California Man Linked to Electronics-to-Iran Scheme Sentenced to Prison

Published on December 8, 2023

LOS ANGELES—A Dana Point man was sentenced Dec. 8 to 18 months behind bars for illegally sending computer servers to Iran. Johnny Tourino, 68, was also ordered by U.S. District Judge Josephine Staton to pay a $20,000 fine, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Mr. Tourino pleaded guilty in March to a federal charge of conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, which controls and restricts the export of certain goods from the United States to foreign nations. According to the indictment, from January 2014 through July 2017, Mr. Tourino, his company, Spectra, and at least two others purchased and sent computer servers to Iran without obtaining licenses from the U.S. government that are required under IEEPA. The computer servers were dual-use commercial goods, meaning they had both a commercial application and a military or strategic one....

Continue reading on website
Other news

Public Health Canada Admits No Evidence of Number of Lives Saved by ArriveCan App

December 8, 2023
The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) has admitted it cannot quantify the number of lives saved by the ArriveCAN app, which cost $54 million to develop and deploy and is now the subject of an investigation by the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates.“The Agency cannot quantify the exact number of lives indirectly saved through ArriveCan,” the Agency wrote to the committee.

Australia Should Delay AI Laws, Productivity Boss Warns

December 8, 2023
Australia should not rush to put restrictions around the use of artificial intelligence (AI) or it risks dealing the nation “out of the game,” the Productivity Commissioner warns. Commissioner Stephen King issued the warning at the Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) AI Leadership Summit on Dec. 8, which heard Australian banks, telcos, law firms and healthcare providers were inc