digital security – The News Desk

Federal judge rips into Montana’s statewide TikTok ban in preliminary injunction hearing

15Oct

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Technology

Federal judge rips into Montana’s statewide TikTok ban in preliminary injunction hearing

CNN — A Montana federal judge on Thursday tore into a contested state law that bans TikTok from all personal devices, saying in a hearing that the legislation appears driven by “paternalistic” views of social media users and suggesting lawmakers could have taken many steps short of an attempted ban to achieve their goals. The sharp criticism of Montana’s legislature and attorney general comes as TikTok and a group of content creators on the platform have sought a ruling temporarily blocking the law. The legal battle is closely watched because it is viewed as a bellwether for TikTok’s future in the United States, where dozens of states and the US government have already banned the app on official ...

Federal appeals court expands limits on Biden administration communications with social media companies

4Oct

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Technology

Federal appeals court expands limits on Biden administration communications with social media companies

Washington CNN — A federal appeals court has expanded the scope of a ruling that limits the Biden administration’s communications with social media companies, saying it now also applies to a top US cybersecurity agency. The ruling last month from the conservative 5th Circuit US Court of Appeals severely limits the ability of the White House, the surgeon general, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the FBI to communicate with social media companies about content related to Covid-19 and elections that the government views as misinformation. The preliminary injunction had been on pause and a recent procedural snafu over a request from the plaintiffs in the case to broaden its sc...

Indonesia bans e-commerce transactions on social media in major blow to TikTok

28Sep

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Technology

Indonesia bans e-commerce transactions on social media in major blow to TikTok

Jakarta Reuters — Indonesia has banned e-commerce transactions on social media platforms, the trade minister said on Wednesday, in a blow to short video app TikTok, which is doubling down on Southeast Asia’s biggest economy to boost its e-commerce business. The government said the move, which takes effect immediately, is aimed at protecting offline merchants and marketplaces, adding that predatory pricing on social media platforms is threatening small and medium-sized enterprises. The move comes just three months after TikTok pledged to invest billion of dollars in Southeast Asia, mainly in Indonesia, over the next few years in a major push to build its e-commerce platform TikTok Shop. ...

24Sep

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Technology

Donald Trump Jr.’s X account was hacked, spokesman says

Washington CNN — A spokesman for former President Donald Trump said Wednesday that Donald Trump Jr.’s account on X – the platform formerly known as Twitter – had been compromised after the account began sharing a series of unusual and erratic posts. “Don’s account has been hacked,” Andrew Surabian posted on X, adding that a post claiming the former president had died was “obviously not true.” In addition to falsely pronouncing the death of the senior Trump, the compromised account also claimed that Trump Jr. would be running for president himself. Within minutes, the post had been reshared more than 1,000 times on X and viewed hundreds of thousands of times. Another post appeared to t...

Elon Musk should be forced to testify on X’s ‘chaotic environment,’ US regulator tells court

18Sep

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Technology

Elon Musk should be forced to testify on X’s ‘chaotic environment,’ US regulator tells court

Washington CNN — Elon Musk should be forced to testify in an expansive US government probe of X, the company formerly known as Twitter, the US government said. The government said mass layoffs and other decisions Musk made raised questions about X’s ability to comply with the law and to protect users’ privacy. The US government’s attempt to compel Musk’s testimony is the latest turn in an investigation that predates Musk’s acquisition of X that has intensified due to Musk’s own actions, according to a court filing by the Justice Department on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission. The court filing dated Monday cites depositions with multiple former X executives, including its former ch...

MGM Resorts shuts down systems due to ‘cybersecurity issue’ leading to some outages

11Sep

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Technology

MGM Resorts shuts down systems due to ‘cybersecurity issue’ leading to some outages

CNN — MGM Resorts has shut down some of its systems as a result of a “cybersecurity issue,” according to a company social media post on Monday. “Promptly after detecting the issue, we quickly began an investigation with assistance from leading external cybersecurity experts,” the company said on X, formerly known as Twitter. MGM Resorts (MGM) says it’s working with law enforcement and “took prompt action to protect our systems and data, including shutting down certain systems.” The MGM Resorts website is currently offline, with an apology message and a list of phone numbers for guests to reach their specific hotel concierge desk. CNN has reached out to MGM Resor...

1Sep

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Technology

X, formerly known as Twitter, may collect your biometric data and job history

CNN — X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, said this week it may collect biometric and employment information from its users — expanding the range of personal information that account-holders may be exposing to the site. The disclosures came in an update to the company’s privacy policy, which added two sections related to the new data collection practice. “Based on your consent, we may collect and use your biometric information for safety, security, and identification purposes,” the policy read. In addition, under a new section labeled “job applications,” X said it may collect users’ employment and educational history. The company also said it could col...