urging Senate Clarity Act vote

A coalition of more than 200 digital asset companies, trade groups, and grassroots organizations delivered a letter to Senate leaders John Thune and Chuck Schumer calling for a floor vote on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act.

🤝 Stand With Crypto organized the letter alongside the Blockchain Association, Crypto Council for Innovation, and The Digital Chamber. The organization has mobilized a network of nearly 3 million advocates across all 50 states to push for the bill's passage.

Signatories, including Coinbase, Ripple, Kraken, Andreessen Horowitz, Circle, and Binance US, said in the letter that the bill would:
→ establish a comprehensive federal framework for digital asset markets;
→ clarify regulatory responsibilities;
→ create workable registration pathways;
→ maintain protections for software developers;
→ bring more digital asset activity into responsible U.S. markets.

"The Clarity Act gives Congress the opportunity to keep innovation, jobs, investment, and market activity here at home while strengthening America's role as the global leader in digital asset innovation," — the letter read.

#Stellar

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⚡️🇹🇷🇸🇦 Türkiye, Saudi Arabia sign rail, logistics cooperation agreements

Türkiye and Saudi Arabia reached a historic milestone in the transportation and logistics relations by signing MOU agreements in transport, railway fields. The two countries are also strengthening collaboration in the fields of technology, infrastructure, training, and human resources.

"In this context, we are launching a new phase that will strengthen the exchange of expertise and technical cooperation across a wide range of areas, from logistics centers to modern applications," — said Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu. 🤝

Earlier this month, Uraloglu has said Türkiye plans to modernize the historic Hejaz Railway and extend it to Oman to create an alternative global trade route to the Strait of Hormuz. Türkiye aims to revive the historical line for both tourism and modern transit.

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⚡️ Stellantis Recalls Over 1 Million Jeep Vehicles Due to Fire Risk

Stellantis NV is recalling more than 1 million Jeep vehicles in the US over an electrical issue that could result in a fire, saying that owners should park outside and away from other cars until the problem is fixed.

The issue stems from potential overheating in wiring for the electric hydraulic power steering pump in certain Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator vehicles, according to documents posted on the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website. That can lead to a fire even when the vehicle’s ignition is turned off.

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