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The EU has launched a new investigation into Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, over its alleged failure to protect children from harmful content.
The European Commission, the bloc’s executive arm tasked with proposing new laws and policies, said on Thursday that it has opened formal proceedings to assess whether Meta may have breached the Digital Services Act (DSA) in areas linked to the protection of minors. Adopted in 2022, the DSA aims to create a safer digital space where the fundamental rights of users are protected. The commission is concerned that Facebook and Instagram’s algorithms and online interfaces “may exploit the weaknesses and inexperience of minors and cause addictive behavior, and/or reinforce so-called ‘rabbit hole effect,’” reads the commission’s press release. The ‘rabbit-hole effect’ refers to specific algorithms used by social media platforms. When a user looks at one piece of harmful content, the algorithms suggest more of the same, potentially leading them toward videos that become more extreme. Meta’s age-verification tools may also not be “reasonable, proportionate, and effective” to prevent minors from accessing inappropriate content, the press release stated. The commission said it will now carry out an in-depth investigation as a matter of priority. The opening of formal proceedings empowers the EU executive arm to take enforcement steps such as adopting interim measures and non-compliance decisions. Meta said it has “spent a decade developing more than 50 tools and policies” to protect children. The company wants “young people to have safe, age-appropriate experiences online,” Reuters quoted a Meta spokesperson as saying. Protection of children is a “challenge the whole industry is facing,” the statement added. Both Facebook and Instagram have more than 45 million monthly active users in the EU. In April 2023, they were designated by the bloc as Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs). As such, they have to comply with obligations set out in the DSA. The European Commission already opened a set of formal proceedings against Meta in April, looking into alleged deceptive advertising, political content, and election disinformation on Facebook and Instagram. The probes come ahead of the vote for the European Parliament scheduled for early June. DSA violations can lead to fines of as much as 6% of a company’s annual global turnover. The Blog Tags Widget will appear here on the published site.
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The video-sharing platform YouTube on Tuesday said it would block access inside Hong Kong to 32 links featuring the protest anthem "Glory to Hong Kong" in compliance with a court injunction that provoked strong criticism from rights groups. The Hong Kong government has deemed the song, which was sung widely at anti-government protests in 2019, to be a danger to security in the semi-autonomous Chinese region. In approving the government's application to ban the song, Hong Kong's Court of Appeal agreed it could be "weaponized" and used to incite secession. What did YouTube say?
YouTube said that although it was complying with the recent injunction by the court, it was concerned that such moves could damage the city's reputation as a reliable place to do business. "We are disappointed by the Court's decision but are complying with its removal order," YouTube said in a statement. "We'll continue to consider our options for an appeal, to promote access to information," it said, adding that it shared the concerns of human rights groups that the ban undermined freedom of expression. The Blog Tags Widget will appear here on the published site.
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Kiev wants TikTok’s help to counter Moscow’s “dominance” on the social media platform, one of Ukraine’s top information warfare officials said on Tuesday.
Russians are advancing in cyberspace as well as on the battlefield, Andrey Kovalenko, the head of the Center for Countering Disinformation (CCD) at the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine, told the outlet. “Russia is dominating us on TikTok” due to the sheer scale of its effort, Kovalenko said. “We need to adjust our approach and consider focusing on this social network as well.” According to Kovalenko, the Russians are “working systematically,” creating fake accounts with Ukrainian SIM cards, and “gaming” TikTok algorithms to reach a wider audience in Ukraine. Meanwhile, there aren’t many Ukrainian creators on the platform, Kovalenko said. His own account, with 543,000 followers, features videos that “underscore Ukraine’s views on the war,” . Kovalenko has previously pushed back on demands by Ukrainian officials to ban Telegram, arguing this would be impossible and actually harm Kiev’s propaganda operations. He doesn’t favour banning TikTok either, but would prefer the company to open an office in Kiev to “help fight disinformation more effectively.” Ukraine has already forced TikTok owner ByteDance to ban 24 “pro-Russian” channels by complaining to its representatives in the EU, he added. Estimates indicate that only 25% of social media users in Ukraine have TikTok, while over 70% use Russian-made messaging app Telegram. By way of comparison, only 8% are on X (formerly Twitter). According to Kovalenko, the “disinformation” on the platform amounts to questioning President Vladimir Zelensky’s legitimacy. Videos by Russian “bots” are focusing on May 20, when Zelensky’s term is due to expire. Kiev has postponed all elections, citing martial law imposed due to the conflict with Russia. TikTok’s quarterly reports show that the company blocked 2 million videos in Ukraine during the last three months of 2023, suspected of being part of “covert influence operations” by artificially pushing either pro-Russian or pro-Ukrainian narratives. Kiev’s sudden interest in TikTok follows the passage of a bill in the US Congress that allocated some $61 billion in aid to Ukraine. Tucked into the bill was the requirement for ByteDance to sell TikTok to an American company or be banned as a national security risk. ByteDance has said it will challenge the requirement in court. The Blog Tags Widget will appear here on the published site.
