Law Should Treat Social Media Companies as publishers | Facebook Lobbyists Tied to Members of Congress | Twitter Accuses Tories of Misleading Public with 'Factcheck'
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Attorney-General Christian Porter says social media platforms should be treated the same as traditional publishers under defamation law, a change that would present a fundamental new challenge for global companies such as Facebook and Twitter. SMH
As tech giant Facebook grapples with congressional hearings over its policy allowing politicians to sponsor untruthful ads and its role in proliferating hate speech, dozens of its lobbyists have connections to 29 current members of Congress, including Democratic party leaders likely giving them special access that helps them promote the company’s interests. The Guardian
Twitter has accused the UK Conservatives of misleading the public after they rebranded one of their official party accounts to make it look like a fact-checking service during the ITV leaders’ debate. The Guardian
ASPI ICPC
Fake news amplifies fear and confusion in Hong Kong
Yahoo
"As violent action on both sides escalates and people become more galvanised in their beliefs... disinformation that confirms previous beliefs (is) widely shared," Nathan Ruser, a researcher with the Australian Strategic Policy Institute's International Cyber Policy Centre, told AFP.
The World
Hacking and cyber espionage: The countries that are going to emerge as major threats in the 2020s
ZDNet
@dannyjpalmer
Nation-state backed cyber groups have been responsible for major incidents over the last decade. And now more countries want the same power. The continuing rise of state-backed hackers has been one of the most dramatic cybersecurity developments of recent years. And now it seems a new set of countries are keen to use the same tactics as some of their larger and more powerful rivals.
Australia
Law should treat social media companies as publishers: Attorney-General
SMH
@fergushunter
Attorney-General Christian Porter says social media platforms should be treated the same as traditional publishers under defamation law, a change that would present a fundamental new challenge for global companies such as Facebook and Twitter. Mr Porter made the declaration in a speech on Wednesday, also backing a suite of reforms to defamation laws which he said: "don't strike the perfect balance between public interest journalism and protecting individuals from reputational harm". The changes are being advanced under a nationwide review of defamation law.
New code for home devices to stop hackers
News
@benitakolovos
Internet-connected devices including smart TVs, watches and speakers will soon be subject to an industry code to protect against cyber attacks. Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton is concerned about poor security features in many such devices and wants companies to make sure their systems are resilient to outages and software updates are secure.
USA
Facebook Says Anonymous Pages Posting Coordinated Pro-Trump Content Do Not Break Its Rules
BuzzFeed News
@CraigSilverman @JaneLytv
As public impeachment hearings kicked off in Washington last week, a meme featuring Rep. Adam Schiff spread across Facebook. Within minutes of one another, at least 23 pages with state-themed names such as Ohio Supporters for President Donald J Trump and Iowa Supporters for President Donald J Trump shared an image of Schiff with the words “Lock Up Adam Schiff for Treason” and “Make American Great Again” encircling his head. This was one of two anonymously run pro-Trump networks of pages identified by a researcher and BuzzFeed News that share memes and stories, some of which are false or misleading, in a coordinated fashion. When contacted for comment, Facebook told BuzzFeed News the two networks do not violate its policy against coordinated inauthentic behaviour.
(As public impeachment hearings kicked off in Washington last week, a meme featuring Rep. Adam Schiff spread across Facebook )
Dozens of Facebook lobbyists tied to members of Congress, investigation shows
The Guardian
As tech giant Facebook grapples with congressional hearings over its policy allowing politicians to sponsor untruthful ads and its role in proliferating hate speech, dozens of its lobbyists have connections to 29 current members of Congress, including Democratic party leaders likely giving them special access that helps them promote the company’s interests.
TikTok looks to downplay its China ties
Axios
As lawmakers and regulators zero in on issues around Chinese tech companies and U.S. tech companies' ties to China, the longstanding low U.S. profile of Chinese tech brands is beginning to change. As TikTok looks to play down its Chinese roots, it is following a path similar to the few Chinese companies who have gone after the U.S. consumer market. The company, which acquired Musical.ly in 2018 to bring TikTok to the U.S., faces a national security probe over that deal, as well as inquiries from Congress.
California’s Imperfect but Necessary Attempts to Regulate A.I.
Medium
@rcalo
While the state’s new laws on bots and deepfakes have their flaws, they represent a vital first step to curbing dangerous new technology.
Police can keep Ring camera video forever, and share with whomever they’d like, Amazon tells senator
Washington Post
Police officers who download videos captured by homeowners’ Ring doorbell cameras can keep them forever and share them with whomever they’d like without providing evidence of a crime, the Amazon-owned firm told a lawmaker this month. The lack of privacy and civil rights protections for innocent residents is nothing short of chilling,” Sen. Edward J. Markey said.
Suspicious robocalls pitching health insurance surged in October. Now, the feds are scrambling to act.
Washington Post
@tonyromm
Few things unite Americans in universal disgust quite like robocalls, a tactic of mass outreach that can take many forms — from legitimate reminders to pay one’s bills to scams that mimic local numbers in a bid to swindle those who pick up the phone. ‘They’re not going to go away if we don’t pass the bill,’ said Rep. Frank Pallone Jr.
North Asia
Didi Expands Global Footprint With Taxi-Hailing Services in Japan, Costa Rica
Caixing Global
Didi Chuxing is making plans to increase its global operations despite, or maybe because of, concerns over its profitability. It is setting its sights on Japan and Costa Rica as new part of its international ride-hailing service networks.
UK
Twitter accuses Tories of misleading public with 'factcheck' foray
The Guardian
@fperraudin
Twitter has accused the Conservatives of misleading the public after they rebranded one of their official party accounts to make it look like a factchecking service during the ITV leaders’ debate. The party was widely criticised on Tuesday night when it temporarily changed the name of its Conservative campaign headquarters press office Twitter account, which is followed by nearly 76,000 users, to factcheckUK from its usual CCHQPress.
Europe
5G and China: SPD mobilizes against Merkel
EN24
The Chinese telecommunications company Huawei may now participate in the German 5G network expansion. This is the result of a draft of the Federal Network Agency's security requirements catalog. Message from the ranks of the SPD: Several MPs call for the exclusion of Huawei in the expansion of the 5G mobile network. According to the Social Democrats, it is about much more than the "sabotage of their own networks".
Middle East
Iran's internet blackout reaches four-day mark
BBC
A country of 80 million people - and practically no way to get online. Iran's internet shutdown has lasted for four days now, sparking international concern.
Iran Shuts Down Internet Amid Violent Protests Over Gas-Price Hikes Radio Free Europe
Misc
Ransomware Bites 400 Veterinary Hospitals
Krebs on Security
@briankrebs
National Veterinary Associates (NVA), a California company that owns more than 700 animal care facilities around the globe, is still working to recover from a ransomware attack late last month that affected more than half of those properties, separating many veterinary practices from their patient records, payment systems and practice management software.
When Things Go Wrong for Blind Users on Facebook, They Go Really Wrong
Slate
@aprilaser
The social network wants to be accessible. Blind users and former Facebook workers say it isn’t doing enough.
Researchers see a spike in “out of season” IRS-impersonating phishing attacks
ARS Technica
@thepacketrat
Researchers track surge in IRS phishing sites as filing extension deadline arrived.
Digital Billboards Are Tracking You. And They Really, Really Want You to See Their Ads.
Consumer Reports
How the most intrusive parts of the web are expanding into the real world, complete with data collection and targeted ads.
Research
New Entries in the CFR Cyber Operations Tracker: Q3 2019
CFR
An update of the Council on Foreign Relations' Cyber Operations Tracker for the period between July and September 2019.