Russia Appears to Disrupt Starlink Satellite Internet Service in Ukraine

Just before Russian troops pushed across the Ukrainian northern border this month, members of Ukraine’s 92nd Assault Brigade lost a vital resource. Starlink satellite internet service, which soldiers use to communicate, collect intelligence and conduct drone attacks, had slowed to a crawl. The new outages appeared to be the first time the Russians have caused widespread disruptions of Starlink.

U.S. Tech Lobbying Group Asks India to Rethink EU-Like Competition Law

A U.S. lobby group representing tech giants Google, Amazon and Apple has asked India to rethink its proposed EU-like competition law, arguing regulations against data use and preferential treatment of partners could raise user costs, a letter shows. Citing increasing market power of a few big digital companies in India, a government panel in February proposed, opens new tab imposing obligations on them under a new antitrust law which will complement existing regulations whose enforcement the panel said is "time-consuming."

OpenAI Creates Safety and Security Committee After Johansson Voice Flap

OpenAI’s board formed a safety and security committee after recently becoming embroiled in a legal battle over a new voice assistant in its latest artificial-intelligence model. The generative AI company in a blog post said the committee will be led by directors Bret Taylor, who serves as chair; Adam D’Angelo; Nicole Seligman; and Chief Executive Sam Altman.

EU Regulators Investigating Meta for Addictive Effects on Children

European Union regulators opened investigations into the American tech giant Meta for the potentially addictive effects Instagram and Facebook have on children, an action with far-reaching implications because it cuts to the core of how the company’s products are designed. Meta’s products may “exploit the weaknesses and inexperience of minors” to create behavioral dependencies that threaten their mental well-being, the European Commission, the executive branch of the 27-member bloc, said in a statement.

U.S. Charges Two Chinese Nationals in $73 Million Cryptocurrency Scam

U.S. authorities charged two Chinese nationals in a cryptocurrency scam that laundered at least $73 million from defrauded victims, the Justice Department said. U.S. officials arrested Yicheng Zhang in Los Angeles, according to an indictment unsealed in U.S. District Court in California's central district later that day. Daren Li, a dual citizen of China and St. Kitts and Nevis, was arrested at the Atlanta airport in April.

Senators Release AI Report Calling for Billions in Funding, Few Regulations

A bipartisan group of senators released a long-awaited legislative plan for artificial intelligence, calling for billions in funding to propel American leadership in the technology while offering few details on regulations to address its risks. In a 20-page document titled “Driving U.S. Innovation in Artificial Intelligence,” the Senate leader, Chuck Schumer, and three colleagues called for spending $32 billion annually by 2026 for government and private-sector research and development of the technology.

TikTok Creators Sue Over U.S. Law, Alleging It Violates First Amendment

Eight TikTok creators are suing the U.S. government over a law requiring TikTok’s Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance to sell the app or face a ban, arguing it violates their First Amendment rights. The creators allege that the law is “unconstitutionally overbroad” and lacks “any conceivable legitimate interest that would warrant shuttering an entire media platform used by millions.”

ByteDance Asks U.S. Court to Create Fast-Track Schedule for TikTok Suit

China-based ByteDance Ltd. asked an appeals court to speed up its lawsuit challenging a U.S. law that would force it to sell the TikTok video-sharing app or face a ban. “Prompt consideration of these cases is needed to avoid irreparable harm, “ lawyers for ByteDance and TikTok said in a filing in the District of Columbia federal appeals court.

Canadian Security Intelligence Leader Warns Against Using TikTok

The head of Canada's Security Intelligence Service warned Canadians against using video app TikTok, saying data gleaned from its users "is available to the government of China," CBC News reported. "My answer as director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) is that there is a very clear strategy on the part of the government of China to be able to acquire personal information from anyone around the world," CSIS Director David Vigneault told CBC in an interview.

U.S., China to Discuss AI Risks Over High-Level Talks in Geneva

The United States and China will hold their first high-level talks over the risks of artificial intelligence in Geneva, as the two governments seek to prevent disastrous accidents and unintended war amid an arms race for the emerging technology. “We’re focused on how both sides define risk and safety here,” a senior Biden administration official told reporters last week, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss expectations for the talks.

Ascension Says Cyberattack Took Patient Record Systems Offline

Ascension, one of the largest health systems in the United States, said that it was struck by a cyberattack that knocked patient record systems offline and forced medical staff to log care on paper, the latest hack to underscore the vulnerability of American’s health-care system to cyber intrusions. The nonprofit chain said it detected the hack and took immediate steps.

Australian Court Refuses to Extend Order Banning Stabbing Videos on X

An Australian court rejected a bid by the country's cyber safety regulator to extend a temporary order for Elon Musk-owned X to block videos of the stabbing of an Assyrian church bishop, which authorities had called a terrorist attack. Federal Court judge Geoffrey Kennett said the application to extend the injunction granted last month had been refused.

EU Says Booking's Travel Services Platform Subject to Digital Markets Act

Booking Holdings Inc.’s travel services platform became the latest technology business to be targeted by the European Union’s crackdown on technology firms’ market power. The move means the firm has six months to make sure it complies with a raft of preemptive measures under the EU’s flagship Digital Markets Act, aimed at preventing competition abuses before they take hold.

EU Seeks More Information from Musk About X's Content Moderation

The European Union has deepened the investigation of Elon Musk-owned social network, X, that it opened back in December under the bloc’s online governance and content moderation rulebook, the Digital Services Act (DSA). Confirmed breaches of the regime could be expensive for Musk, since enforcers are empowered to issue fines of up to 6% of a company’s global annual turnover.

UK Media Regulator Proposes Age Limits, Content Moderation for Children

The UK is calling on search and social media companies to “tame toxic algorithms” that recommend harmful content to children, or risk billions in fines. The UK’s media regulator Ofcom outlined over 40 proposed requirements for tech giants under its Online Safety Act rules, including robust age-checks and content moderation that aims to better protect minors online in compliance with upcoming digital safety laws.

Commerce Department Further Restricts Chip Sales to Huawei

The Commerce Department has further restricted the sale of U.S. technology to China’s leading high-tech firm, Huawei Technologies, revoking certain allowances of U.S. chip sales amid renewed scrutiny of the company in Washington. The move will curb U.S. companies Intel and Qualcomm from selling chips — the brains of computing devices — to Huawei for its smartphones and laptops, according to three people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss nonpublic policy details.

Appeals Court in Hong Kong Rules Against Keeping Protest Song Online

Internet platforms, including Google, may have to restrict access to a protest song that became popular during the 2019 antigovernment protests in Hong Kong after an appeals court in the city upheld a government push to ban it online. In the latest step in a continuing clampdown on dissent in the former British colony, the decision reversed a lower-court ruling in July that said the government’s proposed injunction against dissemination of the song “Glory to Hong Kong” was unnecessary, because broadcasting the song was effectively illegal under a national-security law that Beijing imposed on Hong Kong in 2020.

OpenAI Begins Testing Tool to Help Detect Some Fake Images

As experts warn that images, audio and video generated by artificial intelligence could influence the fall elections, OpenAI is releasing a tool designed to detect content created by its own popular image generator, DALL-E. But the prominent A.I. start-up acknowledges that this tool is only a small part of what will be needed to fight so-called deepfakes in the months and years to come.

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.