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Why is May Masturbation Month?5/2/2024 By now, social media and random pop-up ads have (hopefully!) informed you that May is, in fact, masturbation month. You know the rules: knead your love muffin obsessively and thank your lucky stars that the clit exists. Oh, and make sure you're doing it to the right sort of fantasy. Turns out, there is actual history—imagine that!—behind masturbation month. Back in 1994, Dr. Joycelyn Elders was the Surgeon General here in the US. Elders was extremely progressive for the time, which 20 years ago simply meant that she was a huge proponent of sex ed (and decriminalizing most drugs, but that's a story for another day). She famously said: As per your specific question in regard to masturbation, I think that is something that is a part of human sexuality and it's a part of something that perhaps should be taught. But we've not even taught our children the very basics She meant that we should teach kids that it's okay to masturbate. Spin media decided that her message was: "let's bring some dildos to class and teach these kindergartners to have some fun!" Not the situation Elders was suggesting. She later went on to explain that masturbation could prevent the spread of AIDS; unfortunately, her bold statements led to a forced resignation. Politicians (both Republican and Democrat) took a break from worshipping Voldemort in their bat caves to jump for joy. Our buddy Newt Gingrich said, "it's good for the country and good for the President that she's departed." Not everyone agreed. Notorious sex shop Good Vibrations took action in 1995 and declared May National Masturbation Month. Since then, it's grown to International Masturbation Month. The Blog Tags Widget will appear here on the published site.
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EU TikTok ban ‘Not Excluded’4/30/2024 The EU has not ruled out banning Chinese-owned TikTok, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has stated.
The official, who is seeking another term in June, claimed that the video-hosting platform poses “a threat”, without elaborating. Last Wednesday, US President Joe Biden signed a law demanding that TikTok’s Chinese-based owner, ByteDance, sell the platform or be barred from app stores. Over the past few years, leaders in both the US and EU have made numerous claims regarding supposed security breaches and violations on the part of TikTok, which has staunchly denied the allegations. Asked during the Maastricht debate on Monday whether the EU would ban TikTok if the US goes ahead with the measure, von der Leyen said: “It is not excluded because the commission was the very first institution worldwide to ban Tik Tok on our corporate telephones.” “We know exactly the danger of Tik Tok,” she added, noting that the commission has “done a lot to regulate… to make sure that the platforms take responsibility for the content they provide.” In a statement last Monday, Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton said, “We suspect TikTok ‘Lite’ could be as toxic and addictive as cigarettes ‘light.’” The EU’s executive body opened a case against ByteDance over its TikTok Lite application. According to Brussels, the company had failed to submit a mandatory risk assessment report. ByteDance was given until May 3 to provide all the information requested, with a fine totaling 1% of the company’s annual income in case of noncompliance. In February, the commission initiated another probe with regard to the protection of minors, advertising transparency, “data access for researchers,” and “risk management of addictive design and harmful content.” Commenting on the US legislation last week, TikTok’s head of public policy for the Americas, Michael Beckerman, denounced the bill signed by Biden as a violation of the First Amendment to the Constitution, which guarantees the freedom of expression. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew released a statement saying: “Make no mistake, this is a ban. A ban on TikTok, a ban on you, and a ban on your voice... Rest assured, we aren’t going anywhere. We are confident that we will keep fighting for your rights in the courts. The facts and the Constitution are on our side, and we expect to prevail.” The Blog Tags Widget will appear here on the published site.
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WhatsApp threatens to exit India4/27/2024 Messaging service WhatsApp, owned by Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta, has challenged Indian laws that would compel it to break user encryption in special cases.
