As courts have tried to keep up with new regulations aimed at holding tech giants accountable, the influence of platforms such as X, Telegram, Google, and Meta has grown immensely.

Regulators have struggled to get a grip when Big Tech has fought back. With battles in Brazil, the US, the EU and the UK all ongoing, can Big Tech platforms balance free speech, user privacy, and legal responsibilities in a rapidly changing landscape?

War of Words: Elon Musk’s X banned in Brazil

Misinformation on social media platforms has become a significant issue in Brazil, especially during politically sensitive periods like elections.

A survey conducted in September 2021 revealed around 77% of Brazilians considered fake news about politicians and the Supreme Federal Court a threat to democracy.

The situation escalated after the 2023 election, in which President Jair Bolsonaro lost to his predecessor, Lula da Silva (aka Lula).

In 2024, the proliferation of such content on the country’s eighth most popular social media platform (with 24.3 million users) X — under the leadership of the richest man in the world, Elon Musk — led to the platform’s complete banning in Brazil.

Why was X banned in Brazil?

Tensions between X and the Brazilian government reached boiling point in August 2024 when Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes ordered the platform to block accounts belonging to journalists and politicians accused of spreading misinformation.

When X failed to comply with Justice de Moraes’s orders, the judge warned of severe legal consequences, including the arrest of X’s legal representatives in Brazil.

X’s decision to remove its legal representation from Brazil escalated the situation further.

This culminated on August 30, when Judge de Moraes issued an order for the “immediate, complete, and total suspension” of X’s operations across Brazil, effectively banning the platform.

Judge de Moraes pointed out that other tech companies, including Meta and Google, had complied with similar rulings, underscoring the legal obligations of foreign firms operating in Brazil.

By September 2, 2024, a Supreme Court (STF) panel had upheld de Moraes’s ruling, confirming that X would remain suspended until X fulfilled all court orders.

Notably, the ruling also fined individuals who attempted to access the platform using VPNs — an unprecedented move in global tech regulation.

Elon Musk’s stance on free speech

Since purchasing X in 2022, Musk, the self-proclaimed “free speech absolutist”, has reinstated numerous previously banned accounts, including former U.S. President Donald Trump, gaining him both support and disdain.

However, Musk’s approach to free speech has complicated his relationship with various governments.

His critics have pointed out inconsistencies in his stance, noting that while he resisted calls for stricter moderation in countries like Brazil and Australia, he complied with government orders in places like Turkey and India, where X was required to remove content critical of those nations’ political leaders.

This selective approach has led some to question whether Musk’s commitment to free speech extends only to individuals and viewpoints he supports, as seen by his apparent sympathies toward former President Bolsonaro and Argentina’s new President, Javier Milei.

Broader implications for social platforms

The case highlights the increasing tensions between tech companies and national governments over online content regulation. Victoria Lee, Founder and CEO of 100 Pound Social, argues that this situation underscores the need for regulatory frameworks that balance the principles of free speech with the growing threats of misinformation.

“The X case in Brazil is a reminder of how social media platforms can influence political discussions,” she explains. “It shows that we need regulations that allow free speech but also manage risks like misinformation. Finding that balance is key to ensuring social media platforms contribute positively to public debate.”

Platforms like Meta and Google have already demonstrated a willingness to comply with government demands in Brazil, and this case could pressure others to do the same or face similar consequences.

Here today, Elon tomorrow: are advertisers abandoning X? — Read the article here.

Pavel Durov and Telegram: Privacy, crime, and accountability

Telegram is a widely used messaging app developed by Pavel Durov that has gained popularity for its strong emphasis on user privacy and encryption.

However, the platform has also come under intense scrutiny in recent years for facilitating organised crime, illegal activities, and other forms of misconduct.

Durov’s arrest in France has reinvigorated the debate about platform founders’ responsibility for criminal activity on their platforms.

Why did the French government arrest Pavel Durov?

The French government’s arrest of Pavel Durov regards an investigation into organised crime facilitated through Telegram.

The Russian-born billionaire was placed under “judicial supervision,” meaning he can’t leave France and must report to the authorities twice a week.

French prosecutors have tied Durov’s arrest to an ongoing investigation that involves twelve different offences, primarily linked to cybercrime and organised crime on the platform — such as child sexual abuse, drug sales, and fraud.

By detaining Durov, French authorities are testing the Digital Services Act (DSA) and exploring whether platform founders can be held directly accountable for criminal activities that occur on their platforms.

The DSA mandates more stringent moderation practices for digital platforms, requiring them to combat illegal content and misinformation actively.

How has Telegram been used for organised crime?

Telegram is a widely used communication tool but has also been described as a “haven” for organised crime. The platform boasts around 950 million active users and allows group chats of up to 200,000 members, far surpassing the limits of rival platforms like WhatsApp.

However, as cybersecurity expert Zac Doffman accounts on Forbes, Telegram’s promise of privacy and minimal moderation has attracted not only regular users but also hackers, drug dealers, and child abusers.

Telegram operates similarly to a “popularised dark web,” where criminals are drawn to Telegram’s lack of moderation, allowing them to hide in plain sight while engaging in illicit activities.

Telegram’s website advertises, “You can have a Telegram account without a SIM card and log in using blockchain-powered anonymous numbers.”

