FCC Releases App to Test Internet Speeds to Improve Coverage Information

The Federal Communications Commission has released a new speed test app to help measure Internet speeds across the country, available on both Android and iOS. The FCC Speed Test App works similarly to existing speed-testing apps like Ookla’s and Fast by Netflix, automatically collecting and displaying data once users press the “start testing” button.

After Pushback, Apple Agrees to Send Executive to Testify at Antitrust Hearing

Apple will send an executive to testify later this month at a Senate antitrust subcommittee hearing after pushback from the top senators on the Judiciary subcommittee, the lawmakers said. Subcommittee Chair Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and ranking member Mike Lee (R-Utah) had sent a letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook on Friday criticizing the company over its “refusal to provide a witness” to testify at the April 21 hearing on app stores and competition.

Senator's Bill Would Ban M&A by Five Largest U.S. Tech Companies

U.S. Senator Josh Hawley, a Republican who has been a staunch critic of Big Tech, said he has introduced a bill that would ban all mergers and acquisitions by any company with a market value greater $100 billion, a category that includes the five biggest U.S. tech companies. Hawley, who accuses the biggest social media companies of stifling conservative voices, also criticized other sectors, like pharmaceuticals, which he said were too concentrated and held too much market power.

China Fines Alibaba $2.75 Billion for Abusing Dominant Market Position

China slapped a record 18 billion yuan ($2.75 billion) fine on Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, after an anti-monopoly probe found the e-commerce giant had abused its dominant market position for several years. The fine, about 4% of Alibaba’s 2019 domestic revenues, comes amid a crackdown on technology conglomerates and indicates China’s antitrust enforcement on internet platforms has entered a new era after years of laissez-faire approach.

Biden's Budget Request Includes $1.3 Billion in Cybersecurity Funds

President Biden called for over $1.3 billion in cybersecurity funds as part of his proposed budget request sent to Congress, along with major investments in emerging technologies such as quantum computing and artificial intelligence. The budget proposal was submitted in the wake of two of the largest cyber espionage attacks in U.S. history, including what has become known as the SolarWinds hack, which likely involved Russian hackers and compromised at least nine federal agencies and 100 private-sector groups.

YouTube Removes Video with Florida Governor in Discussion on Children's Masks

YouTube has pulled a video featuring Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) over allegations it contains misinformation about the coronavirus and mask-wearing. The video is of a March 18 roundtable discussion in Tallahassee the governor hosted with panelists — radiologist and former White House adviser Scott Atlas, Harvard University biostatistician Martin Kulldorff, Oxford University epidemiologist Sunetra Gupta, and Stanford Medical School economist Jay Bhattacharya — who have publicly spoken against lockdowns and other measures enacted to reduce the spread of the coronavirus.

Apple Refuses to Testify at Senate Hearing on App Store Competition

Apple Inc is refusing to testify at an upcoming U.S. Senate subcommittee hearing on competition issues related to mobile app stores, the bipartisan leaders of the panel said App makers long have accused Apple’s App Store for iPhones and iPads, along with Google’s Play store for Android devices, of engaging in anticompetitive behavior by requiring certain revenue sharing payments and setting strict inclusion rules

U.S. Seizes Three Websites Posing as Biotech Companies to Steal Info

The Maryland U.S. attorney’s office is cracking down on fraudulent websites pushing fake coronavirus treatments and vaccines. The office announced that it had seized three websites purporting to be the websites of actual biotechnology companies responding to the coronavirus, but actually were stealing people's personal information and conducting other scams.

Two Australian Ministers Say Phones Hacked Through Telegram App

A second senior Australian government minister has revealed his mobile phone was hacked through the Telegram messaging app, with a media report saying the phishing scam was aimed at revealing contact details of pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong. Health Minister Greg Hunt’s office said in an emailed statement that “a cyber security attempt to impersonate the minister has been referred to the Australian Federal Police and investigations are underway.”

Procter & Gamble Develops Technique to Work Around Apple's Ad Privacy Tools

Procter & Gamble Co. helped develop a technique being tested in China to gather iPhone data for targeted ads, a step intended to give companies a way around Apple Inc.’s new privacy tools, according to people familiar with the matter. The move is part of a broader effort by the consumer-goods giant to prepare for an era in which new rules and consumer preferences limit the amount of data available to marketers.

Muslim Advocates Civil Rights Group Sues Facebook Over Safety Concerns

Civil rights group Muslim Advocates is suing Facebook and top executives, including Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg, alleging the company misled the public about how safe its social media platforms are. The complaint filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., argues that Facebook dupes lawmakers, civil rights groups and the public at large when it makes broad claims that it removes content that spews hate or incites violence and yet does not.

Commerce Department Adds Chinese Supercomputing Entities to Blacklist

The Commerce Department added seven Chinese supercomputing entities to a U.S. economic blacklist citing national security concerns. The department added Tianjin Phytium Information Technology, Shanghai High-Performance Integrated Circuit Design Center, Sunway Microelectronics, the National Supercomputing Center Jinan, the National Supercomputing Center Shenzhen, the National Supercomputing Center Wuxi and the National Supercomputing Center Zhengzhou to its blacklist.

  • Read the article: CNBC

Google's Supreme Court Win Seen as Victory for Open-Source Business Model

A Supreme Court ruling that sided with Alphabet Inc.’s Google in its 10-year legal battle with Oracle Corp. reaffirms the business model behind open-source software — sharing bits of computer code for free, experts said. The ruling said Google did not violate copyright protections when it used lines of Java computer code that allow its Android mobile operating system to connect to other software.

Microsoft, U.S. Government Officials Still Probing Chinese-Linked Cyberattack

Microsoft Corp. and U.S. government officials are still working to understand how a network of suspected Chinese hacking groups carried out an unusually indiscriminate and far-reaching cyberattack on Microsoft email software, more than a month after the discovery of an operation that rendered hundreds of thousands of small businesses, schools and other organizations vulnerable to intrusion. A leading theory has emerged in recent weeks, according to people familiar with the matter: The suspected Chinese hackers mined troves of personal information acquired beforehand to carry out the attack.

Former Track Coach Charged with Cyberstalking Over Nude Student Photos

A former Northeastern University track-and-field coach was arrested in connection with a scheme to trick female athletes into sending him nude or seminude photos, federal prosecutors announced. The former coach, Steve Waithe, 28, of Chicago, was charged with one count of cyberstalking and one count of wire fraud, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts said in a statement.

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