Texas Sues Meta Over Facebook’s Facial-Recognition Practices
By: Wall Street Journal Date: February 14, 2022 The Texas attorney general filed a suit against Facebook parent Meta Platforms on Monday, charging that the social-media giant’s longstanding and now discontinued use of facial-recognition technology violated that state’s privacy protections for personal biometric data. The lawsuit, filed in state district court in Marshall by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, […]
China, Not SpaceX, May Be Source of Rocket Part Crashing Into Moon
By: The New York Times Date: February 14, 2022 On March 4, a human-made piece of rocket detritus will slam into the moon. But it turns out that it is not, as was previously stated in a number of reports, including by The New York Times, Elon Musk’s SpaceX that will be responsible for making […]
C.I.A. Is Collecting in Bulk Certain Data Affecting Americans, Senators Warn
By: The New York Times Date: February 10, 2022 The Central Intelligence Agency has for years been collecting in bulk, without a warrant, some kind of data that can affect Americans’ privacy, according to a newly declassified letter by two senators. The C.I.A. kept censored the nature of the data when it declassified […]
Atomico Hires Inaugural ESG Head, as VCs Wake up to Consumer Push for Impact
By: Sifted Date: February 10, 2022 The Atomico office in central London is an eco-warrior’s dream. The building is carbon-neutral, the in-house chef limits meat consumption and food waste, its giant annual report is printed on recycled paper and partners have guidelines to make working from home greener. But the firm now wants its […]
Is the Cryptocurrency Trading Boom Creating a New Generation of Addicts?
By: The Guardian Date: February 8, 2022 When bitcoin first became available for purchase in 2009, cryptocurrencies were a relatively obscure niche product. Not any more. Some estimates suggest 221 million people were trading cryptocurrencies around the world last year, often using slick, gamified apps on their smartphones. The Guardian business reporter Rob Davies is […]
IRS Retreats From Facial Recognition to Verify Taxpayers’ Identities
By: Wall Street Journal Date: February 7, 2022 The Internal Revenue Service is scrapping its use of a private facial-recognition system to authenticate taxpayers’ identities for online accounts, the agency said Monday after criticism from lawmakers in both parties over privacy concerns. “Everyone should feel comfortable with how their personal information is secured, and […]
Scam Ads: Why an Australian Billionaire is Launching Legal Action Against Facebook
By: The Guardian Date: February 3, 2022 The Australian billionaire Andrew Forrest has launched criminal proceedings against Facebook for failing to take action on scam ads featuring his image. A Guardian investigation into the scam ads sheds light on how the scam works and what the ads look like. The ads appear on Facebook or on news […]
U.S. Moving—Some Say Too Slowly—to Address TikTok Security Risk
By: Wall Street Journal Date: February 2, 2022 The Biden administration is moving to revise federal rules to address potential security risks from TikTok and other foreign-owned apps, eight months after opting not to pursue a forced shutdown of the Chinese-owned video-sharing platform. The Commerce Department recently concluded a public-comment period on the proposed rule change, […]
How the FTC Is Reshaping the Antitrust Argument Against Tech Giants
By: Wall Street Journal Date: January 29, 2022 For years, activists, lawmakers, lobbying groups, think tanks and most Americans have agreed something should be done about giant tech companies’ power. With minor exceptions, no one has figured out how to do it. Now, U.S. competition regulators at the Federal Trade Commission are getting creative. They’re zeroing in on […]