However, critics argue that these tools, while beneficial for privacy, make Telegram an appealing platform for organised crime.

Pavel Durov’s response to content moderation challenges

Telegram’s official communication is that “it is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform.”

Telegram abides by EU laws, including the Digital Services Act — its moderation is within industry standards and constantly improving.

Telegram’s CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and travels frequently in Europe.

It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner…

— Telegram Messenger (@telegram) August 25, 2024

In his first public comments following his detention, Durov defended Telegram’s moderation practices, stating that the app was far from an “anarchic paradise.”

Durov highlighted that French authorities have access to a “hotline” set up to report illegal content on Telegram and could have used this channel rather than resorting to legal action against him personally.

Durov pointed out that Telegram takes down millions of harmful posts and channels daily, although he acknowledged that the platform is imperfect.

Has “Telegram’s control over privacy impacted broader society?

Telegram’s unique privacy features have created both opportunities and challenges. On the one hand, the app has empowered users around the world by offering secure communication options in countries with repressive regimes or poor internet freedom.

On the other hand, it has also facilitated criminal activities by offering individuals a space to operate under the radar.

Victoria Lee, founder and CEO of 100 Pound Social, believes that while privacy-focused platforms like Telegram are necessary, they can also create significant safety concerns.

“Telegram’s focus on privacy is great, but it does create some problems when it comes to keeping people safe. Finding a middle ground means having ongoing conversations with tech companies, governments, and privacy advocates to address both privacy and safety,” she says.

What are the broader implications for platforms like Telegram?

The arrest of Pavel Durov has broader implications for platforms that prioritise privacy and decentralisation. If Durov is found liable for criminal activity on Telegram, it could set a precedent for how governments around the world approach similar platforms.

This would likely force privacy-focused platforms to implement stricter moderation policies, which could conflict with their commitment to user privacy.

Lee notes that this case highlights the difficulties of regulating decentralised platforms. While the focus on privacy is commendable, it creates a regulatory blind spot regarding criminal activities.

She adds: “If Pavel Durov were found liable in the Telegram case, it could set a global example. It would show how different countries might handle similar issues, affecting how tech companies operate around the world.”

Google’s antitrust lawsuit: Is the tech giant a monopoly?

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has long scrutinised Google’s overwhelming control in online advertising, accusing the search engine of engaging in anti-competitive practices.

This antitrust lawsuit, filed in early 2023, centres around the idea that Google’s dominance over digital ad technology has stifled competition, harmed consumers and left smaller companies struggling.

It raises questions about the role of massive tech corporations and how governments should apply antitrust laws to protect free-market competition.

What are the central issues in the Google antitrust lawsuit?

The core of Google’s antitrust lawsuit is the firm’s 2008 acquisition of the advertising company DoubleClick for $3.1 billion.

The Department of Justice’s (DOJ) complaint stresses that Google engaged in anti-competitive practices by acquiring rivals, manipulating digital ad markets to benefit its products, and blocking competitors from gaining market share.

The DOJ alleges that Google’s growing control over the ad ecosystem put other ad tech providers at a significant disadvantage. By leveraging its monopoly, Google gained control over both the supply and demand sides of the market.

However, Google says its acquisitions of DoubleClick and subsequent companies like AdMeld were approved by regulators at the time, making it unfair to challenge them years later.

The impact on smaller businesses

The Google antitrust case highlights the challenges smaller businesses face in a market dominated by a few tech giants.

Simon Kvist, CEO of Adnami, an advertising platform, explains that Google’s stranglehold on the ad tech stack creates significant barriers for new players.

“Google’s solutions work seamlessly together, making them the easiest and most attractive option for many publishers,” Kvist points out.

He adds: “If Big Tech companies begin to limit publishers’ abilities to thrive or try and monopolise the advertising technology landscape, the consequences aren’t just fewer jobs and less competition; it also poses a danger to the core mechanics of our societies.”

Many publishers, particularly smaller ones, are caught in a difficult position. On one hand, choosing not to use Google’s ad tech could limit revenue potential, as its tools generate significant ad dollars.

Conversely, reliance on Google deepens the company’s market dominance, which critics argue harms innovation and competition in the long run.

Google’s defence

In its official response, Google emphasises that the ad tech landscape is more vibrant and competitive than ever, with significant rivals such as Amazon building its ad business, Microsoft expanding its digital ad offerings, and Meta (Facebook) playing a big role in digital advertising.

Google argues that automating many aspects of the ad process and connecting publishers with the right advertisers has created a more open web, benefiting all stakeholders involved.

Google’s defence stresses that its innovations have levelled the playing field for smaller publishers and that dismantling its ad tech ecosystem would harm the very businesses the DOJ aims to protect.

Broader consequences for digital advertising

If Google were to lose this antitrust lawsuit, as it did in Europe, the ramifications for the digital advertising landscape would be vast.

Victoria Lee, founder and CEO of 100 Pound Social, says a potential outcome could include regulatory measures that give smaller companies and local publishers a fairer opportunity to compete.

“Smaller publishers and local media often struggle to compete with Google for ad revenue. From what I’ve seen, these smaller outlets can really feel the squeeze.”

She adds: “The Google antitrust case could really change the game for digital advertising. If Google loses, we might see new rules that give smaller companies a fairer shot.”

