| Internet Governance TikTok Updates Branded-Content Policy in Light of EU Rules: Following a complaint by a consumer-rights organization alleging that the company failed to protect users against hidden advertising in violation of EU rules, TikTok worked with the European Commission to update its branded-content policy to prohibit “inappropriate products and services” and “get rich quick” schemes. Meta Settles with DOJ over Discriminatory Housing Ads: To settle the DOJ’s suit, which alleged that Facebook enabled landlords and property sellers to discriminate against housing seekers based on race, sex, religion, and other characteristics, Facebook will stop using its Special Ad Audiences tool in connection with advertisements related to housing, employment, and financial services. |
| Privacy TikTok-Oracle Partnership Aimed at Securing User Data, but Privacy Concerns Remain: The companies have joined forces to route data from TikTok’s U.S. users through Oracle’s servers to better safeguard user privacy and TikTok’s systems. Nevertheless, recordings of internal TikTok staff meetings suggest that the company’s China-based employees regularly access U.S. user data. |
| Information Security and Cyberthreats New Report Sheds Light on Early Russian Cyber Efforts in Ukraine Conflict: A new report by Microsoft reveals that early in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Russia launched more cyberattacks than was previously known, but that over two-thirds of them were unsuccessful–due in large part to Ukraine’s preparedness to fend off the attacks. The report also reveals that at the same time, Russia engaged in successful disinformation campaigns. |
| Intellectual Property FTC Ups Right-to-Repair Enforcement Against Harley Davidson and Westinghouse: A consent order proposed by the Commission would require the companies to fix “illegal” warranty terms that provide that a warranty is voided if a customer turns to independent dealers for parts or repairs. |
| Practice Note Federal Court Rules Constitutional Protections Apply to DMCA Subpoenas: In a case involving photos of a private-equity billionaire posted with commentary by an anonymous Twitter user, the Northern District of California quashed a subpoena issued under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act to unmask the anonymous defendant. The court ruled that the party seeking disclosure of the poster’s identity failed to state a prima facie case for its copyright claim and failed to show that the need for discovery outweighed the poster’s First Amendment interests. |
| On the Lighter Side First AI-Created Craft Beer to Debut: The recipe for the brew was generated by AI trained on drinker input as reflected in beer reviews and surveys. |
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| Ron Lazebnik Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP |