Marching toward its goal of eliminating third-party cookies from its Chrome browser by the close of December 2024, Google has generally released its APIs for Privacy Sandbox, its privacy-oriented solution to cross-site consumer tracking cookies. The new system has begun shipping with the latest version of Chrome. The Privacy Sandbox tracks topics of interest based on browsing patterns and lets advertisers use that data to serve relevant ads. While clicking “got it” to close your first Sandbox pop-up activates the new system by default, it can be turned off by visiting the privacy settings. Continue reading Google Is Replacing Cookies with Privacy Sandbox in Chrome

The Senate confirmed President Biden’s FCC nominee Anna Gomez yesterday in a 55-43 vote, bringing an end to a lengthy partisan split at the regulatory agency. Gomez, a communications policy adviser for the State Department, was nominated to fill the fifth commissioner’s seat in June following a year and half of Republican resistance to candidate Gigi Sohn. Gomez will become the third Democratic commissioner at the FCC, freeing the Biden administration to unlock its agenda regarding broadband and communications regulation. Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has recently been pursuing improvement of broadband access and updating rules related to space. Continue reading Senate Confirms Anna Gomez to FCC After Lengthy Deadlock

The Federal Communications Commission has issued a formal Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for the U.S. Cyber Trust Mark labeling program for smart devices announced in July with the Biden administration. The voluntary program to provide certification for baseline cybersecurity standards is designed to help consumers make informed purchase decisions regarding Internet of Things (IoT) products. The FCC, which proposes to own the new Cyber Trust trademark and administer it in conjunction with third parties, is now officially soliciting comments from industries and the public on the scope of the proposed program. Continue reading FCC Advances ‘U.S. Cyber Trust Mark’ to Foster IoT Security

Illinois has become the first state in the nation to pass legislation protecting children who are social media influencers. Beginning in July 2024, children under 16 who appear in monetized video content online will have a legal right to compensation for their work, even if that means litigating against their parents. “The rise of social media has given children new opportunities to earn a profit,” Illinois Senator David Koehler said about the bill he sponsored. “Many parents have taken this opportunity to pocket the money, while making their children continue to work in these digital environments. Continue reading Illinois Law Protecting Child Vloggers Will Take Effect in 2024

A group of news organizations, including Gannett, Getty Images and the Associated Press, have joined forces to call for copyright protection with regard to artificial intelligence training data. The 10 outlets signed an open letter charging foundation models are trained using media content without permission that is then disseminated “without any consideration of, remuneration to, or attribution to the original creators.” The group is demanding laws to protect journalism from AI, which if left unregulated they claim “can threaten the sustainability of the media ecosystem” by eroding the public’s trust and undermining financial viability. Continue reading News Orgs Calling for IP Protection Against AI Model Training

Massachusetts-based editing software and services company Avid Technology has entered into an agreement with an affiliate of private equity firm STG for an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $1.4 billion, including Avid’s net debt. Unanimously approved by Avid’s board of directors, the deal is expected to close during the fourth quarter of 2023. Upon completion, Avid will become a privately-held company and its stock will no longer be traded on the Nasdaq exchange. The transaction, which will be financed through equity and debt financing, is subject to Avid stockholder and regulatory approvals. Continue reading Private Equity Firm STG Plans to Acquire Avid for $1.4 Billion

Hundreds of amendments are queued up for possible addition to the vast annual defense policy bill. Among those that senators are considering include regulations that address artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and proposals to test election systems for vulnerabilities. Adding cyber measures to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) has become a tradition in recent years because it is “must-pass” legislation and renewed annually. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) hopes to have the Senate’s version of the bill prior to the August recess that commences at the end of this week. Continue reading U.S. Senate Aims to Add Cyber Amendments to Defense Bill

TikTok is making a big push into e-commerce with a plan to sell made-in-China products to consumers. The move sets up a rivalry with popular shopping platforms Shein and Temu to bring Chinese goods to the U.S., while the overall approach replicates the successful “Sold by Amazon” program. As with leading online marketplace Amazon.com and the companies it represents, TikTok will warehouse and ship items — ranging from clothing, electronics and kitchenware — for Chinese merchants, handling checkout, marketing and after-sale services. TikTok plans to debut its American shopping program in August. Continue reading TikTok Offering Chinese Goods via U.S. E-Commerce Market

