Monthly archives: July, 2026

It’s Not the AI. It’s the Lawyer: We Don’t Have a Hallucination Problem, We Have a Serious Ethics Problem

Government information librarian Charlie Amiot makes a strong case for the misinterpretation of the cause of hallucinations in the legal work product. Amiot argues that If you happen to be someone who has a set of encyclopedias sitting next to them, you’re undoubtedly sitting next to hundreds of hallucinations, inserted both at the time of print and facts that have mutated with the passage of time since being printed. Any newspaper or magazine you pick up contains a hallucination. Many textbooks and reference materials contain hallucinations as well. Arguably, only in fiction can there be no hallucinations. We are otherwise surrounded by and exposed to them on a daily and hourly basis. Continuously pointing to LLM hallucinations allows the word hallucination to do a whole lot of work at getting people off the hook of personal responsibility.

Subjects: AI, Communications, Legal Ethics, Legal Profession, Legal Research

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, July 18, 2026

Privacy and cybersecurity issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, finance, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the increasingly complex and wide ranging ways technology is used to compromise and diminish our privacy and online security, often without our situational awareness. Six highlights from this week: How data brokers get your information, even if you’re careful; Apple and Google Ordered to Remove AI Nudify Apps; Deep-Research Agents Can Be Poisoned via User-Generated Content; Experts Warn This AI Scam Could Cost Americans Nearly $40 Billion a Year—Here’s How to Protect Yourself; Apple Faces Lawsuit Over Hide My Email After Ignoring Flaw for a Year; and Age Verification: Track global and U.S. legislation.

Subjects: AI, Cryptocurrency, Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Internet Trends, Privacy, Social Media

What Does It Mean to Be a Competent Lawyer in the Age of AI?

Berkeley Law recently announced a new artificial intelligence policy that prohibits AI use for any purpose in any exam situation. The University of Chicago Law School has banned first year law students from using electronic devices – laptops, tablets and phones – in the classroom. In light of these recent events, Prof. Robert Diab presents a timely discussion about whether law professors in Canada have an ethical or pedagogical duty to familiarize themselves with AI and develop methods of teaching students how to use it effectively. He also discussed the greater question of how AI has and will impact what it means to practice law competently.

Subjects: AI, Education, Ethics, Legal Profession, Legal Technology

AI In Finance and Banking, July 16, 2026

This semi-monthly column by Sabrina I. Pacifici highlights news, government documents, NGO/IGO papers, conferences, industry white papers and reports, academic papers and speeches, and central bank actions on the subject of AI’s fast paced impact on the banking and finance sectors. The chronological links provided are to the primary sources, and as available, indicate links to alternate free versions. Six highlights from this post: Buy-Side AI Adoption Hindered by Broker Research Licensing Restrictions; The AI investment race; Risk Design: AI and Prediction Beyond Screening in Insurance Markets; Assessing the Benefits of Optimized Agentic AI Systems for Asset Pricing; Revolut Is Building An AI Brain For Banking, And It Could Change Finance Forever; and JPMorgan Builds AI Agents That Beat 60/40 Portfolio in Backtests.

Subjects: AI in Banking and Finance

When managing your money, take a chatbot’s ‘confidence’ with a grain of salt

AI chatbots have entered everyday life with remarkable speed: A 2025 Pew Research Center survey found that 34% of U.S. adults and 58% of those under 30 have used ChatGPT, roughly double the share two years earlier. A growing number are asking AI about money, and as Dr. Pawan Jain highlights, some are getting burned. According to a 2025 survey of 2,000 U.S. adults by Pearl.com, a professional services platform, 19% said they lost more than $100 by following financial advice from an AI chatbot. Among Gen Z investors, that figure rose to 27%.

Subjects: AI, Economy, Education, Financial System

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, July 11, 2026

Privacy and cybersecurity issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, finance, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the increasingly complex and wide ranging ways technology is used to compromise and diminish our privacy and online security, often without our situational awareness. Six highlights from this week: Every Way Meta Tracks You, and How to Fight Back; AI Agents Can Be Tricked Into Stealing Your Files, Researchers; All Cars Sold in the EU Now Require a Camera Aimed at Your Face. It’s Still Not Clear Where That Data Goes; Unpatched Flaws Disclosed in Filesystem Bundled Into Millions of Embedded Devices; and Wikipedia Is Battling for the Soul of the Internet.

Subjects: AI, Courts & Technology, Cryptocurrency, Cyberlaw, Cybersecurity, Privacy

Pete Recommends Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, July 4, 2026

Privacy and cybersecurity issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, finance, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the increasingly complex and wide ranging ways technology is used to compromise and diminish our privacy and online security, often without our situational awareness. Five highlights from this week: Cybersecurity firms targeted by fraudulent OpenAI organization invites; Polestar says Commerce Department is banning US sales of its cars; Google Loses Final Appeal Over €4.1B EU Android Fine; US tech dependence: A risk report for European businesses; PrivacyHawk Enterprise helps organizations find shadow IT and minimize third-party cyber risk; and FBI Seizes NetNut Proxy Platform, PopaBotnet.

Subjects: AI, Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Economy, Financial System