What are the potential consequences for Google?

Should Google lose, the case could serve as a landmark ruling, setting a precedent for how antitrust laws are applied in the digital age.

A ruling against Google could encourage other governments to pursue similar actions against tech giants accused of monopolistic behaviour.

Simon Kvist points out that while the open web (as opposed to closed ecosystems like Google and Facebook) offers an alternative, fragmentation has hampered it.

“To compete, smaller publishers must focus on creating a cohesive ecosystem where advertisers feel comfortable and incentivised to invest,” he suggests.

He argues that the future of digital advertising lies in the industry’s ability to provide a unified, streamlined experience that rivals the efficiency of Google’s products.

A global trend in tech regulation

The legal battles involving Google, Telegram, and other Big Tech companies highlight a global trend of governments striving to assert control over tech platforms.

These cases underscore the growing push for platform accountability, as governments aim to regulate multinational companies that often escape local jurisdiction due to their ubiquitous nature.

While governments argue these interventions are necessary to curb harmful content and monopolistic practices, tech companies defend their business models, citing innovation and free speech.

The common challenge is balancing user privacy, free speech, and regulation in a borderless digital world.

Lee explains: “Dealing with Big Tech and legal challenges is a real headache for governments. It’s tricky because tech moves so fast, and laws often can’t keep up. For example, the Telegram vs France case shows how hard it is for local laws to catch up with global platforms.”

In response, Tech companies are adjusting by adopting more transparent moderation policies but continue arguing that excessive regulation stifles growth and innovation.

Lee adds: “Balancing free speech with moderating harmful content is definitely a challenge. We need to protect people from harmful stuff without shutting down free expression.

“The solution might be clear and fair content moderation policies that let people speak their minds while also providing a way to handle harmful content. Being open about how content is managed can help find a good balance.”

The post Big Tech on trial: Musk, misinformation, and monopolies appeared first on TechInformed.

The report comes from web data collection platform Smartproxy, which has analysed millions of unique data requests made by users of its API scraping solutions over the past year. The firm has not released the total number of users who scraped a particular target, however, as it says, these figures are treated as internal data only.

According Smartproxy’s report, Google is the most scraped web platform request, with users largely collecting data for SEO analysis, keyword research, content optimisation, and market trend tracking.

Extracting data from a website is usually done using an API transfer or an automatic ‘data scraping’ program that harvests content and data from the website over the Internet.

While the latter, in some cases, has proven controversial — particularly concerning training LLMs for chatbots such as ChatGPT — Smartproxy’s report comprises data gathered via API users.

According to the firm, the results show that in 2023 and 2024 Q1, search engines comprised over 42% of all scraping API requests.

The most scraped Google categories are Search, Travel, Shopping (search, product, pricing), Images, and Ads.

Fellow search engine Bing, from Microsoft, attracts 1.2 billion visitors monthly and has reached sixth place on Smartproxy’s most scraped list.

eCommerce

E-commerce giants are another prime target for API data scraping. Over 18% of all requests were attributed to online shopping platforms, and over half of the sites in the top ten list are online retailers. Amazon ranked second overall.

Users scrape eCommerce websites to gather product data for price comparison, market analysis, trend tracking, and competitive intelligence.

Publicly available web data allows companies to optimise their pricing strategies, identify top-selling products, and analyse the peak shopping hours to better their offering's positioning.

According to Smartproxy CEO Vytautas Savickas, businesses tend to ramp up scraping efforts during peak shopping times like Black Friday, Halloween, and Christmas to capture the value of data generated by the rush of online shoppers seeking discounts and special offers.

“This data is crucial for gaining comprehensive insights into consumer behaviour, identifying popular product categories, and spotting emerging market trends,” he says.

“By analysing the rich datasets collected during these periods, companies can fine-tune their marketing strategies, optimise inventory levels, and tailor their offerings to better meet consumer demand,” he added.

Other popular retail sites regularly scraped for information include Walmart, which comes fourth on the list and accounts for 25% of all online grocery sales in the US.

According to Smartproxy, online businesses collect and analyse real-time data from the market leader to adjust their pricing, research bestselling products in various locations, and compare their product attributes with those of the major sellers on Walmart’s marketplace.

Online auction site eBay, ranked seventh on the list, was also described by the web scraping solutions provider as a "treasure trove of valuable data" for eCommerce businesses.

Other retailers with data that users thought was worth mining include Shopify and the popular Southeast Asian e-commerce platform Lazada, which rank 8th and 9^th, respectively.

Other categories

With sheets of insights behind every review, Tripadvisor was the sole travel company to make it to the top of the most mined site list, coming third overall.

Businesses leverage real-time data collected from Tripadvisor to improve their services, optimise pricing, and analyse competition.

According to Smartproxy, US premier online real estate agent Zillow was tenth, with house-selling websites comprising over 3% of all scraping API requests.

In addition to house hunters, businesses are leveraging real estate data to monitor competitor listings, adjust pricing strategies, analyse user reviews, and identify areas for improvement.

Strangely absent from the top ten were social media sites such as Facebook or Instagram — despite social media emerging as the second most popular category for web scraping, with over 27% of all API scraping requests.

Similarly, Quora and Reddit were not included in the list, despite community forums accounting for 7% of all API requests.

This may be because firms often seek a multiplatform scraping solution to collect real-time data from sites, eliminating the need for a custom-built scaping API for each social media platform.

Another reason may be that some social media sites and forums do not offer APIs (only 1% of websites currently do), causing users to revert to alternative means of scraping the data.

Businesses use social media-extracted data for various purposes, including monitoring brand sentiment, analysing market trends, and conducting competitor research.

Real-time data for AI training

According to Smartproxy, new industries are also adopting web scraping for real-time data to improve predictive models and NLP technologies.

According to Savickas, the trend of scraping search engines highlights the critical need for real-time search data across various sectors, including the AI field, where data plays a crucial role in training AI models, optimising NLPs, and helping AI agents scrape web pages efficiently.

To access the full report, click here. Interested in getting more informed about data scraping? Click here.

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Google’s greenhouse gas emissions surged by 48% from 2019 to 2023, mainly due to the heightened energy demands of AI-powered data centres.

These centres require significantly more electricity than standard online activities, raising concerns about AI’s environmental impact.

Despite Google’s commitment to achieving net zero emissions by 2030, the integration of AI presents challenges. While European and American data centres use mostly carbon-free energy, those in the Middle East, Asia, and Australia rely more on fossil fuels.

Reducing emissions amid AI’s growth remains a formidable task for the tech giant: “As we further integrate AI into our products, reducing emissions may be challenging,” they said.

Read more…

BlackRock to acquire UK data group Preqin for £2.55bn

BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, has agreed to acquire Preqin, a UK-based private markets data group, for £2.55bn in cash.

This acquisition marks BlackRock’s entry into financial information provision, enhancing its focus on alternative assets.

Preqin, specialising in tracking private equity and hedge funds, will be integrated into BlackRock’s technology arm.

This deal underscores the growing demand for granular financial data. Preqin, founded 20 years ago, has experienced significant revenue growth fuelled by the private capital boom.

The acquisition is set to close later this year, positioning BlackRock for further expansion in private markets.

Read more…

Supreme Court rulings boost Big Tech’s power

Recent US Supreme Court decisions are set to significantly enhance Big Tech’s influence by limiting regulatory oversight.

A ruling mandating that SEC fraud cases be tried in court, coupled with overturning the Chevron doctrine, which allowed agencies to interpret laws, will curtail regulators’ power.

This shift empowers companies like Meta and SpaceX to challenge regulatory actions more effectively.

Legal experts warn of increased litigation and a chilling effect on rulemaking. As the US regulatory landscape becomes more complex, there’s concern the country might lag in tech regulation compared to global standards.

“The US invented competition policy — what we call antitrust law — but we’re not only failing to adapt to modern times, but we’re also falling into political retrenchment,” said Laura Phillips-Sawyer, a professor at the University of Georgia School of Law.

Read more…

Audi enhances voice control with ChatGPT integration

Audi will upgrade its vehicle voice control this month by integrating ChatGPT via Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service.

This enhancement applies to around two million Audi models from 2021 onwards, equipped with the third-generation modular infotainment system (MIB 3).

Drivers can now use natural language to interact with their cars, improving safety and convenience.

The Q6 e-tron and future models with the E3 1.2 electronics architecture will also benefit from ChatGPT through Cerence Chat Pro.

The carmaker claims this integration allows for seamless, AI-powered voice commands for infotainment, navigation, and climate control, enhancing the overall driving experience.

Read more…

Australia to build a top-secret cloud with AWS for military use

Australia’s government plans to develop a top secret-rated cloud in collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS), aimed at enhancing the cybersecurity of its Defence and National Intelligence Community.

Partnering with the Australian Signals Directorate, the TS Cloud aims to securely host the nation’s most sensitive information, improving data sharing and analysis capabilities.

The project, with an estimated budget of up to AUD$2 billion over ten years, involves constructing three dedicated data centres and establishing a local AWS subsidiary.

The initiative promises improved interoperability with the US and utilises advanced technologies such as AI and machine learning. According to The Register, Microsoft chose not to bid because it couldn’t match AWS’s interoperability.

Read more…

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NASA has contracted Elon Musk’s SpaceX to decommission the International Space Station (ISS) once it has been retired by guiding it into the Pacific Ocean early next decade.

The £668 million ($843m) contract involves creating a vehicle capable of safely de-orbiting the 430-tonne ISS, which has been operational since 2000.

While the ISS remains structurally sound, planning for its disposal is essential to prevent uncontrolled re-entry. NASA’s plan involves using a de-orbit vehicle, a ‘tugboat,’ to ensure that the station burns safely in the atmosphere, targeting Point Nemo, a remote Pacific Ocean location.

The focus will then shift to commercial space stations and the lunar Gateway project — a platform that will orbit the moon.

Read more…

Heathrow Airport plunged into chaos after a British Airways IT failure

A British Airways (BA) IT failure left passengers stranded at the UK’s busiest airport without their luggage.

The glitch caused flight cancellations, delays, and long queues, with some travellers missing connections and some even suffering panic attacks. Passengers expressed frustration on social media, describing a lack of information and long waits.

A British Airways spokesperson apologised, noting that the issue was resolved and that extra staff had been deployed to return bags quickly. A statement on X (Twitter) from Heathrow Airport’s account said: “Earlier, British Airways experienced a technical issue with their Allocation System; this has now been resolved.”