The Biden administration has issued an implementation framework for its National Cybersecurity Strategy, detailing how the federal government plans to regulate digital security issues. The highly anticipated document lists more than 65 initiatives for executing the “five pillars” of the March 2023 U.S. National Cybersecurity Strategy, described as a “bold, affirmative vision for cyberspace.” The implementation takes a two-pronged approach: empowering capable actors who can bear more of the security responsibility, and the need for incentives that facilitate investment in long-term resilience. Continue reading White House Releases Plan for Cybersecurity Implementation

The Federal Trade Commission has opened a civil investigation into OpenAI to determine the extent to which its data policies are harmful to consumers as well as the potentially deleterious effects of misinformation spread through “hallucinations” by its ChatGPT chatbot. The FTC sent OpenAI dozens of questions last week in a 20-page letter instructing the company to contact FTC counsel “as soon as possible to schedule a telephonic meeting within 14 days.” The questions deal with everything from how the company trains its models to the handling of personal data. Continue reading FTC Investigates OpenAI Over Data Policies, Misinformation

OpenAI has entered into a precedential agreement to license content from Associated Press for use training large language models. OpenAI is “licensing part of AP’s text archive,” presumably leaving the door open to negotiation for video and breaking news. For its part, AP intends to “leverage OpenAI’s technology and product expertise,” according to the outlet’s own article. Financial terms were not disclosed, nor details as to AP’s intended AI use cases. Although AP is in a class by itself as a member-owned cooperative, the agreement could bode well for print journalism, which has had challenges transitioning to the digital age. Continue reading AP and OpenAI Join Forces for News-Sharing and Tech Deal

The European Union has agreed to a data sharing agreement with the United States, bringing to a close a years-long negotiation that saw U.S. national security concerns bump up against European privacy rights. The new EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework — which replaces a previous iteration, the Privacy Shield, invalidated by EU courts in 2020 — was a focus of Big Tech. Under the new agreement, Europeans can lodge formal objections when they feel their personal information has been improperly accessed by American intelligence agencies, with an independent judicial review body, the Data Protection Review Court, established to evaluate such claims. Continue reading U.S. and EU Formally Adopt Long-Awaited Data Sharing Deal

OpenAI believes artificial intelligence exceeding human intelligence “could arrive this decade.” Calling the massive compute power “superintelligence rather than AGI to stress a much higher capability level,” the company warns that even though this new cognition holds great promise it will not necessarily be benevolent. Preparing for the worst, OpenAI has formed an internal unit charged with developing ways to keep superintelligent AI in check. Led by OpenAI’s Ilya Sutskever and Jan Leike, the Superalignment Team will work toward “steering or controlling a potentially superintelligent AI and preventing it from going rogue.” Continue reading OpenAI Launches a Task Force to Control Superintelligent AI

The Parliament of Canada passed a law requiring technology companies to pay news outlets when linking to their articles, a move that has Meta Platforms threatening to pull news content from Facebook and Instagram in that country. Canada’s Online News Act, which applies to domestic outlets, is the latest move in a global battle between publishers and Big Tech, and follows a similar law in Australia. “A strong, independent and free press is fundamental to our democracy,” a member of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s administration tweeted when the law cleared the vote last week. Continue reading Canadian Law Requires That Tech Firms Pay for News Links

The Federal Communications Commission proposed a rule that would require cable TV and multichannel satellite services to disclose full pricing for programming plans in consumer promotional materials and invoicing, a plan President Biden quickly endorsed. The intent is to clearly convey “all-in” costs as a prominent single line, avoiding taxes and surcharges excluded from sales pitches and sometimes difficult to decipher on bills. “Too often, these companies hide additional junk fees on customer bills disguised as ‘broadcast TV’ or ‘regional sports’ fees that in reality pay for no additional services,” Biden said. Continue reading Biden Supports FCC Plan for Multichannel Price Disclosures