FCC Member Asks Apple, Google to Remove TikTok from App Stores

A federal communications regulator has asked Apple Inc. and Google to remove Chinese-owned TikTok from their app stores, citing the security risks posed by the data collected by the short-form video site on American users. “It is clear that TikTok poses an unacceptable national security risk due to its extensive data harvesting being combined with Beijing’s apparently unchecked access to that sensitive data,” Federal Communications Commission member Brendan Carr wrote in a letter to Apple and Google, a unit of Alphabet Inc.

Google Agrees to Pay $90 Million to Settle App Developers' Lawsuit

Alphabet Inc's Google has agreed to pay $90 million to settle a legal fight with app developers over the money they earned creating apps for Android smartphones and for enticing users to make in-app purchases, according to a court filing. The app developers, in a lawsuit filed in federal court in San Francisco, had accused Google of using agreements with smartphone makers, technical barriers and revenue sharing agreements to effectively close the app ecosystem and shunt most payments through its Google Play billing system with a default service fee of 30%.

Taiwanese Semiconductor Manufacturer Waiting on U.S. Subsidies

Taiwan’s biggest semiconductor manufacturer has started building a computer-chip factory in Arizona and is hiring U.S. engineers and sending them to Taiwan for training, but the pace of construction will depend on Congress approving federal subsidies, a Taiwanese minister said. The message follows similar calls from U.S. chip manufacturers Intel and GlobalFoundries, which said that the delay in passing the subsidy legislation is slowing their investments in new factories in Ohio and New York.

Former Uber Security Chief Faces Charges for Covering Up Hacking

A federal judge said a former Uber Technologies Inc. security chief must face wire fraud charges over his alleged role in trying to cover up a 2016 hacking that exposed personal information of 57 million passengers and drivers. The U.S. Department of Justice had in December added the three charges against Joseph Sullivan to an earlier indictment, saying he arranged to pay money to two hackers in exchange for their silence, while trying to conceal the hacking from passengers, drivers and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

Ex-Canadian Government Employee to Plead Guilty to Ransomware Charges

A former Canadian government employee has agreed to plead guilty in the U.S. to charges that he worked for a ransomware gang that researchers say has reaped almost $50 million in illegal payments during the past two years. Sebastien Vachon-Desjardins has agreed to plead guilty to hacking-related charges, according to court documents filed Tuesday in federal court in Tampa. He was accused of working as part of a digital extortion group known as NetWalker.

Switzerland's Supreme Court Upholds Ban on Foreign Gambling Sites

Switzerland's supreme court has upheld a ban on accessing foreign online gambling sites, dashing the hopes of three betting outfits to tap the Swiss market. The Federal Court said in a statement the "domain name system" ban was proportionate. Gaming officials have since 2019 used network blocks to limit access to the market to Swiss-approved games of chance.

Senators Ask Treasury Secretary for Details on National Security Review of TikTok

A group of six Republican senators asked U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen about an ongoing Biden administration national security review of social media platform TikTok. The U.S. government's Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which reviews deals by foreign acquirers for potential national security risks, in 2020 ordered Chinese parent company ByteDance to divest TikTok because of fears that U.S. user data could be passed on to China's communist government.

Senators Seek Information from Facebook About Policy on Gun Sales

Three top Senate Democrats are urging Facebook to be more transparent about an internal policy that allows gun sellers to violate the company’s prohibition against peer-to-peer firearm sales 10 times before they are kicked off the platform. Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) sent a letter to Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, requesting documentation about how the company’s “strikes” system, which gives users who break the company’s rules a specific number of passes and a tiered system of punishments, applies to guns.

Australian Consumer Group Says Retailers Used Facial Tech Illegally

Three of Australia's biggest retail chains have been referred to the privacy regulator for recommended enforcement action by a major consumer group which has said they use "unreasonably intrusive" facial recognition technology on customers. CHOICE, in a complaint to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, said use of the technology at JB Hi-Fi Ltd's appliances chain The Good Guys as well as hardware chain Bunnings and the Australian arm of big-box retailer Kmart — both owned by Wesfarmers Ltd — was unwarranted.

Senators Urge FTC to Probe Apple, Google Over Collecting Mobile Data

A group of Democratic senators is urging the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Apple and Google over their collection of mobile users' information. In a letter addressed to FTC Chair Lina Khan, the lawmakers — Senators Ron Wyden, Elizabeth Warren, Cory A. Booker and Sara Jacobs — accuse the tech giants of "engaging in unfair and deceptive practices by enabling the collection and sale of hundreds of millions of mobile phone users' personal data."

Most Russian Cyberattacks Failed in First Months of Ukraine War

A new examination of how Russia used its cybercapabilities in the first months of the war in Ukraine contains a number of surprises: Moscow conducted more cyberattacks than was realized at the time to bolster its invasion, but more than two-thirds of them failed, echoing its poor performance on the physical battlefield. However, the study, published by Microsoft, suggested that the government of President Vladimir V. Putin was succeeding more than many expected with its disinformation campaign to establish a narrative of the war favorable to Russia, including making the case that the United States was secretly producing biological weapons inside Ukraine.

After Abortion Decision, Google Tells Employees They Can Relocate

Google sent a companywide email about the historic Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, explaining employees in affected states can apply for relocation without explaining why. “This is a profound change for the country that deeply effects so many of us, especially women,” wrote Google Chief People officer Fiona Cicconi in an email to workers, viewed by CNBC. “Googlers can also apply for relocation without justification, and those overseeing this process will be aware of the situation.”

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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.