U.S. 'Unprepared' to Defend Against Artificial Intelligence Threats, Report Says

The federal government is "unprepared" to defend the nation against new threats posed by the increased adoption of artificial intelligence technologies, according to a report. The report, compiled by the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, recommended that the U.S. implement a “significant change” to keep up with countries such as China and Russia in the field of AI to address national security concerns.

Russia Accuses Twitter of Violating Law by Not Deleting Banned Content

Russia’s communications watchdog accused Twitter Inc. of violating Russian law by failing to delete banned content for the past several years, putting more pressure on a platform used by Kremlin opposition activists and exposing it to potential fines. The federal communications regulator, which has been increasingly cracking down on the Russian internet, said that the U.S. social-media company failed to delete 2,862 posts since 2017 with content linked to suicide, pornography and drugs.

Facebook Apologizes to Lawmaker for Removing Transgender Post

Facebook apologized to Rep. Marie Newman after the Illinois Democrat said a video of her putting a transgender pride flag outside her congressional office had been removed and labeled as "hate speech." Newman, a first-term lawmaker, tweeted about the removal of her Facebook post, drawing a response and apology from Andy Stone, a Facebook spokesperson.

Judge Approves Facebook's $650 Million Class-Action Privacy Settlement

A federal judge gave final approval to a $650 million Facebook class action privacy settlement and ordered the 1.6 million members of the class in Illinois who submitted claims to be paid “as expeditiously as possible.” Chicago attorney Jay Edelson sued Facebook in Cook County Circuit Court back in 2015, alleging that the platform’s use of facial recognition tagging was not allowed under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act.

Hospitals Facing New Risks From Cyberattacks on Top of Pandemic

Hospitals say cyberattacks are complicating their operations and hurting profits, adding to pressure on a $1.2 trillion sector that is under heavy strain from the coronavirus pandemic. Hospitals have increasingly become targets for ransomware scammers betting that executives will make swift payouts to restore lifesaving technology, cybersecurity experts said.

Biden Administration to Allow Trump Rule Targeting Chinese Tech Firms

The Biden administration plans to allow a Trump-era rule targeting Chinese technology firms deemed to pose a threat to the United States to go into effect despite objections from U.S. businesses, the U.S. Commerce Department said. The department issued an interim final rule in the final days of the Trump administration aimed at addressing information and communications technology supply chain concerns and said it would become effective after a 60-day period of public comment.

SolarWinds Executives Blame Intern for Choosing 'solarwinds123' Password

Current and former top executives at SolarWinds are blaming a company intern for a critical lapse in password security that apparently went undiagnosed for years. The password in question, "solarwinds123," was discovered in 2019 on the public internet by an independent security researcher who warned the company that the leak had exposed a SolarWinds file server.

  • Read the article: CNN

India's New Guidelines Require Social Media to Address Grievances

India announced new rules to regulate social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, requiring them to set up fresh avenues to address complaints. In a press release from India's Ministry of Electronics and IT, the guidelines stipulate that social media companies must set up a "grievance redressal mechanism" and appoint a chief compliance officer, nodal contact person and resident grievance officer — all of whom will be tasked with making sure companies are adhering to the new rules.

At House Judiciary Hearing on Tech, Lawmaker Says, 'Change is Coming'

The dominance of Facebook, Google, Apple and Amazon was again in the congressional spotlight, as lawmakers discussed ways to reform antitrust laws to rein in Big Tech. At a hearing before a House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee, the lawmakers examined the "gatekeeper power" of giant Silicon Valley companies -- the first in a series of three hearings aimed at modernizing antitrust laws in the digital era.

  • Read the article: CNET

Facebook Bans Myanmar Military's Accounts Over Human Rights Abuses

Facebook banned accounts of the military of Myanmar and its related media entities, citing its “history of exceptionally severe human rights abuses” and potential to use social media to pursue new rounds of violence following a coup. The move, which also affects Facebook subsidiary Instagram, extends a string of actions in recent years to sharply limit the ability of the nation’s military, called the Tatmadaw, to use the platforms in any way, including through paid advertising.

Lawmakers Want Amazon to Publicly Disclose Info on SolarWinds Hack

As lawmakers and security researchers continue to unravel the SolarWinds hack, some are growing more frustrated with Amazon.com Inc., saying the cloud-computing giant should be more publicly forthcoming about its knowledge of the suspected Russian cyberattack. There are no indications that Amazon’s systems were directly breached, but hackers used its sprawling cloud-computing data centers to launch a key part of the attack, according to security researchers.

ByteDance Agrees to $92 Million Privacy Settlement with TikTok Users

ByteDance has agreed to a $92 million class-action settlement to settle data privacy claims from some U.S. TikTok users, according to documents filed in U.S. District Court in Illinois. ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns the short video app that has more than 100 million U.S. users, agreed to the settlement after more than a year of litigation.

D.C. Attorney General Sues AT&T for Overcharging Cell, Internet Services

Washington, D.C., Attorney General Karl Racine filed a lawsuit against AT&T Mobility National Accounts, alleging that the company overcharged the city millions of dollars for cellphone and internet services, Racine’s office said in a statement. Racine’s office said AT&T was contractually required to give the city the cheapest data and wireless phone services available.

Twitter Removes Hundreds of Accounts linked to Iran, Russia, Armenia

Twitter announced that it had removed hundreds of accounts linked to Iran, Russia and Armenia for violating its platform manipulation policies. In a blog post, the social media giant said the accounts, which were permanently suspended, attempted to interfere with the 2020 presidential election and in some cases posed as government officials.

Biden Signs Executive Order to Address Global Chip Shortage

President Joe Biden signed an executive order meant to address a global chip shortage impacting industries ranging from medical supplies to electric vehicles. The order includes a 100-day review of key products including semiconductors and advanced batteries used in electric vehicles, followed by a broader, long-term review of six sectors of the economy.

  • Read the article: CNBC

Security Breach Prevents CD Projekt from Updating Cyberpunk 2077 Game

CD Projekt SA said it will delay a promised update to the much-criticized role-playing game Cyberpunk 2077, pinning the blame for its slow progress on a recent security breach. What the Polish publisher didn’t say is that most of its employees have been locked out of their workstations for the past two weeks, according to people familiar with the matter.

SolarWinds, Microsoft Defend Conduct After Breaches by Russian Hackers

Top executives at Texas-based software company SolarWinds Corp, Microsoft Corp and cybersecurity firms FireEye Inc and CrowdStrike Holdings Inc defended their conduct in breaches blamed on Russian hackers and sought to shift responsibility elsewhere in testimony to a U.S. Senate panel. One of the worst hacks yet discovered had an impact on all four. SolarWinds and Microsoft programs were used to attack others and the hack struck at about 100 U.S. companies and nine federal agencies.

Judge Rules Against Challenge to California's Net Neutrality Law

California may soon begin enforcing its first-in-the-nation net neutrality law after a federal judge ruled against broadband providers that had sought to scuttle the state’s open-Internet safeguards. The ruling amounts to a major victory for advocates of rules that require AT&T, Comcast, Verizon and other telecom giants to treat all Web traffic equally, potentially setting the stage for states nationwide to follow California’s lead and adopt tough new protections of their own.

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