As of yesterday, flights were departing from Heathrow Airport with an average delay of 19 minutes. Heathrow Airport has confirmed that no other airlines were affected by the IT failure.

Read more…

TikTok offered the US government a “kill switch” to address data protection concerns

TikTok revealed that the US government was offered a “kill switch” to address data protection and national security concerns.

This switch allowed the government to shut down the platform if it didn’t adhere to specific rules, such as sharing US users’ data with the Chinese government.

This offer was part of TikTok’s effort to prevent a legislative ban unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, divested.

TikTok claims the government ceased serious settlement talks after 2022 and ignored their proposals, including the “kill switch” and a draft National Security Agreement.

The US government maintains that divestment is essential for national security. The US Court of Appeals will hear related lawsuits in September.

Read more…

Amazon is secretly developing an AI chatbot to rival OpenAI’s ChatGPT

Business Insider sources reveal that the e-commerce giant is reportedly developing a generative AI chatbot named Metis to rival OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

According to internal documents obtained by the online publication, it will be accessed via a web browser and powered by an advanced AI model called Olympus, an enhanced version of Amazon’s Titan model.

Metis aims to provide smart, conversational answers, share response sources, generate images, and suggest follow-up questions using retrieval-augmented generation (RAG).

Amazon claims this technique allows Metis to deliver more up-to-date information than other chatbots. Additionally, Metis will function as an AI agent capable of automating complex tasks.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy recently said that the company’s AI initiatives were expected to drive the business towards “tens of billions of dollars” in sales over the next few years.

Read more…

Waymo makes its self-driving taxis available to everyone in San Francisco

The Alphabet-owned autonomous driving tech company has made its self-driving taxis available to everyone in San Francisco.

This marks a significant milestone in Waymo’s operations since the California Public Utilities Commission has granted Waymo permission to operate commercial driverless services 24/7 in the city despite complaints that the self-driving taxis were causing traffic chaos.

Previously, riders had to sign up on a waitlist, but now, anyone can use the service via the Waymo app. This move aims to gain broader public acceptance for autonomous vehicles.

Nearly 300,000 people have signed up for Waymo rides despite some setbacks and scrutiny. The company operates around 300 self-driving taxis in San Francisco, with additional fleets in Phoenix and Los Angeles.

Read more…

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A London court has ordered Google to face a £13.6 billion lawsuit over whether it has too much influence on the online advertising market.

Ad Tech Collective Action LLP has accused the search engine giant and its parent Alphabet of acting in an anti-competitive way which caused online publishers in the UK to lose money.

London’s Competition Appeal Tribunal dismissed Alphabet’s attempts to dismiss the case – labelling it as “incoherent” saying the case will now go to trial.

Google’s legal director, Oliver Bethell, described the lawsuit as “speculative and opportunistic.”

“We’ll oppose it vigorously and on the facts,” he added in a statement.

Read more

Gemini AI launches in Europe

It isn’t all bad news for Google in Europe, however, as the firm announced the launch of its AI app Gemini across the UK and Europe.

The dedicated app makes the mobile version of Google’s powerful AI chatbot free to download, offering an AI assistant on the move.

It works similarly to the desktop version of Gemini, which is Google’s answer to ChatGPT, and the mobile launch as seen as the next step to fully replacing the Google Assistant with its AI counterpart.

“It’s an important first step in building a true AI assistant — one that is conversational, multimodal and helpful,” said Jules Walter, group product manager of Google’s Gemini division.

Read more

AI growth drives Nvidia to $3tn valuation and second most valuable company

The growth of AI has helped drive the valuation of Nvidia to over $3 trillion, making the chipmaker the second most valuable listed company in the world.

A 5% share price hike saw Nvidia leapfrog Apple in market value, leaving it behind only Microsoft in terms of listed companies.

It marks a rapid rise for the US firm, which has seen its share price grow by more than 50% since February, when it topped the $2tn mark for the first time, with optimism about the role its chipsets will play in the future of AI fuelling the growth

Apple was the first company to reach a $1tn and $2tn market cap. It long held the title of most valuable US company but was surpassed by Microsoft earlier this year. Microsoft has also benefited from investor demand for AI infrastructure, with the software giant one of the key investors in OpenAI.

Read more

CNN and Paris Hilton targeted in TikTok hack

Celebrities and major brands including CNN and socialite Paris Hilton have had their TikTok accounts targeted in a major cyber attack, although the social media firm said only a small number of accounts had been breached.

TikTok – which is owned by Chinese firm Bytedance – said it was already taking steps to mitigate the attack, which saw hackers attempt to hijack a number of high-profile users through direct messages.

“We have taken measures to stop this attack and prevent it from happening in the future. We’re working directly with affected account owners to restore access, if needed,” said Jason Grosse, a spokesperson for TikTok’s privacy and security team.

Read more

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EU antitrust boss Margrethe Vestager and industry head Thierry Breton announced the investigations, accusing the firms of uncompetitive pricing, just two weeks after they submitted compliance reports required by the DMA.

Although based in the US, Alphabet (which owns Google), Apple and Meta have all been named as firms that have obligations under the European regulations.

The DMA sets obligations for these digital ‘gatekeepers’ to ensure fair competition, including not favouring their own services, sharing data with third parties, and obtaining consent for tracking user data.

