Ministers clamp down on data stealing and poorly developed apps May 4, 2022 People downloading apps to smartphones, games consoles and TVs will be better protected from hackers under new government plans to boost security standards. A new report on the threats in app stores published today by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has shown that people’s data and money are at risk because of fraudulent apps [...]
Google whacked with £105m Russian fine over Ukrainian far-right videos April 21, 2022 Google has been fined 11 million roubles (£105m) for distributing "fake" news YouTube videos produced by Ukrainian far-right groups.
Google faces hefty fine from Russian watchdog over ‘fake’ YouTube news April 14, 2022 Russia's communications watchdog said Google will face fines over its failure to delete from video sharing site YouTube content that Moscow considers illegal.
Google settles libel lawsuit with Tory MP over defamatory ‘paedophile’ advert March 11, 2022 Google has settled a libel lawsuit brought forward by Conservative party MP Lee Anderson, after the tech company displayed adverts falsely accusing Anderson of protecting peadophiles. Google Ireland issued an apology to Anderson and settled the case out of court, after it hosted a political advert from campaign group “Keeping Kids Safe” on political news [...]
Google searches for ‘WW3’ up 75-fold since Russian invasion of Ukraine March 10, 2022 Google searches for ‘WW3’ have skyrocketed by 75-times the usual rate in wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As tensions continue to mount between Moscow and Kyiv, UK internet users expressed their fears about it engulfing the rest of Europe, by asking the search engine giant if it might spell the start of a third [...]
Fitbit recalls more than a million smartwatches amid burn injuries March 2, 2022 Fitbit has recalled more than a million of its Ionic smartwatches after reports that some users are being burned from overheating batteries. The U.S Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said today that Google-backed Fitbit had received at least 115 reports in the United States and 59 from abroad about the issue. “These incidents are very [...]
Tech giants prefer fines to compliance says EU’s Margrethe Vestager February 23, 2022 Some tech giants may prefer to pay a fine rather than comply, said the European Union's antitrust chief, citing Apple's recent battle with the Dutch courts.
Google cracks down on app tracking following Apple’s lead February 16, 2022 Google has announced that it will limit tracking on its Android devices following a growing global privacy crackdown and following Apple’s lead. The tech giant said it wanted to “raise the bar for user privacy” and hopes to curb user data from being shared with third parties. Google said it also planned to eventually phase [...]
Big tech rule book could be agreed as soon as April as EU clamps down on Google and Apple February 15, 2022 Landmark EU rules aimed at curbing the power of tech giants could be agreed between lawmakers and EU countries as soon as April. Although the rules have faced some obstacles, lawmaker Andreas Schwab told Reuters that he is optimistic that an agreement could be reached in record time for a key piece of legislation. Known [...]
Competition watchdog accepts Google privacy changes February 11, 2022 The UK competition watchdog has accepted Google’s changes to its privacy sandbox, following a year-long investigation into the tech giant. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched the inquiry in January 2021 over concerns that Google’s privacy sandbox – a set of new web standards that aim to protect people’s privacy more – would cause [...]