Twitter CEO Calls Rep. Omar After Trump's Tweet Prompts Death Threats

Twitter chief executive Jack Dorsey phoned Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar and stood by the company’s decision to permit a tweet from President Trump that later resulted in a flood of death threats targeting the congresswoman. The previously unreported call focused on an incendiary video that Trump shared on April 12, which depicts Omar discussing the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks interspersed with footage of the Twin Towers burning.

U.S. Trade Officials Keep Alibaba's Taobao on List of 'Notorious Markets'

U.S. trade officials acknowledged steps by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. to curb the sale of counterfeit goods on the Chinese company’s Taobao.com platform but left the e-commerce site on the list of “notorious markets” that the U.S. deems deficient in preventing intellectual-property violations. According to the annual piracy report, Alibaba has “taken some steps to curb the offer and sale of infringing products” but small and medium-size businesses say problems remain with the procedures for flagging and removing counterfeit goods from Taobao.

New York to Probe Facebook's Unauthorized Collection of Users' Address Books

The New York State attorney general’s office plans to open an investigation into Facebook’s unauthorized collection of more than 1.5 million users’ email address books, according to two people briefed on the matter. The inquiry concerns a practice unearthed in April in which Facebook harvested the email contact lists of a portion of new users who signed up for the network after 2016, according to the two people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the inquiry had not been officially announced.

Canadian Privacy Watchdog Accuses Facebook of Failing to Protect User Data

Canada’s main privacy watchdog said a year-long probe found Facebook Inc. broke the country’s privacy laws and failed to protect Canadians’ personal information, and will go to court to force the social-media company to fix the deficiencies it uncovered. A report released by the privacy commissioner of Canada and privacy commissioner for the province of British Columbia said the company disputes the watchdogs’ findings and has refused to act on the report’s recommendations.

Hacker Claims Ability to Turn Off Cars by Accessing GPS Tracking Apps

A hacker broke into thousands of accounts belonging to users of two GPS tracker apps, giving him the ability to monitor the locations of tens of thousands of vehicles and even turn off the engines for some of them while they were in motion, Motherboard has learned. The hacker, who goes by the name L&M, told Motherboard he hacked into more than 7,000 iTrack accounts and more than 20,000 ProTrack accounts, two apps that companies use monitor and manage fleets of vehicles through GPS tracking devices.

Twitter Introduces Tool to Report Misleading Information About Elections

Twitter introduced a new reporting tool designed to prevent deliberate attempts to misinform voters. As part of the social media company’s efforts to curb election manipulation and interference, the tool allows users to flag posts with misleading information about, for example, how to register to vote or cast a ballot; voter identification requirements; or the date and time of an election.

Facebook Expects Privacy Fine from FTC for Up to $5 Billion

Facebook said that it expected to be fined up to $5 billion by the Federal Trade Commission for privacy violations, in what would be a record penalty by the agency against a technology company. The social network disclosed the amount in its quarterly financial results, saying it estimated a one-time charge of $3 billion to $5 billion in connection with an “ongoing inquiry” by the FTC.

Business Email Scams Increase, Ransomware Complaints Drop, FBI Says

Losses due to BEC (Business Email Compromise) scams have doubled in 2018, compared to 2017 figures, and have reached a whopping $1.3 billion, according to the yearly FBI internet crime report. On the other hand, the number of ransomware victim complaints has gone down to 2014 levels, when ransomware attacks first started to become popular across the world; however, financial losses caused by ransomware attacks are now higher than ever, suggesting that crooks are now carefully selecting their victims in order to inflict the greatest damage and obtain the highest payouts.

Twitter Deletes 5,000 Pro-Trump Bots Criticizing 'Russiagate Hoax'

A network of more than 5,000 pro-Trump Twitter bots railed against the “Russiagate hoax” shortly after the release of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report last week, according to data gathered by a prominent disinformation researcher and analyzed by NBC News. The bots, which were created last November and December, were pulled down by Twitter for breaking the social network’s rules against “manipulation,” the company said.

Lawmakers Want Google CEO to Answer Questions About 'Sensorvault'

The top Democrats and Republicans on the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee wrote Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai raising concerns about reports of a massive database of precise consumer location information on hundreds of millions of consumers known as “Sensorvault.” The letter seeks a briefing and answers on how this information is used and shared, citing a New York Times report that the database includes nearly every consumer with an Android mobile device, in some cases storing information dating back to 2009.

Man Accused of Stealing Cryptocurrency Gets 10 Years in 'SIM Swapping' Case

A Boston-area resident has been sentenced to a decade in a California prison in what is believed to be the country’s first-ever arrest and conviction for “SIM swapping,” commandeering victims’ smartphones to steal millions of dollars’ worth of bitcoin and other cryptocurrency. Joel Ortiz, 21, was sentenced after pleading no contest in January to eight counts of identity theft and computer crimes.

Sri Lankan Government Shuts Down Social Media Sites After Bombings

The Sri Lankan government’s decision to shutter access to social media sites after the deadly bombings may mark a turning point in how countries around the world perceive Silicon Valley — and their willingness to act to stop the spread of falsehoods online. A decade ago, Facebook, Twitter and their social media peers helped spearhead pro-democracy uprisings that toppled dictators throughout the Middle East, and their services were seen as a way to help in catastrophes, allowing authorities a vehicle to convey crucial information and organize assistance.

U.S. State Department's Legal Adviser Becomes Facebook's General Counsel

Facebook Inc. named the legal adviser to the U.S. State Department as its general counsel, as the social media giant faces growing regulatory hurdles and privacy concerns. Jennifer Newstead, who brings government and private sector experience to the role, will succeed Colin Stretch, who decided to quit the company in July 2018, Facebook said in a blog post.

Terrorist Groups Find Ways to Circumvent Social Media Bans

Hezbollah is among dozens of groups classified by the United States as terrorist entities that have learned how to stay a step ahead of the social media giants. Although Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have taken down the official pages of these militant groups dozens of times and banned their accounts., Hamas and Hezbollah, in particular, have evolved by getting their supporters to publish images and videos that deliver their message — but that do not set off the alarm bells of the social media platforms.

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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.