An Adelaide man has been arrested for replacing QR codes on official COVID-19 check-in signs with alternate codes and, in a unique bail condition has been required to not carry "loose QR codes" anywhere. A QR code scanned by a phone camera can resolve to any online destination, and the man allegedly was replacing the codes with links to anti-vaccination material. He was charged with interfering with operations related to COVID-19, which is a crime under South Australian emergency powers. The man faces a maximum penalty of a $10,000 fine.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has released its second interim report as part of its digital platform services inquiry, focusing on issues of Apple and Google App Stores and their dominance of digital distribution. In a statement, ACCC chair Rod Sims argues there are significant issues of market power, and the ACCC wants to target a number of issues, including transparency in how apps are made discoverable within the marketplaces, not allowing Apple or Google to use information about third-party apps to advantage their own, and allowing the use of third-party payment services for in-app purchases. The ACCC also wants to force better processes for payment disputes, subscription traps and other app scams. The report is part of the ongoing five year inquiry into digital platforms.

In other Australian digital news, the Commonwealth Ombudsman has chastised Australian Federal Police for a "cavalier" attitude toward telecommunications data, in a report that found the AFP may have unlawfully accessed location information hundreds of times. The Ombudsman found ACT Policing was only fully compliant with access rules for location pings from mobile towers in 9 out of 1,713 cases over four years. The AFP was also under fire for failure to rectify or even disclose the issue after it knew it was in breach of the rules. The issues may bring convictions based on this evidence into question.

CES is set to return to real-life face-to-face action in January 2022, with the Consumer Technology Association naming January 5 to 8 as the dates for the event's return to Las Vegas. The US has been rolling out vaccinations at an impressive pace, but the event's tradition of welcoming the consumer electronics companies and industry members from across the world may be put to the test as the pandemic continues to run out of control in many parts of the world. I still expect I'll be watching along from home again next year.

We've largely tried to avoid NFT discussions here because we have issues with the way the technology currently operates, but a number of major announcements require mentioning. The CEO of Hasbro has indicated the company may consider NFTs for franchises like Magic The Gathering, while an NFT artwork of Chadwick Boseman has come under fire for commodifying the actor around the Oscars after his death last year. The initial flurry of NFT craziness doesn't seem to be behind us just yet.

In entertainment news, someone has posted a review to Rotten Tomatoes that has ruined Citizen Kane's perfect 100% fresh rating. While the review was a new addition, it comes from a 1941 review in the Chicago Tribune from the time of the movie's original release. The film is noted for having received mixed reviews at the time of its release, but the new arrival drops the film to a 99% rating. The only film that remains on 100% certified fresh? Paddington 2.

And finally, Netflix is launching a new 'Play Something' feature to get you over your decision fatigue and just, well, Play Something. The new button has been in testing since last year and aims to automatically start playing shows and movies based on the user's taste. The feature is rolling out worldwide today.

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