Facebook Sues Ukrainian Programmer for Scraping, Selling User Data

Facebook is suing a Ukrainian programmer for allegedly scraping and selling publicly accessible information from millions of Facebook users. The lawsuit, filed in the Northern District of California federal court, accuses freelance programmer Alexander Alexandrovich Solonchenko of using automated means to scrape phone numbers and Facebook user IDs off roughly 178 million accounts in 2018 and 2019.

Advertisers Hurt by Apple's New Privacy Policy for App Users

Apple’s privacy change, rolled out in April, is beginning to disrupt the online ad market, hurting e-commerce players and creating challenges for tech companies including Facebook Inc. and Snap Inc. Advertisers are finding it harder to reach potential customers, according to the executives, and ad prices—which were already rising—are going up further because of Apple’s change.

FTC Staff Report Accuses ISPs of 'Troubling Data Collection Practices'

A new Federal Trade Commission staff report points the finger at six of the largest internet service providers in the U.S., calling each out for amassing troves of personal data from their customers and failing to offer meaningful disclosures or options to control the collection of that data. The six ISPs in question -- Verizon, T-Mobile, Comcast Xfinity, Charter Spectrum, AT&T and Google Fiber -- account for roughly 98% of the mobile internet market in the U.S., notes the report.

  • Read the article: CNET

Facebook to Compensate French News Publishers for Shared Content

Facebook agreed to compensate French news publishers for content shared on the social media platform, the company announced. Facebook said the deal with Alliance de la presse d'Information générale, which represents papers across France, will allow users to “continue to freely share news within their communities, while ensuring the protections of neighboring rights of our publishing partners.”

Facebook’s Oversight Board Calls Lack of Info on VIP Program Unacceptable

Facebook’s Oversight Board issued a strong reprimand against the company in a set of quarterly reports, accusing it of not being “fully forthcoming” about a key program. The reports highlight the tense negotiations between the two entities, as the board tries to force greater transparency from the social media giant, despite its limited power.

Senator Blumenthal Calls Zuckerberg Testimony 'Urgent and Important'

Senator Richard Blumenthal is again calling on Mark Zuckerberg to testify about Facebook’s research into Instagram and child safety. “It is urgent and necessary for you or Mr. Adam Mosseri to testify to set the record straight and provide members of Congress and parents with a plan on how you are going to protect our kids,” the Connecticut lawmaker wrote in a letter addressed to Zuckerberg.

Sanctioned Russian Ransomware Group Blamed for Olympus Cyberattack

An “ongoing” cyberattack against the Japanese technology giant Olympus was caused by a Russian ransomware group sanctioned by the U.S. government, according to two people with knowledge of the incident. A new malware variant known as Macaw was used in the attack that began on October 10, which encrypted Olympus’ systems in the U.S., Canada and Latin America.

D.C. Attorney General Wants to Add Zuckerberg to Consumer-Protection Suit

The District of Columbia’s attorney general is seeking to hold Facebook Inc. Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg personally liable in a lawsuit stemming from the 2018 Cambridge Analytica scandal, in what the district said was a novel legal action against the social-media giant. Attorney General Karl Racine said he filed a motion to add Mr. Zuckerberg as a defendant in a consumer-protection lawsuit originally filed in December 2018 accusing Facebook of misleading its users about the privacy and security of their personal data.

Facebook Agrees to Fine, Compensation for U.S. Worker Discrimination

Facebook is paying a $4.75 million fine and up to $9.5 million to eligible victims to resolve the Justice Department’s allegations that it discriminated against U.S. workers in favor of foreigners with special visas to fill high-paying jobs. Facebook also agreed in the settlement to train its employees in anti-discrimination rules and to conduct more widespread advertising and recruitment for job opportunities in its permanent labor certification program, which allows an employer to hire a foreign worker to work permanently.

Animal Rights Group Sues YouTube for Allowing Abuse Videos

Lady Freethinker, an animal rights nonprofit, sued YouTube, accusing it of failing to live up to its agreement with users by allowing animal abuse videos to be uploaded and failing to take action when alerted about the content. Lady Freethinker, which has exposed dogfighting rings in Chile and dog meat auctions in South Korea, said YouTube had ignored the group’s repeated flagging of animal abuse videos.

Lawmakers Want Facebook to Stop Pilot of Cryptocurrency Wallet

A group of U.S. lawmakers said Facebook Inc. cannot be trusted to manage cryptocurrency and urged the social media platform to discontinue immediately a small pilot of its cryptocurrency wallet named Novi. U.S. Democratic senators Brian Schatz, Sherrod Brown, Richard Blumenthal, Elizabeth Warren and Tina Smith voiced their opposition to Facebook's two-year-old effort to launch a cryptocurrency and digital wallet.

Lawmakers Ask Amazon to 'Correct the Record' on Sworn Testimony

Members of a congressional committee questioned whether Amazon.com Inc. executives misled them during an investigation of the company’s business practices and if they may have lied under oath. In a letter sent to Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, five members of Congress asked the company to provide “exculpatory evidence” to corroborate the sworn testimony that several leaders, including then-CEO Jeff Bezos, provided to the House Judiciary Committee’s antitrust subcommittee in 2019 and 2020.

Facebook Whistleblower Advises UK Lawmakers on Online Safety Bill

Facebook whistleblower Sophie Zhang gave UK lawmakers her perspective on how best to implement the pending Online Safety Bill in a hearing in Parliament. The former Facebook data scientist used her inside knowledge of moderation practices to answer questions from the Draft Online Safety Bill joint committee about how to ensure that tech companies comply with upcoming legislation that would see them more tightly regulated in the UK.

  • Read the article: CNET

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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.