Petitioning at the Delhi High Court on Thursday, the company demanded that a local IT law be declared “unconstitutional,” and that there should be no criminal liability for non-compliance. Lawyers representing WhatsApp claimed that the platform would quit India if it were “told to break encryption,” local media reported. The High Court was hearing petitions by WhatsApp and its parent company Facebook (now Meta), which are challenging IT rules enacted in 2021 for social media intermediaries. The law requires the messaging app to trace chats and make provisions to identify the “first originator of information” if ordered to do so by a court or a competent authority. “We will have to keep a complete chain, and we don’t know which messages will be asked to be decrypted,” WhatsApp lawyer Tejas Karia was quoted as saying by India Today. Millions of messages will have to be stored for years to comply with the rule, he added, arguing that the requirements are unique anywhere in the world. The court argued that “privacy rights” are not absolute and that “balance has to be done.” Several pleas challenging the IT law are pending before high courts across India. Information could be sought from the messaging app for offenses related to national security, public order, or those related to rape, sexually explicit material, or child sexual abuse material – each punishable with a jail term of five years, according to Indian media reports. WhatsApp has 535.8 million users in India, the largest number of any country, according to data for 2024 from tracking website Statista. The number is rising at a rate of 16.6% every year. The Economic Times estimated the platform’s revenues in the county at close to $1 billion. “India (is) a country that’s at the forefront... You’re leading the world in terms of how people and businesses have embraced messaging,” Zuckerberg said in a virtual address at Meta’s annual event in Mumbai last year, according to the media outlet. WhatsApp’s legal battle is playing out against the backdrop of harsher laws imposed by New Delhi against AI-generated deepfakes and other social media threats. Earlier this year, India vowed to hold big tech accountable for misleading content on their platforms, warning of potential punishments for any failure to remove such content in a timely manner. Another controversy erupted in February when Google’s new ‘Gemini’ chatbot appeared to link Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with ‘fascism’. New Delhi later issued an advisory requiring “significant” tech firms to obtain government permission before launching new models. The directive, however, was rolled back after criticism from India and abroad. Meanwhile, AI has also been accused of playing an adversarial role in the ongoing Indian general election, with morphed videos of Bollywood film stars circulated on social media to mislead voters. The Blog Tags Widget will appear here on the published site.
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A US Congressman is accusing billionaire George Soros of trying to fast-track his acquisition of American radio giant Audacy through the Federal Communications Commission (FCC),
Soros has bought a major stake in what is the US’ second-largest radio company and could gain “effective control” of more than 220 radio stations across the country, according to previous media reports. Republican congressman Chip Roy from Texas wrote in a letter seen by Fox that he was concerned that the Soros groups are asking the FCC to approve a change in ownership in Audacy without the commission “running its normal, statutorily required process.” “This transaction, which affects radio stations that reach millions of listeners across the US, including in Texas’ 21st congressional district, should – at minimum – be subject to rigorous FCC oversight to ensure US radio stations are not subject to undue influence,” the congressman argued. Soros’ investment firm has become the largest shareholder in Audacy, after purchasing around $400 million of debt owed by the media group during its bankruptcy process. After years of declining revenue, Audacy filed for bankruptcy early last month, with $1.9 billion in debt. Should the deal go ahead, the billionaire financier would reportedly part-own broadcasters in 45 US states. Audacy owns 227 music, sports, and talk radio stations in 45 US states. The company also owns CBS Radio, which operates 11 news stations, including San Francisco’s KCBS and New York’s WCBS. Congressman Roy pointed out in his letter that, instead of going through the usual petition for declaratory ruling process, the Soros group has asked the FCC to waive that process and “put it off until sometime down the road — indicating that those foreign stakeholders will be given ‘special warrants’ in the meantime.” The Texas lawmaker also told Fox News Digital that he’d heard from constituents who “reached out and raised issues and concerns about the extent to which it’s very clear that Soros is, you know, making a move in the radio world.” A hedge-fund manager who shot to infamy for crashing the British pound in 1992, George Soros is among the wealthiest men on Earth, with an estimated net worth of around $7 billion. That’s on top of the $32 billion he’s donated to a web of NGOs, charities and political campaigns through his Open Society Foundations. The Blog Tags Widget will appear here on the published site.
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The US clock is ticking for TikTok4/24/2024 US President Joe Biden has signed a new law that could potentially lead to TikTok being banned in the country.
The legislation is part of a bill that includes over $95 billion in military aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. Under the new TikTok law, ByteDance - the platform’s Chinese owner - will have nine months to sell its business or it will be barred from US app stores. The bill will also bar it from controlling TikTok’s algorithm. The bill was approved by the US House of Representatives on Saturday and by the Senate on Tuesday. The legislation comes after a number of US officials expressed concerns that the app poses a risk to national security and could be used by Chinese authorities to obtain the private data of US citizens or influence their opinions by suppressing or promoting certain content on TikTok. Senate Commerce Committee Chairwoman Maria Cantwell stressed that “Congress is not acting to punish ByteDance, TikTok or any other individual company”; it is making the move to “prevent foreign adversaries from conducting espionage, surveillance, maligned operations, harming vulnerable Americans, our servicemen and women, and our US government personnel.” TikTok has threatened to legally challenge the US government over the law. The company’s head of public policy for the Americas, Michael Beckerman, has described the bill as a violation of the First Amendment rights of the app’s 170 million users in the US and warned that the potential ban would also have “devastating consequences” for the nearly seven million businesses using the platform. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew posted a response to the new law, addressing the users of the platform. “Make no mistake, this is a ban. A ban on TikTok, a ban on you, and a ban on your voice... Rest assured, we aren’t going anywhere. We are confident that we will keep fighting for your rights in the courts. The facts and the Constitution are on our side, and we expect to prevail.” China has also blasted plans to ban TikTok in the US, describing such a move as “contrary to the principles of fair competition and international economic and trade rules” and accusing Washington of “bullying behavior” and “leveraging state power” against ByteDance. Some US lawmakers have also opposed the bill, calling it a “cure” that is “worse than the disease” and raising concerns that it would give the White House the power to ban other websites and apps. Elon Musk has also warned that the bill is “about censorship and government control,” while the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has denounced the legislation as “violating the free speech rights of millions of Americans” who use the platform daily. The Blog Tags Widget will appear here on the published site.
