Facebook Could Face EU Fine of Up to $1.63 Billion for Data Breach

A European Union privacy watchdog could fine Facebook Inc. as much as $1.63 billion for a data breach in which hackers compromised the accounts of more than 50 million users, if regulators find the company violated the bloc’s strict new privacy law. Ireland’s Data Protection Commission, which is Facebook’s lead privacy regulator in Europe, said that it has demanded more information from the company about the nature and scale of the breach, including which EU residents might be affected.

Google Provides Second Report to EU on Price Comparisons

Google has provided a second report detailing the effects of its proposal to allow more price comparison rivals to bid for ads on top of its search page, EU antitrust regulators said. Google came up with the offer after being hit by a fine for 2.4 billion euros ($2.79 billion) in June for using its search engine market power to boost its own comparison shopping service.

FBI Forces Suspect to Unlock His iPhone Using Face ID

A child abuse investigation unearthed by Forbes includes the first known case in which law enforcement used Apple Face ID facial recognition technology to open a suspect's iPhone. It happened on August 10, when the FBI searched the house of 28-year-old Grant Michalski, a Columbus, Ohio, resident who would later that month be charged with receiving and possessing child pornography.

U.S. Plans to Sue California Over Its New Net Neutrality Law

The Trump administration said it will sue California in an effort to block what some experts have described as the toughest net neutrality law ever enacted in the United States, setting up a high-stakes legal showdown over the future of the Internet. California became the largest state to adopt its own rules requiring Internet providers like AT&T, Comcast and Verizon to treat all web traffic equally.

California Cybersecurity Law Requires Security for Smart Devices

California Governor Jerry Brown has signed a cybersecurity law covering “smart” devices, making California the first state with such a law. Starting on January 1st, 2020, any manufacturer of a device that connects “directly or indirectly” to the internet must equip it with “reasonable” security features, designed to prevent unauthorized access, modification, or information disclosure.

U.S. Antitrust Chief Expresses Concerns About Tech 'Stifling Innovation'

The Justice Department’s top antitrust enforcer is receptive to complaints that tech companies such as Google and Facebook may be hindering competition with their dominance but believes regulators lack the economic evidence that would be needed to prove such a case in court. Makan Delrahim, the agency’s antitrust chief, said at an event hosted by Axios that there are “very valid concerns at some level” about whether companies in Silicon Valley are getting too big, or “stifling innovation or consumer choice.”

Judge Refuses to Require Facebook to Record Messenger Calls

U.S. investigators failed in a recent courtroom effort to force Facebook to wiretap voice calls over its Messenger app in a closely watched test case, according to two people briefed on the sealed ruling. Members of a joint federal and state task force probing the international criminal gang MS-13 had tried in August to hold Facebook in contempt of court for failing to carry out a wiretap order, Reuters reported last month.

Judge Refuses to Block Imports of iPhones in Qualcomm Patent Case

A U.S. trade judge declined to block the importation of Apple Inc. iPhones with chips from Intel Corp., handing a major defeat to Qualcomm Inc. in its high-stakes legal dispute with the iPhone maker. A U.S. International Trade Commission judge said Apple’s phones infringed one Qualcomm patent related to power management technology, but denied the chipmaker’s request for a ban on the import of some iPhones into the United States.

Google CEO Visits White House, Congress Ahead of Hearings

Google chief executive Sundar Pichai paid a rare visit to Washington to defend the search giant against allegations that it silences conservatives online, part of an effort to defuse political tensions between the company, Congress and the Trump administration ahead of a key hearing on Capitol Hill later this year. Weeks after President Trump accused Google of having “rigged” search results, the company’s leader paid the White House a visit, meeting with Larry Kudlow, one of the president’s top economic advisors, a spokeswoman for the White House confirmed.

Appeals Court Reverses $234 Million Award Against Apple in Patent Case

Apple Inc. persuaded a federal appeals court to throw out a $234 million damages award in favor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s patent licensing arm for infringing a patent on computer processing technology. In a 3-0 decision, the U.S. Federal Circuit Court of Appeals said Apple deserved judgment as a matter of law, because jurors could not have found infringement based on evidence introduced in the liability phase of a 2015 trial.

Facebook Says Attack Exposed Personal Data on 50 Million Users

Facebook said that an attack on its computer network had exposed the personal information of nearly 50 million users. The attackers exploited a feature in Facebook’s code that allowed them to take over user accounts, and Facebook forced more than 90 million users to log out of their accounts, a common safety measure taken when accounts have been compromised.

Popular U.S. Election Machines Called Vulnerable to Cyberattacks

Election machines used in more than half of U.S. states carry a flaw disclosed more than a decade ago that makes them vulnerable to a cyberattack, according to a report to be delivered on Capitol Hill. The issue was found in the widely used Model 650 high-speed ballot-counting machine made by Election Systems & Software LLC, the nation’s leading manufacturer of election equipment.

EU Probing Whether Amazon Unfairly Copies Marketplace Products

European Union antitrust regulators are asking whether Amazon.com Inc. unfairly copies popular products sold by rivals on its online marketplace, according to a questionnaire sent to merchants. In a 16-page form to be filled out by Oct. 9, regulators want to know whether Amazon has in recent years started to sell products under its own brand that are "identical or very similar" to ones merchants have offered on the company’s website and what impact that’s had on their business.

Australian Teen Hacker Gets Probation for Downloading Apple Data

An Australian teenager who hacked Apple Inc. systems over several months and downloaded sensitive data avoided a jail term, as a court heard he was fascinated by the tech giant and found accessing its networks addictive. The now adult defendant, who was 16 at the time the hacking began, accessed Apple’s internal systems and copied data and authentication keys, a magistrate told a Children’s Court.

Tech Companies Testify in Congress on Privacy Protections

Facing growing pressure to protect their customers’ privacy, some of the biggest technology companies told Congress that they favor new federal consumer safeguards but diverged on some of the details. Representatives from AT&T, Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Twitter Inc. and Apple Inc. at a hearing of the Senate Commerce Committee that is assessing the need for new consumer protections.

The GigaLaw Firm helps companies of all sizes protect their brands online, using domain name dispute policies – such as the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) – and other legal tools available to copyright and trademark owners on the Internet.