Zuckerberg's Defense of Free Speech Criticized by Politicians, Advocates

Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg drew fresh ire from Democratic presidential candidates, free speech experts and civil rights advocates, who argued his speech in Washington failed to acknowledge the problems the tech giant’s practices create. The swift, broad nature of the criticism — including from the daughter of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. — largely centered on Zuckerberg’s acknowledgment of the dangers of disinformation and the potential for an “erosion of truth” online, even as he defended Facebook’s rules that allow politicians, including President Trump, to lie in their election ads.

House Judiciary Committee Hears About Privacy from Tech Leaders

House lawmakers pressed experts on how the market power of major tech platforms could hurt consumer privacy, showing that an antitrust investigation into Facebook, Google, Apple and Amazon is growing to include deeper questions about their business models. Lawmakers from the Judiciary Committee heard testimony that the tech giants have amassed vast quantities of data that give them an advantage over rivals, and that their dominance allows them to get away with more aggressive data collection.

German Finance Minister 'Highly Skeptical' of Facebook's Libra Plans

German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz redoubled his criticism of Facebook’s plans to launch its Libra cryptocurrency, and said creation of a new world currency should be prevented. Scholz, speaking with reporters at the IMF and World Bank fall meetings in Washington, cited growing concern about such “stablecoins” and the potential international risks they posed.

House Committee Invites Tech Firms to Testify About Impact on Small Businesses

The House Small Business Committee Chairwoman Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.) formally invited some of the largest tech companies in the country to testify at an upcoming hearing about whether their practices harm small businesses. Velázquez invited Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple to testify at a hearing in November, underlining that the committee is looking for a response by Oct. 31.

Zuckerberg Defends Facebook But Says He Worries 'About Erosion of Truth'

Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said in an interview he worries “about an erosion of truth” online but defended the policy that allows politicians to peddle ads containing misrepresentations and lies on his social network, a stance that has sparked an outcry during the 2020 presidential campaign. “People worry, and I worry deeply, too, about an erosion of truth,” Zuckerberg told The Washington Post ahead of a speech at Georgetown University.

U.S. Carried Out Secret Cyber Operation Against Iran After Saudi Attack

The United States carried out a secret cyber operation against Iran in the wake of the Sept. 14 attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities, which Washington and Riyadh blame on Tehran, two U.S. officials have told Reuters. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the operation took place in late September and took aim at Tehran’s ability to spread “propaganda.”

Federal Reserve Governor Says Facebook's Libra Faces Challenges

U.S. Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard said that Facebook’s efforts to launch a Libra cryptocurrency must overcome a “core set of legal and regulatory challenges” before facilitating a single payment. Brainard added that central banks’ efforts to conduct monetary policy could be “complicated” by widespread adoption of an external stablecoin like Libra.

Twitter Says 'World Leaders Not Above Our Policies Entirely'

Facing a request to boot President Trump from its platform, Twitter affirmed that world leaders are not above its rules but defended its discretion to preserve some tweets that violate its policies. The update, detailed in a blog post, seemed unlikely to quiet increasingly forceful appeals for technology giants to regulate Trump’s use of social media, which is central to his political strategy.

Prosecutors Charge South Korean Man with Operating Child Porn Network

Federal prosecutors have filed multiple charges against a 23-year-old South Korean man accused of running what they call the world's "largest dark web child porn marketplace." The now-shuttered English-language site, called "Welcome to Video," contained more than 200,000 unique videos or almost 8 terabytes of data showing sex acts involving children, toddlers and infants, according to the 18-page criminal indictment, and processed 7,300 Bitcoin transactions worth more than $730,000.

Trump to Discuss Retaliation Against Italy for Tax on Digital Companies

U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to raise the possibility of U.S. retaliation against an Italian tax on digital companies when he meets with President Sergio Mattarella, a senior administration official said. Speaking with reporters on Tuesday ahead of the White House visit, the official said Trump would likely express the desire that the tax disagreement be resolved at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation (OECD), but noted that the United States was prepared to counter any such levy.

YouTube Allows Violent Parody Video of Trump Shooting Journalists

A violent parody depicting President Trump shooting journalists and attacking political opponents (both Democrats and Republicans) — which had been available on YouTube for more than a year — saw a spike in traffic after it aired over the weekend during a conference hosted by the pro-Trump group American Priority at the president's Miami-area golf resort. Critics warned the video could incite real-world violence, but YouTube said the video does not violate its policies because it is "clearly fictional." The company added an age restriction to the video requiring viewers to confirm they are adults before they can watch it.

France Pushes for Creation of European-Wide Regulator of Digital Platforms

France is pushing for the creation of a European-wide regulator of digital platforms such as Google to sanction possible abuse of power, a French presidency official said, citing a dispute over EU copyright law as an example. Google said last month it would stop showing news snippets from European publishers on search results for its French users to comply with a new European copyright law, prompting anger in Paris.

Zuckerberg Defends Meetings with Conservative Politicians, Pundits

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg defended himself after receiving pushback over a report that he has recently held a string of private meetings with conservative politicians, pundits and journalists. Behind closed doors over the past several months, Politico reported, Zuckerberg has been meeting with top GOP figures, including Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Fox News host Tucker Carlson and conservative radio show host Hugh Hewitt.

Apple Disputes Reports That It Shares Browsing Data with Chinese Firm

Apple is refuting press reports that it sends some users' private browsing data to Google and the Chinese tech company Tencent, saying it safeguards people's information in its own systems and doesn't send most easily identifiable website information to other companies. The concerns stemmed from reports that focused on Apple's "fraudulent website warning" system.

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European Court to Hear Arguments in Google Antitrust Case in February

Alphabet unit Google’s fight against a 2.4-billion-euro ($2.64 billion) EU antitrust fine will be played out over three days in February 2020 at Europe’s second-highest court, according to parties involved in the case. The Luxembourg-based General Court will hear arguments from Google and a tech lobbying group backing its appeal while the European Commission will be supported by Germany and eight companies.

Online Bank Files Trademark Suit Against Facebook Over Calibra Logo

Online bank Current has filed a trademark infringement suit against Facebook over the logo of the social media company’s new financial services subsidiary, Calibra. The complaint, filed October 10 at the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, said Facebook’s Calibra logo design is “nearly identical” to Current’s logo.

Lawmakers Study Bot-Generated Social-Media Messages About E-cigarettes

A congressional committee and the Massachusetts attorney general are investigating whether millions of bot-generated social-media messages about e-cigarettes have been misleading consumers about safety and health issues. In information requests to five big manufacturers of vaping products in August, House investigators asked each of the firms whether it had used social media bots to market its products.

U.S. Financial Regulators Issue Warnings About Registering Digital Assets

Three U.S. financial regulators issued a warning to firms with registered digital assets that they have an obligation to follow securities laws prohibiting money laundering and requiring disclosure of suspicious activity. The notice, from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, seeks to clarify firms’ obligations under antimoney laundering, bank secrecy and counter terrorist-financing laws when using digital assets such as cryptocurrencies.

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