FBI, UK National Crime Agency Take Down LockBit Ransomware Gang

International law enforcement has taken down the dark web site tied to notorious ransomware gang LockBit as part of an ongoing operation, spokespeople for Europol and the U.K.'s National Crime Agency confirmed. Most recently, LockBit has claimed responsibility for a ransomware attack on Georgia's Fulton County that has disrupted key county services for weeks.

FBI Disrupts Russian Hacking Operation That Infiltrated Routers

The FBI, working with other countries, disrupted a Russian hacking operation that infiltrated more than 1,000 home and small-business Internet routers in the United States and around the world, the Justice Department announced. Russian intelligence, collaborating with cybercriminals, created a botnet, or a network of private computers infected with malicious software, to spy on military and security organizations and private corporations in countries like the United States.

Russia, China Reportedly Using AI Tools to Improve Hacking Abilities

Russia, China and other U.S. adversaries are using the newest wave of artificial intelligence tools to improve their hacking abilities and find new targets for online espionage, according to a report from Microsoft and its close business partner OpenAI. While computer users of all stripes have been experimenting with large language models to help with programming tasks, translate phishing emails and assemble attack plans, the new report is the first to associate top-tier government hacking teams with specific uses of LLM.

New York City Sues Social Media Services for 'Youth Mental Health Crisis'

New York City filed a lawsuit against TikTok, Meta, Snap and Google's YouTube to hold the companies accountable "for fueling the nationwide youth mental health crisis," NYC Mayor Eric Adams announced. Driving the news: The lawsuit, filed in California Superior Court by the City of New York, the New York Department of Education and New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, alleges that companies intentionally manipulate and addict younger users, keeping them on their platforms.

Top AI Companies Plan to Sign Agreement Labeling Content Ahead of Election

Leading artificial intelligence companies are planning to sign an “accord” committing to developing tech to identify, label and control AI-generated images, videos and audio recordings that aim to deceive voters ahead of crucial elections in multiple countries this year. The agreement, developed by Google, Microsoft and Meta, as well as OpenAI, Adobe and TikTok, however, does not ban deceptive political AI content, according to a copy obtained by The Washington Post. X, previously Twitter, was not a signatory to the agreement.

Judge Allows Unfair Competition Claims in Authors' Suit Against ChatGPT

OpenAI Inc. must face a claim that it violated California unfair competition law by using copyrighted books from comedian Sarah Silverman and other authors to train ChatGPT without permission. But U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín also dismissed a number of Silverman and her coplaintiffs’ other legal claims, including allegations of vicarious copyright infringement, violations of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, negligence, and unjust enrichment.

Read the article: Bloomberg Law

Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Worried About Biden on TikTok

The chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee said he is concerned about the decision by the campaign of President Joe Biden to join short-video app TikTok, while the White House said nothing has changed about government national security concerns. Democratic Senator Mark Warner said he was concerned about the national security implications of Chinese-owned TikTok and the Biden campaign decision to join.

Judge Blocks Ohio's Law Requiring Parental Consent for Social Media

A federal judge prevented Ohio from implementing a new law that requires social media companies, including Meta Platform's Instagram and ByteDance's TikTok, to obtain parental consent before allowing children under 16 to use their platforms. Chief U.S. District Judge Algenon Marbley in Columbia agreed, opens new tab with the tech industry trade group NetChoice that the law violated minors' free speech rights under the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment.

FCC Commissioner Wants Probe of Apple's Response to 'Beeper Mini' App

Republican Commissioner Brendan Carr is calling on the Federal Communications Commission to investigate Apple’s response to Beeper Mini — the app that briefly brought iMessage to Android. During the State of the Net Conference, Carr said the FCC should look into whether Apple’s move “complies with the FCC’s Part 14 rules” about accommodating users with disabilities.

New York Attorney General Expands Cryptocurrency Fraud Suit to $3 Billion

New York Attorney General Letitia James expanded her lawsuit against Digital Currency Group and other cryptocurrency defendants, tripling the size of their alleged fraud scheme to more than $3 billion. James had in October sued DCG, its Genesis Global Capital unit, and Gemini Trust, the exchange run by twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss.

U.S. Authorities Seize Four Domain Names Selling 'Warzone RAT' Malware

U.S. authorities said they had seized websites used to sell cybercriminals malware called "Warzone RAT" that could be used to steal data from victims' computers. Federal prosecutors in Boston said law enforcement had taken down four domains that together offered to sell malware, which allowed cybercriminals to secretly connect to peoples' computers for malicious purposes.

Google to Join Group Creating Credentials for AI-Generated Content

Google, whose work in artificial intelligence helped make AI-generated content far easier to create and spread, now wants to ensure that such content is traceable as well. The tech giant said that it was joining an effort to develop credentials for digital content, a sort of “nutrition label” that identifies when and how a photograph, a video, an audio clip or another file was produced or altered — including with AI.

European Commission to Open TikTok Investigation Under Digital Services Act

TikTok owner ByteDance Ltd. faces the threat of hefty fines as the European Union prepares a probe under its strict new content moderation rules over concerns of risks to minors. The European Commission will open an investigation into TikTok under the bloc’s new Digital Services Act in the coming weeks, people familiar with the matter said. The probe stems from concerns that changes the company made to comply with the new regulations aren’t enough to protect underage users, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the deliberations are private.

Meta to Stop Recommending Political Content on Instagram, Threads

Meta announced it would stop proactively recommending political content on Instagram or its upstart text-based app Threads, alarming news and politics-focused creators and journalists gearing up for a crucial election year. While users will still be allowed to follow accounts that post about political and social issues, accounts posting such content will not be recommended and content posted by nonpolitical accounts that is political in nature or includes social commentary also won’t be recommended, Meta said.

FCC Bans Unsolicited Robocalls with Voices Generated by AI

The Federal Communications Commission has outlawed unsolicited robocalls with voices generated by artificial intelligence amid growing concerns the technology can be used to deceive or mislead people. In a unanimous decision, the FCC said AI-generated voices in unsolicited robocalls are prohibited under the 1991 Telephone Consumer Protection Act, which restricts marketing calls that use artificial and prerecorded voice messages.

U.S. Government Announces Charges in Two Technology Transfer Cases

The U.S. government announced charges in two separate cases aimed at enforcing laws blocking the transfer of critical technologies, part of a broader campaign to hamper military efforts and weapons production in rival countries. One of the complaints was against a U.S. citizen born in China who has been arrested and accused of stealing trade secrets from a private company.

Apple Plans to Settle Computer-Chip Tech Trade Secret Suit with Rivos

Apple plans to settle a lawsuit that accused tech startup Rivos of stealing its trade secrets related to computer-chip technology, according to a joint court filing in California federal court. The companies told the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, that they had "signed an agreement that potentially settles the case," and that the agreement allows Apple to examine Rivos' systems and recover any confidential information.

Lawmakers Ask Commerce Department to Put ByteDance on Export Control List

More than a dozen lawmakers called on the Department of Commerce to add ByteDance, the Beijing-based parent company of TikTok, to its export control list in order to “address critical vulnerabilities created by the company’s access to U.S. software.” The group, led by Reps. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) and Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), expressed concerns about the security of U.S. user data on TikTok, as well as the relationship between ByteDance and the Chinese government.

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.