N.Y. Governor Orders Probes of Facebook's Collection of Smartphone Info

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo ordered two state agencies to investigate a report that Facebook Inc. may be accessing far more personal information from smartphone users, including health and other sensitive data, than had previously been known. The directive to New York’s Department of State and Department of Financial Services came after The Wall Street Journal said testing showed that Facebook collected personal information from many smartphone apps within seconds of users entering it, even if the users had no connection to the social media company.

Privacy Group Asks FTC to Investigate Google Over Nest Microphones

After revelations that Google failed to let consumers know of a microphone in its Nest security devices, a longtime privacy advocacy group is calling on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to take action. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) sent a letter to the FTC, alerting the commission of the potential consumer risk and requesting it take swift action against Google.

California Bill Would Close Loopholes in Data Breach Notification Law

California’s attorney general Xavier Becerra announced a new bill that aims to close loopholes in its existing data breach notification laws by expanding the requirements for companies to notify users or customers if their passport and government ID numbers, along with biometric data, such as fingerprints, and iris and facial recognition scans, have been stolen.

The updated draft legislation lands a few months after the Starwood hack, which Becerra and Democratic state assembly member Marc Levine, who introduced the bill, said prompted the law change.

Facebook Lets Advertisers Target Users Interested in Holocaust, Neo-Nazis

Despite promises of greater oversight following past advertising scandals, a Los Angeles Times review shows that Facebook has continued to allow advertisers to target hundreds of thousands of users the social media firm believes are curious about perpetrators of the Holocaust or explicitly neo-Nazi music topics such as “Joseph Goebbels,” “Josef Mengele,” “Heinrich Himmler,” the neo-nazi punk band Skrewdriver and Benito Mussolini’s long-defunct National Fascist Party. Experts say that this practice runs counter to the company’s stated principles and can help fuel radicalization online.

Groups File FTC Complaint Accusing Facebook Over Children's Games

Public interest groups are accusing Facebook of deceiving children as young as 5 into unknowingly spending their parents’ money on in-game purchases on the social network’s platform. A coalition of child and privacy advocates filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) after court documents that were unsealed last month revealed employees were aware that young children were playing games on the Facebook app and that the company was making it harder for their parents to obtain refunds.

More Companies Stop Advertising on YouTube Amid Pedophile Report

AT&T and Hasbro are the latest companies to pull its ads from Google's YouTube following reports that pedophiles have latched onto videos of young children, often girls, marking time stamps that show child nudity and objectifying the children in YouTube's comments section. "Until Google can protect our brand from offensive content of any kind, we are removing all advertising from YouTube," an AT&T spokesperson said.

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EU Countries Endorse Copyright Changes Affecting News Snippets Online

European Union countries endorsed an overhaul of the bloc’s copyright rules which would force Google and Facebook Inc. to pay publishers for news snippets and filter out copyright-protected content on YouTube or Instagram. A majority of EU diplomats agreed to the revamp while Finland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Poland refused to back the deal and two other EU countries abstained.

Pinterest Blocks Vaccine-Related Searches to Stop 'Misleading Content'

Pinterest has blocked all vaccine-related searches on the social media platform in an effort to combat the “misleading content” of the anti-vaccination movement, a spokesperson said. Speaking in an appearance on CNBC, a spokesman for the online pinboard said it implemented the ban on the searches until it can come up with a more permanent strategy to tackle content attempting to discredit vaccinations.

Microsoft Discovers Cyber Attacks Directed at Democratic Institutions in Europe

Microsoft Corp. said it had discovered cyber attacks directed at democratic institutions, think tanks and non-profit organizations in Europe and would offer a cyber security service to several countries to close security gaps. The hacks occurred between September and December 2018, targeting employees of the German Council on Foreign Relations and European offices of The Aspen Institute and The German Marshall Fund, the company said here in a blog post.

Publishers Pause Some Ads on YouTube Amid Report of Child Exposures

Videos of children showing their exposed buttocks, underwear and genitals are racking up millions of views on YouTube – with the site displaying advertising from major cosmetics and car brands alongside the content. Comments beneath scores of videos appear to show pedophiles sharing timestamps for parts of the videos where exposed genitals can be seen, or when a child does the splits or lifts up their top to show their nipples.

Twitter Launches Tools in EU to Promote Transparency Ahead of Elections

Twitter announced it will launch tools in the European Union (EU) aimed at promoting transparency around who pays for political ads on its platform and how those ads are promoted on users' feeds. The social media giant said in a blog post that it will extend the strategies it used during the 2018 U.S. midterm elections to the EU, as well as to India and Australia ahead of elections in both of those countries.

EU Antitrust Chief Eyeing Facebook Closely But Says No 'Open Case' Now

Facebook is not currently in EU regulators’ crosshairs but it may well be in future because of the crucial role played by data, Europe’s antitrust chief said. European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager’s comments came two weeks after the German cartel office ruled that the world’s largest social network abused its market dominance to gather information about users without their consent.

Emoji Arise in Legal Disputes, Sometimes Raising Interpretation Questions

Emoji are showing up as evidence in court more frequently with each passing year. Between 2004 and 2019, there was an exponential rise in emoji and emoticon references in US court opinions, with over 30 percent of all cases appearing in 2018, according to Santa Clara University law professor Eric Goldman, who has been tracking all of the references to “emoji” and “emoticon” that show up in U.S. court opinions.

Iranian, Chinese Hackers Targeting Dozens of U.S. Businesses, Governments

Businesses and government agencies in the United States have been targeted in aggressive attacks by Iranian and Chinese hackers who security experts believe have been energized by President Trump’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal last year and his trade conflicts with China. Recent Iranian attacks on American banks, businesses and government agencies have been more extensive than previously reported. Dozens of corporations and multiple United States agencies have been hit, according to seven people briefed on the episodes who were not authorized to discuss them publicly.

Israeli Government Lacks Coordinated Defense to Election Meddling Online

While Israeli engineers develop some of the world’s most sought-after online protection, the government has yet to come up with a coordinated defense to shield the April 9 vote against fake news and other malicious meddling. According to the Israel Democracy Institute research center, responsibility for protecting the vote is divided among at least nine entities.

Australian Prime Minister Says Political Parties Suffered Cyber Attacks

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has revealed Australia's political parties suffered cyber attacks alongside the Parliament House computer network several weeks ago by a "sophisticated state actor". The announcement is likely to intensify speculation that China was behind the attacks, which come just three months before the federal election, though Mr Morrison said there was no evidence of election interference.

EU Rules Would Require Tech Firms to Tell Companies How They Rank Products

Google, Amazon and other tech firms will have to tell companies how they rank their own or rival products on their platforms under new rules agreed by EU negotiators aimed at stopping unfair practices by online platforms and app stores. Proposed by the European Commission in April last year, the platform-to-business (P2B) law is targeted at Google Play, Apple App Store, Microsoft Store, Amazon Marketplace, eBay and Fnac Marketplace.

British Lawmakers Accuse Facebook of Violating Privacy, Competition Laws

British lawmakers accused Facebook of having “intentionally and knowingly violated both data privacy and anti-competition laws” in the country, and they called for investigations into the social media giant’s business practices. The sharp rebuke came in a 108-page report written by members of Parliament, who in 2017 began a wide-ranging study of Facebook and the spread of malicious content online.

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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.