Justice Department Expands Probe of Google's Advertising Tools

The Justice Department has reached out to more than a dozen companies in its antitrust probe of Google, including publishers, advertising technology firms and advertising agencies, as the company’s online ad tools become a major focus of the investigation, according to people familiar with the matter. In recent months, the department has been posing increasingly detailed questions — to Google’s rivals and executives inside the company itself — about how Google’s third-party advertising business interacts with publishers and advertisers, the people say.

Federal Reserve Considers Benefits of Issuing Its Own Digital Currency

The Federal Reserve is looking at a broad range of issues around regulations and protections for digital payments and currencies, including the costs and potential benefits of issuing its own digital currency, Governor Lael Brainard said. “By transforming payments, digitalization has the potential to deliver greater value and convenience at lower cost,” Brainard said in remarks prepared for delivery at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Apple Update Patches Bug That Could Allow Reading Encrypted Emails

Apple released macOS Catalina 10.15.3 last week, and the update apparently patched a bug that could let you read some text from encrypted emails as if they were unencrypted, according to IT specialist Bob Gendler. A longtime Mac fan, Gendler originally found the bug in July and privately disclosed it to Apple months before publicly writing about it last November, only after the company failed to fix the issue.

DOJ's Chief Antitrust Enforcement Official Recuses Self in Google Probe

The Justice Department’s chief antitrust enforcement official has recused himself from the department’s investigation into whether Alphabet Inc.’s Google is unlawfully suppressing competition. The department said that as the probe progressed, Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim came to realize that he needed to recuse himself because of his past work in private practice.

Justice Department Interviews App Developers in Apple Antitrust Probe

The U.S. Justice Department has reached out to app developers as part of its investigation into Apple Inc., one of the four big tech companies being probed for alleged anti-competitive behavior, according one of the developers and another person familiar with the investigation. The chief executive of developer Mobicip, Suren Ramasubbu, told Reuters he was interviewed in November by a U.S. investigator who asked about the company’s interactions with Apple.

Ireland's Data Protection Commission Investigating Google, Tinder

Irish regulators have launched separate inquiries into Google and dating app Tinder over how they process user data, in a new round of regulatory scrutiny aimed at tech companies. Ireland’s Data Protection Commission said that it decided to look into how Google handles location data after a number of consumer groups across the European Union filed complaints.

Despite State Complaints, Google Allowed Ads for Fake Fishing Licenses

Google failed to stop a network of predatory websites from buying ads to promote "scam" fishing licenses to people across the country even after multiple state agencies repeatedly complained to the company about the ads, those states told CNN Business. After being contacted by CNN Business, Google conducted an internal investigation and confirmed that it did receive reports from two state agencies.

  • Read the article: CNN

YouTube to Ban Misleading Videos That Could Impact Elections

YouTube said it will ban misleading or doctored videos that could impact elections, tightening its rules ahead of the presidential election. The video-streaming site said in a blog post that it will remove altered videos such as “deepfakes” and videos with patently false information, such as clips that report a living candidate is dead.

Hackers Prey on Coronavirus Fears to Spread Malicious Software

As the coronavirus continues to spread across the globe sickening thousands of people in its wake, a malicious strain of software is seeking to take advantage of people's fears. Researchers with IBM X-Force and Kasperky have discovered that hackers are sending spam emails to people in the hopes of infecting smartphones and computers with malicious software.

FCC Approves $20.4 Billion Fund to Expand Rural Broadband Access

The Federal Communications Commission voted to approve a $20.4 billion fund designed to ensure that residents in rural areas of the US have access to broadband internet connections. The move was the agency's "single biggest step to date to close the digital divide," the FCC said in a press release Thursday, but two of the five agency commissioners dissented in part to the plan, saying, among other things, that it relies on faulty data.

  • Read the article: CNET

Supreme Court Sets Date for Oral Arguments in Oracle-Google Java Case

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a new argument calendar, setting March 24 as the day for justices to hear oral arguments in the decade-long lawsuit by Oracle against Google over Google’s use of Oracle’s Java code to create Google’s Android operating system. Oracle in 2010 sued Google over Google’s use of Java code, claiming up to $9 billion in damages.

Trump Signs Executive Order to Reduce Counterfeit Products Online

President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at preventing counterfeit products from abroad from being sold to U.S. citizens who shop online using Amazon.com, Walmart.com or other ecommerce websites, the White House said. Presidential trade adviser Peter Navarro urged Amazon, Walmart and digital commerce sites to take steps to ensure that the goods they sell are safe and legal.

Facebook to Remove Misinformation Related to Coronavirus Outbreak

Facebook Inc. said it would take the rare step of removing false claims about cures and prevention methods for the coronavirus, in an effort to crack down on misinformation related to the global outbreak. The announcement came shortly after the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak an international public-health emergency beyond China, where the respiratory virus originated last month.

Man Pleads Guilty to Stealing Confidential Files from Nintendo's Servers

A California man has pled guilty to hacking Nintendo’s servers to steal confidential files, including taking information about the Nintendo Switch months before it was announced, the U.S. Department of Justice revealed. According to the DOJ, Ryan Hernandez, 21, and an associate phished a Nintendo employee in 2016 to get access to and steal confidential information from the company.

Twitter to Let Users Flag Posts with Misinformation About Elections

Twitter is rolling out a feature allowing users to flag posts they believe contain misinformation about elections ahead of November, a spokesperson said. Carlos Monje, the platform's director of public policy, said in a statement that the new tool is part of a broader effort to stop the spread of content that might mislead people about elections.

Justice Department Sets Public Meeting on Protections for User Content

The U.S. Justice Department said it will hold a public meeting on Feb. 19 to discuss the future of a federal law which largely exempts online platforms from legal liability for the material their users post. The meeting will examine the future of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which provides immunity to companies such as Facebook, Alphabet’s Google and Twitter for content posted by users, although companies can still be held liable for content that violates criminal or intellectual property law.

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