News

EU beefs up disinformation code to prevent digital ad profit

European Union officials unveiled plans Wednesday to beef up the bloc’s code of practice on online disinformation, with the aim of preventing digital ad companies from profiting off of “fake news.” EU officials said they were strengthening the three-year-old voluntary code to make it more effective at fighting the false information flooding tech platforms. “We […]

WhatsApp sues Indian government over new internet rules

The messaging app WhatsApp has sued the Indian government seeking to defend its users’ privacy and stop new rules that would require it to make messages “traceable” to external parties. WhatsApp filed the lawsuit Wednesday in the Delhi High Court. It is arguing that the government rules regarding the traceability of messages are unconstitutional and […]

German regulator probes Google's market position, data use

German regulators have launched an investigation into Google’s position in the market, and how the search engine and advertising giant handles user data. The Federal Cartel Office, or Bundeskartellamt, said Tuesday that it has started proceedings against Google entities in Germany, Ireland and California based on new provisions in German competition law that apply to […]

Judge digs into Apple app store policies as Epic trial ends

The judge who will decide a case challenging Apple’s stranglehold on its iPhone app store indicated on Monday she would like to promote more competition but without dismantling a commission system that reaps billions of dollars for the technology powerhouse. U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers isn’t likely to issue a decision until this summer. […]

Gaza-based journalists in Hamas chat blocked from WhatsApp

A few hours after the latest cease-fire took effect in the Gaza Strip, a number of Palestinian journalists in the coastal enclave found they were blocked from accessing WhatsApp messenger — a crucial tool used to communicate with sources, editors and the world beyond the blockaded strip. The Associated Press reached out to 17 journalists […]

Florida law seeks to rein in large social media companies

Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill on Monday that seeks to punish social media platforms that remove “conservative ideas” from their sites, though it is not clear if it would pass constitutional muster because it might violate the First Amendment. The new law will enable the state to fine large social media companies […]

Apple CEO faces tough questions about app store competition

Apple CEO Tim Cook described the company’s ironclad control over its mobile app store as the best way to serve and protect iPhone users, but he faced tough questions about competition issues from a judge Friday about allegations he oversees an illegal monopoly. The rare courtroom appearance by one of the world’s best-known executives came […]

ByteDance CEO steps down, raising questions over government involvement

Shock and surprise were the predominant emotions bustling through ByteDance employees when their softly spoken founder Zhang Yiming announced that he will be stepping down as CEO of what has been described to be the world’s biggest unicorn. Zhang – a 38-year-old billionaire estimated by Forbes to have a net worth of $35.6 billion – […]

WhatsApp denies it will drop privacy update for Turkey users

Turkey’s competition watchdog said Friday it was told by WhatsApp that the chat app won’t apply a controversial privacy update following an investigation, but the announcement was contradicted by the Facebook-owned app, which said it still plans to roll out the update for Turkish users. It’s a fresh sign of the confusion between regulators and […]