Can you distinguish an AI voice from the real thing?

Plus, a clash of Toronto's Eritrean community and a sunk drug trafficking case [The Star] First Up [By Andrew Joe Potter] By Andrew Joe Potter Good morning. Here’s the latest on unrest in Toronto’s Eritrean community, why AI scams target older people and how a cop’s “gangster” diss sank a drug trafficking case. DON’T MISS Canadian Press/Arlyn McAdorey protests [Harmless heritage festival or fundraiser for a dictatorship? Why Toronto’s Eritrean community clashed this weekend]( When the dust had settled, few of the events scheduled for this weekend’s three-day Festival Eritrea went as planned. Instead, most became platforms for political protest, Isabel Teotonio and Dhriti Gupta report. After nine people were hospitalized with injury after a clash at Earlscourt Park in the city’s west end on Saturday, the city pulled the organizers’ permit for Sunday, citing “public safety interest.” That didn’t stop groups of opposing demonstrators from congregating near the Sheraton Centre Sunday night, where hundreds of police officers amassed. [Here’s what happened](. - Go deeper: One group of protestors, largely dressed in blue and composed of Eritrean refugees, accused Festival Eritrea of raising funds in support of the country’s long-standing — and infamously repressive — political regime. - Word from the festival: “If there is any (cash) left over, that will be used to cover the expenses of the next year,” said Lambros Kyriakakos, chair of the Coalition of Eritrean Canadian Communities and Organizations. “I guarantee you that there are no funds available for political goals.” - More: Eritrean president Isaias Afwerki has been in power since shortly after leading the fight for the country’s independence from Ethiopia over three decades ago. Having never faced an election, he’s enjoyed iron-fisted job security. Susan Kao/Toronto Star Photo Illustration the rise of ai [Canada’s older population may be especially vulnerable to the deluge of AI voice scams]( As we age, we become ideal targets for voice-generated AI scams. It’s not because older folks are confused by new tech or likelier to be hard of hearing. In fact, the real issue, writes Cathrin Bradbury, is not what we hear but rather how; according to scientists at Toronto’s Baycrest Centre, those over 60 are more susceptible to missing the emotion attached to words than those under 30. And as it turns out, [that’s exactly the sort of internal radar that can help you identify the steely insidiousness of an AI scam](. - Go deeper: In one test, Baycrest asked participants to identify whether a series of younger male and female voices were real people or the product of artificial intelligence. Eighty per cent of younger participants were able to correctly distinguish the AI recordings, compared to just 20 per cent of older participants. Dreamstime Photo policing [An Ontario drug trafficking case was thrown out due to a cop’s disparaging comments]( In an effort to maintain trust in our justice system, Superior Court Justice Mark Edwards stayed an alleged drug trafficker’s charges because of unwarranted comments made by the case’s lead investigating police officer. As Betsy Powell reports, the cop repeatedly referred to the defendant’s counsel as a “gangster lawyer” who charged “crazy” fees. The judge took issue with several aspects of the officer’s conduct, saying he could only speculate whether the missteps were a result of [shoddy police work or a deliberate attempt to eschew accountability](. - Go deeper: Because the defendant was also an anonymous confidential police informant, large swathes of the ruling have been excised or redacted, including the identities of everyone attached to the case — the defendant, lawyers, the judge and even the cop whose actions torpedoed the charges. - The aftermath: Daniel Brown, president of the Criminal Lawyers’ Association, says the officer is unlikely to face consequences due to the risk of outing the informant. WHAT ELSE Toronto’s SIU has launched an investigation after a [police cruiser struck and seriously injured a pedestrian Sunday](. Politics have previously derailed Scarborough’s public transit plans. [Here are the signs that change might be coming](. The City of Burlington threatened astonishing fines before ultimately razing a family's beloved garden. [Here’s why](. For Millennial Money, copywriter Karim wonders if it’s time to [take his $60K salary and flee Toronto’s rental market](. [Canadian music legend Buffy Sainte-Marie has announced her retirement]( from live performances due to health concerns. In her new book, author Deborah Bonello takes us inside the world of “Narcas,” [the women seizing power in the Latin American cartel world](. It was a debut weekend for the ages for Jays rookie Davis Schneider. [The call-up’s heroics at the plate helped sweep the Red Sox](. Canada’s basketball program is holding its breath. [Will standout guard Jamal Murray be healthy in time for the FIBA World Cup later this month?]( The once-dominant Americans crashed out of the Women’s World Cup. [Has the rest of the world simply caught up?]( With a huge third weekend at the box office, [the indomitable “Barbie” has crossed the $1 billion mark globally](. POV Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images [Rosie DiManno: With Trump’s latest indictment, the U.S. once again has front-row seats in a duel between democracy and a demagogue.]( CLOSE-UP Steve Russell/The Star EXHIBITION PLACE: Mas band the Toronto Revellers kicked off the Toronto Caribbean Carnival’s grand parade on Saturday. [Formerly known as Caribana, the annual summer bash was a special day for generations of performers](. Thank you for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at [firstup@thestar.ca](mailto:firstup@thestar.ca?source=newsletter&utm_source=ts_nl&utm_medium=emailutm_email=6C53B63A8E3FAD70AD4EF13004527437&utm_campaign=frst_194189). Manuela will see you back here tomorrow. If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. 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