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The creators behind AI-generated influencers are set to compete for a cash prize in the world’s first online beauty pageant exclusively for digitally produced ladies. The event, called ‘Miss AI’, is being organized by the World AI Creator Awards (WAICA) in collaboration with Fanvue – an OnlyFans-like subscription-based platform that already hosts a number of virtual models, including those who offer adult content. The digital contestants hoping to secure the Miss AI crown will be judged on their beauty, underlying tech, as well as their social media pull, according to WAICA’s official website. The AI creator’s “social media clout” will also be assessed based on their engagement numbers with fans, rate of audience growth, and ability to utilize social media platforms such as Instagram. “We share the vision for the WAICAs to become the Oscars of the AI creator economy,” Fanvue co-founder Will Monanage said. In order to participate, competitors are required to submit a 100% AI-generated image of a woman and answer a series of questions about how and why the model was created, how many followers it has, how its content is monetized, how much revenue it receives, and even the stereotypical beauty pageant question about the model’s “one dream to make the world a better place.” It’s noted that creators are allowed to make unlimited submissions to the contest, so long that each one is a different AI-generated model. Aside from the crown, the creators behind top three winning Miss AI contestants will be awarded prizes totaling over $20,000, with the winner also getting $5,000 in cash. The finalists will also be able to earn AI mentorship programmеs, PR services and more. Ironically, the AI contestants will be judged by fellow AI-generated influencers, namely Aitana Lopez and Emily Pellegrini, who have both already amassed hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram and have been raking in thousands of dollars posing for top clothing brands like Victoria’s Secret and Guess and drawing the attention footballers and billionaires. The AI judges will also be joined by their flesh-and-blood counterparts – entrepreneur and PR adviser Andrew Bloch and beauty pageant historian Sally-Ann Fawcett.
The first AI influencers have already entered the pageant after submissions opened on Sunday, including one named Alba Renai, who recently announced to her 11,000 Instagram fans that she had been hired as the first non-human host on a weekly special segment of ‘Survivor’ in Spain. The exact date on which the award ceremony will be held is still unknown, but the terms and conditions of the contest state that all prizes will be awarded and paid out in full by August 1, 2024. The Blog Tags Widget will appear here on the published site.
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Apple has removed two of Meta Platforms’ popular apps, messaging service WhatsApp and social network Threads, from its mainland China App Store as part of the US technology giant’s efforts to comply with the country’s tightened internet regulations.
All traces of WhatsApp – the world’s most popular messaging app, with more than 2 billion monthly active users in 2023 – and Threads, which has soared in popularity on the mainland since its launch last July, are now gone from the domestic App Store, according to a search by the Post on Friday. Chinese regulatory authorities had ordered the removal of those two apps over national security concerns, according to Apple. “We are obligated to follow the laws in the countries where we operate, even when we disagree,” Apple said in a statement cited in a report by The Wall Street Journal, which first broke the news. “These apps remain available for download on all other storefronts where they appear.” In an emailed statement, Meta said: “We refer you to Apple for comment.” Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday. Two other messaging services, Telegram and Signal, have also been dropped from Apple’s mainland App Store, according to a Bloomberg report on Friday. Apple’s latest actions at the behest of Chinese authorities show how the US firm continues to navigate shifting mainland regulations amid tensions between Washington and Beijing. Cupertino, California-based Apple last October updated guidelines on its Chinese app developer website to reflect the latest government policy that requires the licensing of all domestic apps before these can be made available on the mainland App Store. This policy effectively requires all apps to use a mainland domain and be hosted by a local entity. Beyond obtaining an Internet Information Provider licence from Chinese regulators, apps geared for mainland users are also expected to satisfy various censorship policies and standards, including updated data transfer rules. More restrictive licensing processes also exist on the mainland for apps containing materials related to video gaming, books, magazines, religion and news. The Blog Tags Widget will appear here on the published site.
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