Silicon Valley weighs whether to leave Hong Kong | Facebook removed hundreds of fake accounts | TikTok ventures into politics
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A sweeping new law from Beijing that aims to bring Hong Kong’s internet under its control has left Silicon Valley scrambling, with at least one Big Tech company considering a total retreat from the territory. The Financial Times
Facebook announced it removed hundreds of fake accounts attributed to four different information operations on Wednesday. Buzzfeed
Lately there has been a dash of something new at TikTok: politics. Experimenting with letting users post short political videos, the app is emerging as a platform for protesters and mischief-makers alike in a moment of social unrest around the world. The Wall Street Journal
ASPI ICPC
China's Great Firewall descends on Hong Kong internet users
The Guardian
@lilkuo
“If we’ve been talking about the ‘splinternet’ and the idea of these cracks skewing through the ice, the national security law is really an ice pick,” said Elise Thomas. “It’s driven a nail in, it is driving those cracks much deeper and faster than before.”
World
TikTok, Once an Oasis of Inoffensive Fun, Ventures Warily Into Politics
The Wall Street Journal
Lately there has been a dash of something new at TikTok: politics. Experimenting with letting users post short political videos, the app is emerging as a platform for protesters and mischief-makers alike in a moment of social unrest around the world. The shift is posing complicated new challenges for an extraordinarily popular app devoted, until recently, to mindless fun.
TikTok, Facebook, WhatsApp wedged between superpowers
The Sydney Morning Herald
@ErykBagshaw @zoesam
The world's largest social media companies have found themselves in the middle of a tit-for-tat escalation over the future of Hong Kong, as Facebook, WhatsApp and Google refuse to disclose information to the Chinese government and the United States threatens to ban Beijing-based TikTok.
Right-Wing Media Outlets Duped by a Middle East Propaganda Campaign
The Daily Beast
@arawnsley
If you want a hot take about the Middle East, Raphael Badani is your man. Unfortunately for the outlets who published his articles and the readers who believed them, Raphael Badani does not exist.
Removing Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior
Facebook
Today, we removed four separate networks for violating our policy against foreign interference and coordinated inauthentic behavior (CIB). These networks originated in Canada and Ecuador, Brazil, Ukraine, and the United States.
Facebook Removed Hundreds Of Fake Accounts Connected To Roger Stone, Proud Boys, And PR Firms
Buzzfeed
Facebook announced it removed hundreds of fake accounts attributed to four different information operations on Wednesday. Two of the operations were tied to professional PR or advertising firms, and one of them was connected to former Trump adviser Roger Stone. According to the company, the four operations spent over $3.5 million on advertising.
Australia
China could be using TikTok to spy on Australians, but banning it isn’t a simple fix
The Conversation
@pdowland
From a user privacy perspective, TikTok has access to a device’s location and a user’s personal information. Although TikTok’s servers may be located outside China, it’s very difficult (if not impossible) to confirm where this data could end up, or what it could be used for. While the location of servers can be important, possession of data is more relevant. Once data is obtained, it can be used. If data is stored on a server in Australia, for instance, Australian jurisdiction applies. But once it is sent to another country, that country’s laws take precedent.
China
China’s Ride-Hailing Giant Didi to Test Beijing’s New Digital Currency
The Wall Street Journal
@JChengWSJ
Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing Technology Co. said it is working with the People’s Bank of China to test the central bank’s fledgling digital currency on its transportation platform, advancing Beijing’s effort to digitize the yuan.
Silicon Valley weighs whether to leave Hong Kong
The Financial Times
A sweeping new law from Beijing that aims to bring Hong Kong’s internet under its control has left Silicon Valley scrambling, with at least one Big Tech company considering a total retreat from the territory.
Hong Kong security law: Beijing security office opens in Hong Kong
BBC
A new national security office has been officially opened in Hong Kong, placing mainland Chinese agents in the heart of the territory for the first time. The office is one element of a sweeping new law which outlaws criticism of China's government.
US
Facebook ad boycott organizers met with Zuckerberg. It didn't go well
CNN
@b_fung
Civil rights and activist groups blasted Facebook's leadership on Tuesday after meeting with CEO Mark Zuckerberg and other executives to discuss the demands of a large advertiser boycott that now includes hundreds of brands.
The Leaders Of Sleeping Giants Are Splitting Over A Dispute On Credit And Titles
Buzzfeed
@meghara
Nandini Jammi is leaving the activist organization she helped build with Matt Rivitz over a dispute about titles, credit, and equality.
Facebook’s Decisions Were ‘Setbacks for Civil Rights,’ Audit Finds
The New York Times
An independent audit faulted the social network for allowing hate speech and disinformation to thrive — potentially posing a threat to the November elections.
Exclusive: U.S. probing allegations TikTok violated children's privacy - sources
Reuters
@dibartz
The Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Justice Department are looking into allegations that popular app TikTok failed to live up to a 2019 agreement aimed at protecting children’s privacy, according to two people interviewed by the agencies.
TikTok User Data: What Does the App Collect and Why Are U.S. Authorities Concerned?