Apple, Google and Meta could face significant fines if found in breach of the DMA, which aims to increase online choice for customers.

Non-compliance can result in fines of up to 10% of turnover, rising to 20% of repeated infringements – with Apple posting $383bn of revenue last year, Alphabet recording $307bn and revenues of $134bn at Meta.

The investigations will look at several alleged breaches. Investigators will seek to assess Apple and Google’s measures allowing app developers to “steer” users to offers outside their app stores; whether Alphabet, Google’s owner, favours its own services in search results on its search engine; and if Meta’s decision to charge users for an ad-free experience on Facebook and Instagram complies with DMA provisions on users’ personal data.

“The commission suspects that the measures put in place by these gatekeepers fall short of effective compliance of their obligations under the DMA,” it said in a statement.

Vestager claimed companies had been given plenty of time to comply with the act, telling reports: “I definitely do not think this is rushed.”

Big Tech investigations

It is the latest move by regulators to tackle the dominance of big tech and comes just three weeks after the EU fined Apple €1.8 billion for breaking competition laws over its music streaming services.

The US also announced last week’s plans to investigate the iPhone maker over claims it was monopolising the smartphone market.

An Apple spokesperson told the BBC it would constructively engage with the EU Digital Markets Act investigation but was confident that no breach had occurred. Meanwhile,  a statement from Meta defended its business model.

‘Subscriptions as an alternative to advertising are a well-established business model across many industries, and we designed Subscription for No Ads to address several overlapping regulatory obligations, including the DMA. We will continue to engage constructively with the Commission,’  a statement released by Apple said.

Techcrunch posted a response from a spokesperson at Google, attributed to Oliver Bethell, director, competition. It said:

“To comply with the Digital Markets Act, we have made significant changes to the way our services operate in Europe. We have engaged with the European Commission, stakeholders and third parties in dozens of events over the past year to receive and respond to feedback, and to balance conflicting needs within the ecosystem. We will continue to defend our approach in the coming months.”

The EU now has 12 months to investigate its claims, according to pre-agreed timeframes set out in the DMA.

The post EU launches Digital Markets Act probes into Apple, Google and Meta appeared first on TechInformed.

Lynch – who has pleaded not guilty – has been fighting litigation from HP since the tech giant acquired his firm in 2011 for $11.1 billion to bolster its move into software.

Less than a year later, however, HP wrote off three-quarters of the company’s value after uncovering what it claims were “accounting irregularities” at the hands of Autonomy’s former management team.

The central accusation is that Autonomy’s execs – which include Lynch and former CFO Sushovan Hussain – inflated the firm’s revenues before the HP deal.

For years, Lynch has argued that Autonomy’s underperformance at HP was the result of mismanagement by its new owner, rather than fraud before the takeover.

Even at the time, the deal was considered controversial, with many of HP’s shareholders claiming that the firm – better known for its computer hardware – had overpaid for Autonomy, as it sought to pivot into the high margin software services sector.

As a result, there have also been ongoing disputes with HP’s and Autonomy’s auditors as to how much of the losses could be attributed to fraud.

In September 2020, big four accountancy firm Deloitte, which audited Autonomy between 2009 and 2011, was fined £15m for its audits which were deemed to contain “serious and serial failures”.

However, legal documents filed by Lynch’s lawyers last year highlight disagreements between HP and its external auditors, EY, over whether a $5bn figure could be attributed to fraud.

HP on the case 

The case has also been investigated by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the FBI, and UK’s Serious Fraud Office, with the latter closing its investigation in 2015, concluding that the chance of successful prosecution was low.

HP doggedly pursued the case in the UK civil courts however, and in 2022 Lynch lost a six-year civil fraud case with the judge ruling that HP’s overpaying of the software business was down to fraud perpetrated by Lynch and Hussain.

Hussain is now in jail in the US, after being found guilty of fraud relating to the same deal.

As well as Autonomy, Lynch – who was awarded an OBE for services to enterprise in 2006 and was an adviser to David Cameron’s government – also co-founded $1bn valued video search engine Blinkx as well as London Stock Exchange-listed cyber firm Darktrace – another company mired in controversy after some of its customers wrote off its AI-focussed cyber sec products as “Snake Oil”.

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New York City has launched a lawsuit against Google, Meta, Snapchat, and TikTok, accusing the tech giants of “fueling a nationwide youth mental health crisis.”

Last month, the New York mayor’s office designated social media as a “public health hazard”. Mayor Eric Adams revealed the state’s health commissioner, Dr Ashwin Vasan, had described apps like TikTok and Instagram as “environmental toxins” that impose harm onto young teens and adolescents.

New York has now launched a lawsuit accusing the Big Tech firms of three counts: public nuisance, negligence, and gross negligence.

The suit alleges these counts are achieved by way of harmful algorithms, gambling-like mechanisms, and manipulation through reciprocity — making the user “feel compelled to respond to one positive action with another positive action.” The Adams regime believes there to be a correlation between the increase in social media usage and the decline in local youth mental health over “more than a decade.”

Google and Meta told CNBC that they have always worked with youth safety experts and provided parental control tools.

