Belgium Fines Google $684,000 Over 'Right to be Forgotten' Request

Google was fined 600,000 euros ($684,000) by the Belgian data protection authority after failing to comply with a "right to be forgotten" request from a reportedly high-profile, but anonymous Belgian citizen. The citizen had asked Google to remove links to a number of news articles about him, which contained unproven harassment claims and political labels that he claimed were not representative of his beliefs.

  • Read the article: CNET

U.K. Bans Huawei from 5G Network, Reversing Decision Amid Pressure

The United Kingdom announced that it will ban Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei from its 5G network, a reversal on a decision from earlier this year. The U.K. had said in January that Huawei technology could be used outside of "core" 5G networks, but changed direction after intense domestic and international pressure, especially from the United States.

TikTok Tells Australian Politicians It's 'Not Aligned with Any Government'

TikTok, the embattled short-video app run by Chinese technology giant Bytedance Ltd., has written to Australian politicians to reassure them about the safety of user data and its independence, as concerns about the app’s Chinese ties grow. Seeking to allay worries about state interference on the app, Lee Hunter, TikTok’s general manager for Australia, wrote in the two-page letter emailed to lawmakers that he was seeking to correct the record on a “number of false claims” made about the app and that TikTok is “not aligned with any Government, political party or ideology.”

Lawsuit Alleges Google Records Data in Mobile Apps Even with Tracking Off

Alphabet Inc.’s. Google records what people are doing on hundreds of thousands of mobile apps even when they follow the company’s recommended settings for stopping such monitoring, a lawsuit seeking class action status alleged. The data privacy lawsuit is the second filed in as many months against Google by the law firm Boies Schiller Flexner on behalf a handful of individual consumers.

Big Tech Companies Join Lawsuit Against New Student Visa Rule

Facebook, Google, Microsoft along with several other tech companies have joined the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in adding on to a lawsuit against the Trump administration, pushing back on a new rule that would force foreign students to leave the country if their colleges implemented online-only classes this fall. A lot of U.S. colleges are moving to online-only classes due to the pandemic, but the latest ruling from ICE states that the only way for foreign students to stay is to take in-person classes.

European Court to Rule on Privacy Issues for Data-Transfer Tools

Europe’s top court will rule on the legality of tools companies use to transfer Europeans’ data around the world, in the latest clash between Facebook and Austrian privacy activist Max Schrems. If the court finds the mechanisms are illegal, companies, ranging from small businesses to industrial giants, such as Facebook, could have to suspend the data transfers that underpin standard contractual clauses or face hefty fines for breach of EU privacy laws.

California Attorney General Opens Antitrust Investigation of Google

California has opened its own antitrust probe into Google, intensifying the pressure on the search giant already in the middle of investigations by the Justice Department and a host of other states, according to three people with knowledge of the inquiry. The move by California's attorney general comes as Google has come under increasing scrutiny from both Congress and foreign regulators for its market conduct and acquisitions that have turned it into the world's top search engine and the most profitable online advertising company.

Facebook Considering Ban on Political Advertising Before U.S. Election

Facebook executives are considering a temporary ban on political advertising in the final days before the U.S. election in November as the company continues to grapple with a large advertising boycott, employee unrest and other issues related to its policies on hate speech and misinformation, according to two people familiar with the company’s thinking. The people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the discussions have not yet reached the senior executive levels of the company, and no final decision has been made amid intense internal debate.

iPhone User Sues LinkedIn for Reading Clipboard Content without Consent

Microsoft Corp’s LinkedIn was sued by a New York-based iPhone user for allegedly reading and diverting users’ sensitive content from Apple Inc’s Universal Clipboard application. According to Apple’s website, Universal Clipboard allows users to copy text, images, photos, and videos on one Apple device and then paste the content onto another Apple device.

Amazon to Pay $135,000 Settlement for Alleged U.S. Sanctions Violations

In a statement, the U.S. Treasury Department notes that Amazon has agreed to pay $134,523 to settle potential liability over alleged sanctions violations. The charges specifically pertain to goods and services sent to people located in Crimea, Iran and Syria, which are covered by Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions, between November 2011 and October 2018.

Google May Avoid Full EU Antitrust investigation of Fitbit Acquisition

Google may be able to stave off a full-scale EU antitrust investigation into its planned $2.1 billion bid for Fitbit by pledging not to use Fitbit’s health data to help it target ads, people familiar with the matter said. The deal has drawn heavy criticism from privacy advocates on both sides of the Atlantic, concerned that Google may use Fitbit’s trove of health data to boost its dominance in online advertising and search.

German Authorities Seize Server That Hosted Stolen U.S. Law Enforcement Files

At the behest of the U.S. government, German authorities have seized a computer server that hosted a huge cache of files from scores of U.S. federal, state and local law enforcement agencies obtained in a Houston data breach last month. The server was being used by a WikiLeaks-like data transparency collective called Distributed Denial of Secrets to share documents — many tagged “For Official Use Only” — that shed light on U.S. police practices.

U.S. Announces Deferred Action Against France Over Digital Services Tax

The Trump administration will announce actions against France over its digital services tax but will defer them while France defers tax collections from U.S. technology firms, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said. The actions, expected by industry to be announced on Friday, are tied to a U.S. Section 301 probe into France’s digital tax, which Washington says discriminates against U.S. tech firms such as Google, Facebook and Apple Inc.

FTC, Justice Dep't Probe TikTok for Violating Children's Privacy Agreement

The Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Justice Department are looking into allegations that popular app TikTok failed to live up to a 2019 agreement aimed at protecting children’s privacy, according to two people interviewed by the agencies. A staffer in a Massachusetts tech policy group and another source said they took part in separate conference calls with FTC and Justice Department officials to discuss accusations that TikTok had failed to live up to an agreement announced in February 2019.

Read the article: Reuters

Security Operator at eBay Charged in Cyberstalking Campaign

A retired police captain who oversaw security operations at eBay Inc.’s European and Asian offices has been charged in a cyberstalking campaign that targeted a couple whom eBay executives viewed as critical of the company, the Justice Department said. Philip Cooke, 55 years old, is the seventh former eBay employee charged in the alleged cyberstalking campaign against a Massachusetts couple who publish an e-commerce blog, EcommerceBytes.

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