U.S. Banks Prepare for Possible Attacks from Iranian Hackers

As the United States reinstated economic sanctions on Iran, American banks were gearing up for retaliatory Iranian cyberattacks. Bank executives believe Iranian hackers could attempt to disrupt financial services, perhaps as they did between 2011 and 2013 -- with denial-of-service attacks that interrupted bank websites and other internet financial services.

  • Read the article: CNN

Twitter Deletes Millions of Suspicious Followers That Reappeared

Twitter Inc. made another attempt to make users’ tallies of followers more accurate, subtracting millions of suspicious followers which had reappeared on the social media service since a major purge in July. Twitter is under pressure to tackle its problem of fake users, which are a turn-off for investors and advertisers and have led to scrutiny from U.S. Congress.

Gab's Founder Says Site Will Proactively Screen for Violent Posts

The social-media site where the alleged Pittsburgh synagogue shooter broadcast his intentions is pledging to curb threats of violence, while it said it plans to remain a platform where hate speech and other forms of extreme content are permitted. Gab.com, which resumed service after a stretch in digital exile, will proactively police the site rather than wait for users to report troubling posts, founder Andrew Torba said in an interview, vowing to bolster efforts to expunge threats of physical harm.

Amazon, PayPal End Relationships with Far-Right Group 'Proud Boys'

Amazon and PayPal are distancing themselves from the far-right extremist group the Proud Boys, which has been involved in violent clashes at political demonstrations and has been labeled a hate group. Buzzfeed News reported that Amazon had removed merchandise from its marketplace promoting the Proud Boys after the news outlet contacted the company.

SEC Settles Charges with Founder of Unregistered Cryptocurrency Platform

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said it settled charges against Zachary Coburn, the founder of cryptocurrency token trading platform EtherDelta, over operating an unregistered securities exchange. The vast majority of the orders placed through EtherDelta’s platform were traded after the SEC had issued its 2017 report, in which the agency concluded that certain digital assets were securities and that exchanges that offered trading in these digital assets would be subject to the SEC’s registration rules.

Facebook Delays Political Transparency Features in U.K.

Facebook is delaying compulsory political transparency features in the U.K. after a series of reports about the fallibility of the new measures. “We have learned that some people may try to game the disclaimer system by entering inaccurate details and have been working to improve our review process to detect and prevent this kind of abuse," a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement.

Facebook Finds Links Between Blocked Sites, Russian Agency

Facebook revealed that the 115 accounts it blocked for "inauthentic behavior" over the weekend could've been linked to Russia's Internet Research Agency (IRA). The social network previously only said it believed "foreign entities" were behind the suspended Facebook and Instagram accounts, but gave more specifics as it announced further suspensions on the day of the U.S. midterm elections.

  • Read the article: CNET

EU Close to Finishing AdSense Case Against Google, Antitrust Chief Says

EU regulators are close to wrapping up their third case against Alphabet unit Google involving its AdSense advertising service, Europe’s antitrust chief said, suggesting the company may soon be hit with another hefty fine. The comments by European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager come four months after she levied a record 4.34 billion euro ($5 billion) fine against Google for using its popular Android mobile operating system to block rivals.

Zuckerberg Rejects Request to Testify Before British Parliament

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has rejected a request to appear before an international parliamentary committee delving into the questions around fake news. The rebuff came after Damian Collins, the head of the U.K. parliament’s media committee, joined forces with his Canadian counterpart in hopes of pressuring Zuckerberg to testify, as he did before the U.S Congress.

Hackers Insert Malicious Code Into Web Analytics Platform

Hackers have breached StatCounter, one of the internet's largest web analytics platforms, and have inserted malicious code inside the company's main site-tracking script. According to Matthieu Faou, the ESET malware researcher who discovered the hack, this malicious code hijacks any Bitcoin transactions made through the web interface of the Gate.io cryptocurrency exchange.

Several EU Governments Reject Plan to Tax Big Internet Companies

A European Union plan to tax big internet firms like Google and Facebook on their turnover was on the verge of collapsing after several EU governments rejected it and announced national initiatives instead. Under a proposal from the EU’s executive Commission in March, EU states would charge a 3 percent levy on the digital revenues of large firms that are accused of averting tax by routing their profits to the bloc’s low-tax states.

Judge Issues Ruling Against Qualcomm in FTC's Antitrust Case

Mobile chip firm Qualcomm Inc. suffered a setback in an antitrust brought against by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission when a judge sided with trade regulators on a motion for partial summary judgment. Qualcomm and the FTC last month asked a federal judge in San Jose, California, to delay the ruling so that the two sides could pursue settlement talks.

Report Faults Facebook for Being Used to Incite Violence in Myanmar

Facebook failed to prevent its platform from being used to “foment division and incite offline violence” in Myanmar, one of its executives said in a post on Monday, citing a human rights report commissioned by the company. The report, by Business for Social Responsibility, or BSR, which is based in San Francisco, paints a picture of a company that was unaware of its own potential for doing harm and did little to figure out the facts on the ground.

Despite Going Offline After Synagogue Killings, Gab Website Returns

Gab, which was booted by its domain host after a user of the platform was accused of killing 11 in a Pittsburgh synagogue, came back online. The platform, which bills itself as a free speech alternative to Twitter, has been scrutinized for attracting far-right, white supremacist and neo-Nazi users who have flocked to its platform after being banned from mainstream sites like Twitter and Facebook.

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