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SpaceX moves its legal home from Delaware to Texas

Elon Musk has started moving his businesses away from Delaware following a judge’s decision in the state to invalidate his $56b Tesla pay package.

In a post on X, Musk announced that SpaceX has moved its corporate home to Texas, along with a copy of the certificate of conversion it received from the Texas Secretary of State. “If your company is still incorporated in Delaware, I recommend moving to another state as soon as possible,” the executive added.

It comes after a Delaware judge invalidated Musk’s $56b Tesla compensation package following a lawsuit from a shareholder. In January, the judge found that Musk’s compensation was inappropriately set by the electric vehicle maker’s board and struck down the package.

Musk’s brain-chip implant company, Neuralink, also changed its location of incorporation from Delaware to Nevada last week.

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EU ratifies deal on AI regulations

Lawmakers in the European Parliament have struck a provisional agreement on landmark AI legislation ahead of an April vote on rules to govern the technology.

The European Union’s AI Act aims to set guardrails for emergent AI technologies across a broad range of industries while also outlining regulations for foundation models or generative AI, such as ChatGPT.

“AI Act takes a step forward: MEPs in @EP_Justice & @EP_SingleMarket have endorsed the provisional agreement on an Artificial Intelligence Act that ensures safety and complies with fundamental rights,” one of the two European Parliament committees said on X.

It comes as a number of regions and countries look to position themselves as leaders in the AI space.

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Romanian hospitals hit by ransomware attacks

Over one hundred hospitals and medical facilities in Romania have become victims of a major ransomware attack, with several sites forced to go completely offline in order to protect patients.

Cyber extortionists demanded 3.5 Bitcoin — worth over £130,000 on the current market — to unlock files which they had encrypted in the attack. But Romanian officials said data had been recently backed up, reducing the impact.

A statement from the Romanian Ministry of Health revealed the scale of the attack — which took place on Monday — revealing the hackers had targeted a widely used medical information system. The group responsible has yet to be identified.

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Cisco to cut 5% of its workforce

Cisco has announced plans to cut around 4,250 jobs from its global workforce, representing about 5% of its total employee base.

The plan comes as part of company-wide restructuring, according to the networking hardware and software maker. The plans are to shift its focus to “key priority areas,” such as artificial intelligence. The layoffs are due to begin later this year, Cisco indicated.

“We continue to align our investments to future growth opportunities,” Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins said in the company’s second-quarter earnings release. “Our innovation sits at the centre of an increasingly connected ecosystem and will play a critical role as our customers adopt AI and secure their organisations.”

It comes as part of wider layoffs across the tech sector in recent years. Since the start of this year, cuts at tech firms have affected nearly 35,000 workers. Since the cuts began in 2022, the total number of layoffs globally, as reported by layoffs.fyi, has surpassed 462,000 job cuts.

Read more about tech layoffs…

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It’s thought that the McDonald’s was added to mark Bezos’s first job, which was summer work at the fast-food restaurant, aged 16.

The digital retail giant’s boss is in illustrious tech company: Alexis Ohanian, cofounder of Reddit, started out in fast food as a Pizza Hut dishwasher, working his way up to waiter in high school.

And while software guru and former Google principal engineer Kelsey Hightower may be more associated with Kubernetes than double quarter pounders with cheese, he too worked for McDonalds before commanding a million-dollar tech salary.

When we briefly met at a tech conference last year, I asked Hightower (now a committed vegetarian who appears to be enjoying his very comfortable early retirement) how his old job at the golden arches prepared him for tech success.

“I think a lot of people learn customer service from McDonalds and that customer usually pays the very minimum and they expect a lot for that in some cases,” he notes.

TechInformed’s very own multimedia journalist Ricki Lee, agrees with this, having spent the first day in his McDonald’s job trying to fish a pair of lady’s spectacles out of a food waste bin.

“You see people at their best and at their worst in the span of half an hour. People, rightly so, can get very upset when their food isn’t what they want or expect.

“And then the grill might stop working. And then one of the toilets is flooded. Then when you just think you’ve had enough, your delivery of fresh produce hasn’t arrived. You must learn how to pivot and adapt on your toes, quickly, or face repercussions later,” Lee adds.

Tech in action

Bezos himself later acknowledged that dealing with customers at McDonalds had been “really hard.” But it must have had an impact: with customer-focus ingrained as one the first of Amazon’s leadership principles.

Speaking to CNBC in 1999 – two years after taking Amazon public – Bezos says “If there is one thing that Amazon.com is about, it is obsessive attention to the customer experience end-to-end. What matters to me is to provide the best customer service.”

There’s a common image of tech entrepreneurs starting their businesses from their garage (as Bezos did) or huddled over a computer in their bedrooms working on code, or, for more industrial or chemical applications, in a lab, or a shed even.

But to learn about the industrial application of tech, there’s no better start than by flipping burgers.

According to reports, Bezos spent his summer studying McDonald’s automation improvements, such as beeps and signals for when to scramble eggs, flip burgers and pull fries out of a boiling vat.

“At a typical McDonalds there’s a lot of technology in there that allows someone with very limited training to almost contribute from day one,” Hightower observes.

“I think a lot of people who were paying attention to the details, when they wanted to go run their own businesses and lead communities, thought about it this same way: how can I structure my company to allow – in the case of Amazon – a million employees to come into a factory and just make it just work?” he adds.