The Wall Street Journal
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has indicated the Trump administration is considering limitingTikTok, which has said it wouldn’t hand U.S. user data to Chinese authorities, has exited two international markets in recent weeks, as the first global social-media sensation to emerge from China seeks to navigate a variety of geopolitical tensions. Here is a look at TikTok’s user data practices and the concerns that U.S. officials are raising. U.S. users’ access to the popular video-messaging app TikTok. The Chinese-owned company has faced scrutiny in Washington as concerns grow that Beijing could tap the social-media platform’s information to gather data on Americans.
Police Are Buying Access to Hacked Website Data
Vice
@josephfcox
Motherboard obtained webinar slides by a company called SpyCloud presented to prospective customers. In that webinar, the company claimed to "empower investigators from law enforcement agencies and enterprises around the world to more quickly and efficiently bring malicious actors to justice." The slides were shared by a source who was concerned about law enforcement agencies buying access to hacked data. SpyCloud confirmed the slides were authentic to Motherboard.
Thousands of contracts highlight quiet ties between Big Tech and U.S. military
NBC
On Wednesday, newly published research from the technology accountability nonprofit Tech Inquiry revealed that the Department of Defense and federal law enforcement agencies including Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the Federal Bureau of Prisons, have secured thousands of deals with Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Dell, IBM, Hewlett Packard and even Facebook that have not been previously reported.
Twitter stock jumps on potential subscription platform
CNBC
Shares of Twitter closed 7.34% higher Wednesday after the company posted a job listing saying it was building a subscription platform under the code name “Gryphon.”
Facebook Said It “Stands Firmly Against Hate.” It’s Still Running A White Nationalist Ad.
Buzzfeed
Since July 4, the company has been running an ad from “White Wellbeing Australia,” a two-month-old Facebook page with 386 followers that has posted about a supposed “#whitegenocide” and fearmongered about the erasure of white children.
Twitter Gave Free Rein for Jack Posobiec To Publish Antisemitic Hate and Disinformation
Souther Poverty Law Center
Twitter enabled OANN correspondent Jack Posobiec’s rise by giving him space to promote hate and mislead the public without facing consequences, Hatewatch has determined in a comprehensive review of his account history.
North Asia
Taipei-Shanghai forum to be held by videoconference: Ko
Focus Taiwan
The two sides are now in talks to figure out which videoconference platform will be used for the event as each side has its own concerns, the mayor said. “Taiwan cannot use Huawei and China cannot use Google, so we are still figuring out how to resolve the issue," Ko said.
Southeast Asia
Indonesia's Telkom Group unblocks Netflix as it amps digital push
WKZO
Telkom said the decision came after a "change in the U.S. company's approach to the country". This includes Netflix offering parental controls as well as agreeing to examine complaints from Indonesia's government or regulators over content within 24 hours.
Europe
Americas
Facebook takes down inauthentic assets targeting multiple Latin American elections
Digital Forensic Research Lab
@DFRLab
Facebook attributed these assets — including 77 pages, 41 user accounts, and 56 Instagram profiles — to Estraterra, an Ecuadorian public relations firm operated out of Canada, as well as political consultants and former government employees in Ecuador.
Misc
The hidden trackers in your phone, explained
Vox
Trackers hidden in smartphone apps are the source of incredible amounts of specific data about us, much of which gets sent to companies you’ve never heard of. This has been going on for years and is an essential part of the mobile app economy. But it took the Covid-19 pandemic to bring some of these companies, and what they’re capable of, to the forefront.
Microsoft seizes six domains used in COVID-19 phishing operations
ZDNet
@campuscodi
Microsoft has obtained a court order this month allowing the company to seize control of six domains that were used in phishing operations against Office 365 customers, including in campaigns that leveraged COVID-19 lures.
Mozilla suspends Firefox Send service while it addresses malware abuse
ZDNet
@campuscodi
Mozilla has temporarily suspended the Firefox Send file-sharing service as the organization investigates reports of abuse from malware operators and while it adds a "Report abuse" button.
Events
Closing the Gap: International Conference on Cyber, Digital and Tech
EU Cyber Direct
As part of the European Cyber Diplomacy Initiative, the EU Cyber Direct project joins forces with the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and numerous research institutions to organise an international conference that contributes to closing the gap between scholars and practitioners working on cyber-related issues. The conference aims to foster productive exchanges between different generations of scholars (emerging talents and established researchers), disciplines (law, political science, international relations, economics, IT, media studies), sectors (government, private sector, academia, NGOs) and regions (Global South-North).
Jobs
Program Manager/Senior Analyst
ASPI’s International Cyber Policy Centre (ICPC) has an outstanding opportunity for a talented, proactive and super efficient program manager/senior analyst to join its growing centre. The successful candidate will need to have a proven track record of leading teams and experience in project management including financial and stakeholder management (which will include industry, the Australian Government, Parliament and foreign governments). To succeed in this position candidates should have exceptional communication and problem-solving skills and experience in research, policy analysis or policy development.
Analyst
ASPI’s International Cyber Policy Centre has an outstanding opportunity for a talented and proactive allrounder to join its growing centre. The ICPC is looking for someone who is an excellent writer and researcher and who is a team player - you will need to juggle multiple research projects that could span the range of topics listed above. This is not an entry level position. Analysts in ICPC have between 5-15 years’ relevant work experience and, depending on experience, are involved in stakeholder and project management, fundraising and the management of small teams.