Biden Administration Faces Decisions About How to Respond to Cyberattacks

Just as it plans to begin retaliating against Russia for the large-scale hacking of American government agencies and corporations discovered late last year, the Biden administration faces a new cyberattack that raises the question of whether it will have to strike back at another major adversary: China. Taken together, the responses will start to define how President Biden fashions his new administration’s response to escalating cyberconflict and whether he can find a way to impose a steeper penalty on rivals who regularly exploit vulnerabilities in government and corporate defenses to spy, steal information and potentially damage critical components of the nation’s infrastructure.

YouTube Cuts Five Television Channels Run by Myanmar's Military

YouTube said that it had cut five television channels run by Myanmar’s military from its platform, the latest in a string of moves by American internet giants to pare back the military’s online footprint since it seized power in a coup last month. The company — a unit of Alphabet, which also owns Google — said in a statement that it had removed the channels and videos based on its community guidelines, though it did not specify what rules the military had broken.

India Threatens to Jail Employees at Facebook, Twitter Over Takedown Requests

India’s government has threatened to jail employees of Facebook Inc., its WhatsApp unit and Twitter Inc. as it seeks to quash political protests and gain far-reaching powers over discourse on foreign-owned tech platforms, people familiar with the warnings say. The warnings are in direct response to the tech companies’ reluctance to comply with data and takedown requests from the government related to protests by Indian farmers that have made international headlines, the people say.

Justice Department Indicts McAfee for Cryptocurrency Fraud Scheme

The Justice Department announced that John McAfee, the founder of anti-virus software company McAfee, has been indicted on alleged fraud and money laundering charges tied to a cryptocurrency investment scheme. McAfee, who is detained in Spain, was indicted alongside Jimmy Gale Watson Jr., an executive adviser to McAfee, according to federal officials.

Biden Names Wu as Special Assistant for Technology, Competition Policy

President Biden named Tim Wu, a Columbia University law professor, to the National Economic Council as a special assistant to the president for technology and competition policy, putting one of the most outspoken critics of Big Tech’s power into the administration. The appointment of Mr. Wu, 48, who is widely supported by progressive Democrats and antimonopoly groups, suggests that the administration plans to take on the size and influence of companies like Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google, including working with Congress on legislation to strengthen antitrust laws.

Microsoft Email Flaw Compromises 20,000 U.S. Organizations

More than 20,000 U.S. organizations have been compromised through a back door installed via recently patched flaws in Microsoft Corp’s email software, a person familiar with the U.S. government’s response said. The hacking has already reached more places than all of the tainted code downloaded from SolarWinds Corp, the company at the heart of another massive hacking spree uncovered in December.

U.S. Military Faulted for Not Including Cybersecurity Provisions in Weapons Contracts

A government watchdog warned that the U.S. military has failed to adequately include cybersecurity provisions in contracts for acquiring weapons systems. The Government Accountability Office, which reports to Congress, “found examples of program contracts omitting cybersecurity requirements, acceptance criteria or verification processes,” according to a report, which studied five representative contracts. “Some contracts we reviewed had no cybersecurity requirements when they were awarded, with vague requirements added later.”

Content from Far-Right News Outlets Proliferated on Facebook, NYU Study Says

Content posted from news outlets rated as far-right received the highest levels of engagement on Facebook in the months surrounding the 2020 elections, according to a new study. Moreover, researchers found that among far-right outlets, sources identified as spreading misinformation had on average 65 percent more engagement per follower than other far-right pages, according to the study released by New York University’s Cybersecurity for Democracy.

Spotify Complaint Could Lead to Antitrust Probe of Apple in EU

Apple could face an EU antitrust charge sheet in the coming weeks after a complaint by rival Spotify that it unfairly pushed its own music streaming service, two people familiar with the matter said. The European Commission could send the statement of objections setting out suspected violations of the bloc’s antitrust rules to Apple before the summer, one of the people said.

New Secretary of State Says U.S. 'Will Secure Our Leadership in Technology'

Secretary of State Antony Blinken vowed that the U.S. will prioritize positioning itself as a global leader on technology to shore up its national security defenses, particularly following the recent breach of the federal government known as the SolarWinds hack. “We will secure our leadership in technology,” Blinken said as part of his first major speech as the country's top diplomat.

Arizona House OKs Bill Requiring Outside Payment Vendors in App Stores

The Arizona House of Representatives voted 31-29 to pass a bill that will require app stores to allow app makers to use their own payment processing software, avoiding fees charged by Apple and Google. The vote is a setback for Apple, which opposed it, and a victory for the Coalition for App Fairness, a group representing app makers upset with the app stores, which backed the bill.

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Virginia Becomes Second State with Consumer Data Protection Law

Virginia became the second state in the nation to enact a consumer data protection law, after Gov. Ralph Northam signed Virginia’s newly passed Consumer Data Protection Act. California was the first state to enforce data protection. The act, which was passed by the General Assembly last month, lets consumers receive copies of their online data, amend or delete that data, and opt out of allowing big businesses to use the data for marketing or other purposes.

FBI Director Indicates, But Won't Disclose, U.S. Response to SolarWinds Hack

FBI Director Christopher Wray hinted at the planned federal response to what has become known as the SolarWinds hack, stressing that confronting foreign attacks in cyberspace would be “a long, hard slog.” During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Wray was questioned about how to respond to the breach, which involved likely Russian hackers targeting software from IT group SolarWinds and other vectors to infiltrate at least nine federal agencies and 100 private sector groups.

Microsoft Says Hacking Campaign Linked to China Targets Exchange Servers

A China-linked cyberespionage group has been remotely plundering email inboxes using freshly discovered flaws in Microsoft mail server software, the company and outside researchers said — an example of how commonly used programs can be exploited to cast a wide net online. In a blog post, Microsoft said the hacking campaign made use of four previously undetected vulnerabilities in different versions of the software and was the work of a group it dubs HAFNIUM, which it described as a state-sponsored entity operating out of China.

Justice Dep't Seeks Detailed Search Data from Google in Antitrust Probe

The U.S. government asked Google to fork over granular information on how its search engine works and makes money, seeking to prove that the Internet giant is a monopoly. The U.S. Department of Justice and several state attorneys general are seeking comparable data on U.S. search results and related ads from Feb. 2, 2015 to Feb. 8, 2015 and from Feb. 3, 2020 to Feb. 9, 2020, according to a legal filing.

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.