How many of us have started projects – whether it’s a book, a piece of code, an ESG initiative – but then just parked them when life got busy? What McDonalds also teaches you, says Hightower, is how to get things done.

“That drive-thru needs to move. It does change the way you think about getting things done because there are no excuses.

“When there’s something not right you have to improvise and then you have to come back and do it again; There are lessons to learn from any job, but fast food particular, for a lot of us that’s our first job so it’s shaped our concept of what work is,” he says.

Client-facing skills

There’s snobbery around working at fast food chains, particularly among the white, educated middle class.

It pains me to admit that, for a long time I thought that working in McDonalds wasn’t a real job. But, in the thrall of Generation X writer Douglas Coupland and his coining of the phrase ‘McJob’, I’d kind of missed the point and ended up in a boring but non-greasy admin job as I worked my way through uni.

I remember mocking a friend at college for his part time McDonald’s job, but in those early years he’d banked way more transferable skills than I ever had by the time I’d landed my first ‘real’ job.

That guy is now leading a major digital transformation project for a London Council. Like many who have had service industry jobs, he’s always been a brilliant problem solver and is great at dealing with demanding clients. He brings projects in on time and to budget. He knows how to get things done.

At one point in my own career I covered the postproduction and special effects industry, where the managers at several high end VFX facilities all told me the same thing: they preferred to recruit their runners – many of whom would go on to become digital artists working on top Hollywood films –  that had experience of working in the service industry.

That ability to be client-facing, and deal with challenging behaviour and demands was valued as much as a fine arts degree from Oxford or someone’s ability to code.

And where else are you going to mix with such a diverse group of people? (Clue: the answer isn’t in your typical Silicon Valley start up).

As TI’s Lee notes: “In fast food you will work closely with people from all over the world. And, because many of those people are dentists, lawyers, teachers, who can’t work in their fields until they get their qualifications translated into English/US equivalents, you end up working with people from different socio-economic backgrounds too.

“Working on such diverse teams really prepares you for managing diverse personalities when you reach leadership positions and I’ve found it to be invaluable,” he adds.

And it’s clearly something Bezos values too, as he chomped his way through birthday Big Macs with the likes of Oprah, Beyonce and Bill Gates, his culinary choice represented his journey from a modest but informative start, to the pinnacle of tech success.

The post Why a job at McDonald’s could be the key to tech success appeared first on TechInformed.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has apologised to the families of victims of online harms during a Congressional hearing.

US lawmakers accused executives at some of the world’s biggest social media platforms of having “blood on their hands” for failing to protect children who go online.

US senator Lindsey Graham called out Zuckerberg and other tech leaders during a Senate Judiciary Committee for a Wednesday hearing entitled “Big Tech and the Online Child Sexual Exploitation Crisis.”

Zuckerberg was joined at the hearing by X CEO Linda Yaccarino, TikTok CEO Shou Chew, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel and Discord CEO Jason Citron.

Questioned by Republican senator Josh Hawley over whether Zuckerberg would like to apologise to families who were sitting in the audience who were holding photos of children who they claimed died or were harmed due to his platform, the social media said:

“I’m sorry for everything you have all been through.”

“No one should go through the things that your families have suffered, and this is why we invest so much, and we are going to continue doing industry-wide efforts to make sure no one has to go through the things your families have had to suffer.”

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Musk threatens to move Tesla HQ after Delaware judge voids $55bn pay packet

Elon Musk has threated to relocate Tesla from the US state of Delaware after a state judge voided the CEO’s proposed $55.8 billion pay package, saying it was unfair to shareholders in the electric carmaker.

Swept up by the rhetoric of ‘all upside,’ or perhaps starry-eyed by Musk’s superstar appeal, the board never asked the $55.8 billion question: Was the plan even necessary for Tesla to retain Musk and achieve its goals?” Delaware Court of Chancery Judge Kathaleen McCormick said in her ruling.

The ruling prompted a furious response from Musk, who took to X (the social media platform he owns) to lash out at the decision to reject his wages. He also launched a poll asking users if Tesla should shift its incorporation to Texas, where it is headquartered.

“Never incorporate your company in the state of Delaware,” he posted, following it up with a suggestion to incorporate in Nevada or Texas.

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BICS partners AWS for cloud roaming

Telco BICS has launched a new cloud roaming service using Amazon Web Service’s global network.

The partnership means BICS customers – which include other telcos and enterprises – will benefit from much faster speeds for users connecting while abroad.

BICS will leverage AWS for backhaul services, which it claims will reduce complexity for roaming, by redirecting traffic to a local AWS hub.

The new service is targeted at Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) and Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs).

Hackers steal $112 million of XRP Ripple cryptocurrency

Hackers have stolen around $112 million in XRP crypto currency from a digital wallet belonging to the co-founder of platform Ripple, according to the tech executive.

In a post on X, Ripple’s Chris Larsen said there had been an unauthorised access to his XRP accounts, and that law enforcement was already involved.

Larsen’s post came just after crypto security researcher ZackXBT disclosed details of the hack, saying the stolen funds had already been laundered through other crypto platforms including Binance and Kraken.

Ripple has been around since 2012 and aims to be a payments and enterprise infrastructure provider made up of a network, protocol and decentralized public ledger called XRP Ledger.

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