FTC Confirms Private Investigation of Facebook's Privacy Practices

The Federal Trade Commission says it's officially investigating the potential misuse of the personal information of as many as 50 million Facebook users by Trump-connected data analysis firm Cambridge Analytica. The agency's action comes after it began a probe into the social network's admission that it had suspended Cambridge Analytica, which had worked for the Trump presidential campaign, from operating on its platforms while investigating whether it failed to delete information it received through an academic researcher.

U.K. Information Investigators Raid Cambridge Analytica's Offices

Britain’s information regulator said it was assessing evidence gathered from a raid on the office of data mining firm Cambridge Analytica, part of an investigation into alleged misuse of personal information by political campaigns and social media companies like Facebook. More than a dozen investigators from the Information Commissioner’s Office entered the company’s central London office shortly after a High Court judge granted a warrant.

Law Enforcement Using Dead People's Fingerprints to Unlock Phones

Separate sources close to local and federal police investigations in New York and Ohio, who asked to remain anonymous as they weren't authorized to speak on record, said it was now relatively common for fingerprints of the deceased to be depressed on the scanner of Apple iPhones, devices which have been wrapped up in increasingly powerful encryption over recent years. And it's entirely legal for police to use the technique, even if there might be some ethical quandaries to consider.

Cook Calls 'Well-Crafted' Privacy Regulation Necessary

Apple CEO Tim Cook, long an staunch advocate for consumer privacy, says that he supports the idea of tech companies facing regulations that specify just how they’re able to use customer data. Speaking at the China Development Forum in Beijing, Cook was asked for his thoughts on what should happen in the aftermath of Facebook’s latest privacy fiasco, according to Bloomberg’s recap of his remarks.

Tech Companies' Free-Service Model Under Attack Amid Privacy Concerns

The consumer surveillance model underlying Facebook and Google’s free services is under siege from users, regulators and legislators on both sides of the Atlantic. It amounts to a crisis for an internet industry that up until now had taken a reactive, whack-a-mole approach to problems like the spread of fraudulent news and misuse of personal data.

U.S. Charges Nine Iranians with Attempting to Hack Universities

The United States charged and sanctioned nine Iranians and an Iranian company for attempting to hack into hundreds of universities worldwide, dozens of companies and parts of the U.S. government, including its main energy regulator, on behalf of Tehran’s government. The cyber attacks, beginning in at least 2013, pilfered more than 31 terabytes of academic data and intellectual property from 144 U.S. universities and 176 universities in 21 other countries, the U.S. Department of Justice said, describing the campaign as one of the largest state-sponsored hacks ever prosecuted.

European Union Plans Stronger Consumer Laws for Social Media

The European Union is planning to apply tougher consumer laws to social media networks and email providers like Facebook and Google’s Gmail as scrutiny of data protection grows in the wake of an outcry over Facebook’s handling of data. Under the draft proposal first considered last year, authorities could levy fines of at least 4 percent of turnover. 

Trump's Tariffs on China Aimed at 'Tremendous Intellectual Property Theft'

President Trump put China squarely in his cross hairs, imposing tariffs on as much as $60 billion worth of Chinese goods to combat the rising threat from a nation that the White House has called “an economic enemy.” “We have one particular problem,” the president said before signing an order that will impose tariffs on hundreds of Chinese products, from shoes and clothing to consumer electronics. “We have a tremendous intellectual property theft situation going on.”

Senate Passes Controversial Online Sex Trafficking Bill

The Senate passed a controversial online sex trafficking bill, sending it to President Trump’s desk over concerns from the tech industry, capping off a months-long legislative fight. The legislation, called the Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act (FOSTA), but also referred to as SESTA after the original Senate bill, would cut into the broad protections websites have from legal liability for content posted by their users.

Lawsuit Filed Against Facebook, Consultancy Over Data Use

A U.S. resident has sued Facebook and a British-based political consultancy for obtaining data from millions of the social media site’s users without their permission, while an academic at the center of the storm accused both firms of scapegoating him. The complaint filed at the U.S. District Court in San Jose, California, marked the first of what may be many lawsuits seeking damages over Facebook’s ability to protect user data, and exploitation of the information by the Cambridge Analytica consultancy to help President Donald Trump’s election campaign.

Orbitz Discloses Data Breach Affecting 880,000 Payment Cards

Expedia Inc.’s Orbitz subsidiary said it has discovered a possible data breach affecting thousands of customers who booked trips through one of its older websites or a partner platform. Orbitz didn’t disclose which business partners were affected by the breach, but American Express Co. said separately that travel booked through its representatives and through Amextravel.com had been affected by the cyberattack.

Russian Judge Rejects Telegram's Effort to Block Access to User Data

Telegram, the encrypted messaging app that’s prized by those seeking privacy, lost a bid before Russia’s Supreme Court to block security services from getting access to users’ data, giving President Vladimir Putin a victory in his effort to keep tabs on electronic communications. Supreme Court Judge Alla Nazarova rejected Telegram’s appeal against the Federal Security Service, the successor to the KGB spy agency which last year asked the company to share its encryption keys. 

FTC Investigating Whether Facebook Violated 2011 Privacy Decree

Facebook Inc. is drawing scrutiny from the main U.S. privacy watchdog and half a dozen congressional committees over how the personal data of 50 million users was obtained by a data analytics firm that helped elect President Donald Trump. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is  probing whether Facebook violated terms of a 2011 consent decree over its handling of personal user data that was transferred to Cambridge Analytica without users’ knowledge, according to a person familiar with the matter.

'CLOUD Act' Would Impact How Law Enforcement Uses Online Data

The modern world of cloud computing, where data can moves seamlessly across most borders, presents challenges for law enforcement agencies and tech companies working with laws designed for a different era. A new law designed to address these international issues that has the support of both parties is pending before Congress, but privacy advocates and others are worried this solution will create an entirely new set of problems.

More Lawmakers Want Facebook to Testify on Cambridge Analytica

Congressional calls for Facebook to testify on Capitol Hill grew louder and more bipartisan, as lawmakers demanded that the tech giant explain how a data analytics firm that worked for President Trump’s campaign obtained names, “likes” and other personal information on 50 million people. The increasingly sharp and personal tenor of the requests — many of which sought an appearance by chief executive Mark Zuckerberg — raised the odds for a fresh round of potentially contentious hearings, following lawmakers’ intense questioning of Facebook and two other technology companies last fall.

Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority Suffers Cyber Attack

The computer infrastructure of PREPA, as the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority is known, suffered a cyber attack, Executive Director Justo Gonzalez Torres said in a statement. “In these moments we are protecting the systems and working to resolve the situation,” Gonzalez said in Spanish, adding that investigations into the source of the hack were ongoing.

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