Trump to sign executive order on social media | Meng Wanzhou extradition upheld by court | Indian hackers impersonating WHO
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President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order aimed at social media companies on Thursday, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters Wednesday evening, a move that comes as the president and his allies have escalated their allegations that companies like Twitter and Facebook stifle GOP voices. Politico
The legal odyssey of Meng Wanzhou moved her one step closer to the American justice system Wednesday, as a Canadian judge rejected her bid to end her extradition hearing. The Star
Hack-for-hire firms in India have been impersonating the World Health Organization in credential-stealing spearphishing email campaigns, Google’s Threat Analysis Group said Wednesday. ZDNet
ASPI ICPC
How COVID-19 is driving a booming conspiracy industry
The Sydney Morning Herald
@elisethoma5
As legitimate newsrooms around the world are crumbling under the financial pressures exacerbated by the COVID-19 crisis, including at least 157 in Australia since January that have closed temporarily or permanently, the conspiracy industry is booming. It's a dynamic that should have all Australians concerned. When we talk about conspiracies today, it's often in relation to viral Facebook posts or misinformation on Twitter. That is only part of the story, however.
World
Facebook Executives Shut Down Efforts to Make the Site Less Divisive
The Wall Street Journal
@DSeetharaman
The social-media giant internally studied how it polarizes users, then largely shelved the research.
TSMC prepares for US-China chips decoupling
TechNode
On May 15, the world’s largest contract chipmaker announced plans to open a production plant, or “fab,” in Arizona, US. If you know the industry, it doesn’t seem to make business sense: the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) will build a 5nm fab in Phoenix, Arizona and start churning out chips by 2024, with a target of processing 20,000 wafers per month. The chipmaker plans to invest $12 billion through 2029.
China
Coronavirus: Inside the pro-China network targeting the US, Hong Kong and an exiled tycoon
BBC News
@BenDoBrown @O_Rob1nson @Shayan86
Hundreds of fake or hijacked social media accounts have been pushing pro-Chinese government messages about the coronavirus pandemic on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, a BBC investigation has found.
ByteDance Hit $3 Billion in Net Profit Last Year
Bloomberg
TikTok’s parent ByteDance Ltd. generated more than $3 billion of net profit on over $17 billion in revenue last year, figures that show the world’s most valuable startup is still growing at a brisk rate, according to people familiar with the matter.
Netposa Stock Surges 46% After US Human Rights Abuse Sanctions
IPVM
Last Friday, the US government announced it would sanction PRC video management provider NetPosa for being "complicit in human rights violations and abuses" in Xinjiang. Since then, the company's stock has surged 46%, i.e., four consecutive days of 10% surges (the legal daily limit in the PRC).
USA
Trump to sign executive order on social media amid Twitter furor
Politico
@viaCristiano
President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order aimed at social media companies on Thursday, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters Wednesday evening, a move that comes as the president and his allies have escalated their allegations that companies like Twitter and Facebook stifle GOP voices.
What Would Happen if Twitter Banned Trump? | The New York Times
Twitter Refutes Inaccuracies in Trump’s Tweets About Mail-In Voting
The New York Times
@kateconger @daveyalba
Twitter added a link to two of President Trump’s tweets in which he had made false claims about mail-in ballots, urging people to “get the facts.”
Trump Is a Problem That Twitter Cannot Fix | The Atlantic
U.S. lawmakers unveil bold $100 billion plan to remake NSF
ScienceMag
@jeffmervis
The National Science Foundation (NSF) would get a sweeping remake—including a new name, a huge infusion of cash, and responsibility for maintaining U.S. global leadership in innovation—under bipartisan bills that have just been introduced in both houses of Congress.
Arizona sues Google over allegations it illegally tracked Android smartphone users' locations
The Washington Post
@TonyRomm
Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich sued Google on Wednesday, alleging the tech giant violated its users' privacy by collecting information about their whereabouts even if they had turned off such digital tracking.
Whistleblowers say Facebook has not warned investors about illegal activity, in new SEC complaint
The Washington Post
@nitashatiku
The complaint, which was obtained by The Washington Post, includes dozens of pages of screenshots of opioids and other drugs for sale on Facebook and its photo-sharing site Instagram.
ICE used ‘stingray’ snooping tech hundreds of times since 2017
TechCrunch
Newly released documents show U.S. immigration authorities have used a secretive cell phone snooping technology hundreds of times across the U.S. in the past three years.
North Asia
Japan enacts high-tech 'super city' bill
The Japan Times
The Diet enacted a bill Wednesday to create "super cities" where artificial intelligence, big data and other technologies are utilized to resolve social problems. The revision stipulates procedures to speed up the changing of regulations in various fields to facilitate the creating of such smart cities.
South Asia
Google finds Indian hack-for-hire firms exploiting coronavirus fears via spearphishing schemes
CyberScoop
Hack-for-hire firms in India have been impersonating the World Health Organization in credential-stealing spearphishing email campaigns, Google’s Threat Analysis Group said Wednesday.
Updates about government-backed hacking and disinformation | Google Threat Analysis Group
Europe
Estonia already lives online - why can't the United States?
The Atlantic
Using secure identification, people there can bank, apply for government assistance, file for sick leave, order prescriptions, and get medical care—all online.
5G, AI, cybersecurity and renewable energy set for investment boost under EU coronavirus recovery plan
TechCrunch
@riptari
The European Commission is proposing to direct billions of euros of financial relief into high tech and green investments to help the bloc recover from the coronavirus crisis. Technologies such as 5G, AI, cloud, cybersecurity, supercomputing and renewable energy look set to benefit from a €750BN pan-EU support package set out today.
French contact-tracing app StopCovid passes first vote
TechCrunch
@romaindillet
Following a debate in the National Assembly, the lower house of the French parliament, deputies have voted in favor of the release of contact-tracing app StopCovid and the decree related to the app.
Americas
Huawei’s Meng Wanzhou suffers setback — but extradition’s ‘long road’ lies ahead, experts say
The Star
@wayneelii
The legal odyssey of Meng Wanzhou moved her one step closer to the American justice system Wednesday, as a Canadian judge rejected her bid to end her extradition hearing.
Misc
Google removes apps pushing far-right QAnon conspiracy theory
The Independent
@adamndsmith
Google has removed multiple applications from its Google Play Store that were used to promote the QAnon conspiracy theory. The QAnon conspiracy is a idea based on the notion of an anonymous figure called 'Q' who claims to have classified information about the Trump administration. This includes the belief that opposition to the government operate in “deep state” which works to undermine him.