X Agrees to Pay Trump $10M to Settle Lawsuit Over Deplatforming

Elon Musk’s X has agreed to pay about $10 million to settle a lawsuit that Donald Trump brought against the company and its former chief executive, according to people familiar with the matter. The agreement makes X the second social-media platform to settle litigation that Trump filed when the companies deplatformed him over his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

U.S. Releases Russian Cybercriminal in Exchange for American Teacher

The Trump administration is preparing to release a Russian cybercriminal as part of a prisoner exchange that led to the release of an American schoolteacher from a Russian prison, three U.S. officials said. Officials were preparing to release Alexander Vinnik, who pleaded guilty to money laundering in 2024, to Russia as part of a swap for Marc Fogel, according to the three officials.

Trump Administration Restores Websites After Court Order

The Trump administration brought webpages back online, meeting a court-ordered deadline at 11:59 p.m. on February 11. Doctors for America (DFA), which represents physicians and medical students, filed suit last week against the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) for taking health data off government websites.

Vance Warns U.S. Allies Against Strong Regulations on AI

The Trump administration wants the U.S. to dominate the artificial-intelligence revolution and is warning American allies to get on board with its light-touch approach to tech regulation or risk being left out. The U.S. is winning the race to build the best AI-training chips and the most advanced AI algorithms, and “intends to keep it that way,” Vice President JD Vance told a collection of world leaders — including French President Emmanuel Macron and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi — gathered for an AI summit in the French capital.

Trump Nominates RNC Executive as National Cyber Director

President Donald Trump is nominating RNC executive Sean Cairncross as his national cyber director, according to a list of new administration nominations obtained by Axios. This is the first significant cybersecurity nomination of the Trump administration, and if approved, Cairncross would play a key role in the administration's cyber policymaking and response to major cyberattacks.

U.S. Announces Sanctions, Arrests Against Russian Ransomware Networks

The U.S. took aim at two separate Russian ransomware networks, announcing new sanctions and arrests against a Russia-based internet service provider and several Russian nationals. The State Department said it is sanctioning Zservers — a bulletproof hosting (BPH) services provider that allegedly supported LockBit ransomware attacks — alongside Australia and the United Kingdom.

Man Pleads Guilty to Hacking SEC's X Account, Posting About Bitcoin

An Alabama man pleaded guilty in federal court in Washington, D.C., in connection with last year’s hack of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s X account, which was used to falsely claim the agency had officially approved exchange-traded funds for bitcoin Eric Council Jr. admitted to conspiring with others who took control of the SEC’s X account, according to the Department of Justice.

  • Read the article: CNBC

British Security Officials Want Apple to Allow Access to All Data

Security officials in the United Kingdom have demanded that Apple create a back door allowing them to retrieve all the content any Apple user worldwide has uploaded to the cloud, people familiar with the matter told The Washington Post. The British government’s undisclosed order, issued last month, requires blanket capability to view fully encrypted material, not merely assistance in cracking a specific account, and has no known precedent in major democracies.

Lawmakers Plan Bill to Ban DeepSeek App on Government-Owned Devices

Lawmakers announced they planned to introduce a bill to ban DeepSeek’s chatbot application from government-owned devices, over new security concerns that the app could provide user information to the Chinese government. The legislation written by Reps. Darin LaHood, an Illinois Republican, and Josh Gottheimer, a New Jersey Democrat, is echoing a strategy that Congress used to ban Chinese-controlled TikTok from government devices, which marked the beginning of the effort to block the company from operating in the U.S.

Newspaper Publisher Blames 'Cybersecurity Event' for Publishing Woes

Newspapers across the country owned by the news media company Lee Enterprises were unable to print, had problems with their websites and published smaller issues after a cyberattack, the company said. In a statement, Lee Enterprises said that the company was facing disruptions to its daily operations because of a “cybersecurity event,” and that it had notified law enforcement.

Read the article: The New York Times

French prosecutors Investigating X for Possible Algorithmic Bias

French prosecutors said they have opened an investigation into Elon Musk's X social media platform over alleged algorithmic bias. The Paris prosecutor's office said it launched the investigation after being contacted on January 12 by a lawmaker alleging that biased algorithms in X were likely to have distorted the operation of an automated data processing system.

Chinese Officials Targeting U.S. Tech Companies for Antitrust Probes

Chinese officials are building a list of U.S. technology companies that can be targeted with antitrust probes and other tools, hoping to influence the tech executives who are heavily represented in President Trump’s orbit. People familiar with Beijing’s strategy said the goal was to collect as many cards as possible to play in expected negotiations with the Trump administration over U.S.-China issues, including the tariffs that Trump has imposed on Chinese goods.

European Commission Uses Digital Regulations Against Unsafe Products

The European Commission is using its raft of digital regulations to target foreign e-commerce platforms like Shein over concerns they are allowing cheap products that might be unsafe or break European Union law to enter the EU. The commission said it wants to introduce a customs reform that would see platforms hand over data on the products they sell to the EU to give officials more oversight of packages coming into the region.

Porn App Appears in an App Store for iPhones Following EU Regulation

For years, Apple’s voluminous rules about which apps are and aren’t allowed have been clear: Apps featuring “overtly sexual or pornographic material” are banned from Apple’s App Store. But now, an iPhone porn app called Hot Tub is available — only in the European Union — from one of the non-Apple mini app stores created under a landmark E.U. law to jump-start more technology competition.

Google Drops Pledge Against Using AI for Weapons Development, Surveillance

Google has updated its ethical policies on artificial intelligence, eliminating a pledge to not use AI technology for weapons development and surveillance. According to a now-archived version of Google’s AI principles seen on the Wayback Machine, the section titled “Applications we will not pursue” included weapons and other technology aimed at injuring people, along with technologies that “gather or use information for surveillance.”

After Musk Complains, Reddit Temporarily Bans 'WhitePeopleTwitter'

Reddit has temporarily banned the subreddit r/WhitePeopleTwitter after Elon Musk complained about the community. An X account called “Reddit Lies” posted screenshots from a thread on r/WhitePeopleTwitter in which users were discussing the identities of the individuals with ties to Musk who have reportedly played a key role in the takeover of technical systems within the federal government.

Meta, Google Sue to Block Maryland Law Protecting Kids Online

A lobbying group representing Meta, Google and other tech companies sued to block the Maryland “Kids Code,” one of several state laws passed in recent years meant to expand protections for children on social media and other platforms. Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) in May signed the “Kids Code” law, which requires that companies conduct “impact assessments” ensuring its products are protecting “the best interests of children” and prioritize the well-being of children above their “commercial interests.”

Spyware Campaign Targeted Journalists Using WhatsApp

Around 90 users of Meta’s chat service WhatsApp are suspected to have been targets of a spyware campaign conducted by an Israeli spyware company called Paragon Solutions, a WhatsApp spokesperson told NBC News. The spokesperson said that the attack targeted a number of users including journalists and members of civil society “across over two dozen countries, particularly in Europe.”

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.