google Google Demands Clearview AI Halt Facial Recognition Photo Scraping Google and YouTube issue a cease-and-desist letter to Clearview AI, demanding the startup stop extracting photos for its controversial facial recognition database. Clearview's CEO vows to fight the order in court by comparing the practice to standard search engine indexing.
twitter Twitter Shuts Down Vast Fake Account Network Exploiting Phone Number Bug Twitter suspends a massive network of fake accounts that abuse a system flaw to match millions of phone numbers to specific user profiles. The platform detects suspicious activity originating from IP addresses in Iran, Israel, and Malaysia.
facebook Facebook Rolls Out Global Privacy Tool, Plus ServiceNow and Flipboard Updates Facebook releases its Off-Facebook Activity tool to all users worldwide, allowing them to manage and delete data shared by third-party sites. Meanwhile, ServiceNow acquires Passage AI to boost its chatbot capabilities and Flipboard expands into local news coverage.
jeff bezos UN Experts Demand Investigation Into Alleged Saudi Hacking of Bezos Phone United Nations experts call for an immediate investigation into reports that Saudi Arabia hacked Jeff Bezos' phone. The alleged cyberattack raises serious concerns about digital privacy and international security.
netflix Netflix Rejects Ad-Supported Model Despite Investor Pressure Netflix CEO Reed Hastings firmly rejects an ad-supported tier, arguing that competing with Google, Facebook, and Amazon for online ad revenue is too difficult and not worth the privacy trade-offs.
uk UK Watchdog Releases Strict Privacy Design Code to Protect Children Online The UK Information Commissioner's Office publishes a 15-standard age appropriate design code that forces online services to default to high privacy for children. The broad rules apply to any internet service likely to be accessed by kids in the UK.
apple Apple Abandons iCloud Encryption Plan Following FBI Pushback Apple reportedly scraps plans for end-to-end encrypted iCloud backups after the FBI voices strong objections. The tech giant chooses to avoid further conflict rather than risk legal battles or new anti-encryption legislation.
cybersecurity Forensic Report Links Saudi Crown Prince Account to Jeff Bezos WhatsApp Hack A new Guardian report reveals that Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos had large amounts of data stolen from his phone via a malicious WhatsApp message sent from an account used by Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman.
apple Apple Tests Ultra Wideband Toggle to Stop iPhone 11 Location Checks Apple introduces a new toggle in the iOS 13.3.1 beta that allows iPhone 11 users to disable ultra wideband location tracking. The switch addresses privacy concerns over the phone performing background location checks to comply with regional regulations.
eu European Commission Considers Five-Year Ban on Public Facial Recognition The European Commission proposes a temporary ban on facial recognition in public spaces to assess privacy risks under GDPR. The draft policy aims to balance AI innovation with strict citizen protections.
apple Apple Adds Dedicated Toggle to Fix iPhone 11 Location Privacy Concern Apple releases a new toggle in the iOS 13.3.1 beta that allows users to completely disable the iPhone 11's ultra-wideband chip to prevent background location tracking.
ring Ring Doorbell App Secretly Shares User Data With Multiple Trackers An EFF investigation reveals that the Ring Android app sends highly personal user data to four major marketing and analytics companies without meaningful consent.
clearview ai Secret Police Use of Clearview AI Highlights Urgent Need for Facial Recognition Ban Police departments across the country secretly use Clearview AI, a facial recognition tool that scrapes billions of public images to identify individuals. This hidden surveillance underscores the immediate necessity for strict laws banning law enforcement from using face recognition technology.
clearview ai Secret Facial Recognition App Tracks Billions of Public Photos for Police A controversial startup called Clearview AI builds a massive facial recognition database by scraping billions of public images from social media. Law enforcement agencies across the country use the tool to solve crimes, raising significant privacy concerns.
apple Apple Rejects Barr's Demand for Backdoor Access to Pensacola Shooter's iPhones Apple pushes back against claims it provided no help in the Pensacola naval base shooting investigation, offering gigabytes of data but refusing to build a backdoor for encrypted devices.