CLIP-ings

Internet Governance Irish Data Protection Agency Issues Preliminary Draft Ruling Ordering Meta to Stop U.S. Data Transfers: Ireland, where Meta’s EU headquarters is located, is the latest EU member state to chime in on the legality of data sharing between the EU and the U.S.

Privacy Quick Shift to Remote Learning Led to the Potentially Dangerous Surveillance of Students: At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many schools contracted with edtech companies that monitor school computers and student accounts. Now, LGBT students fear that their schools will out them to their parents before they are ready based on content they search for or write about during remote learning.

Information Security and Cyberthreats EU Creates Team to Help Defend Ukraine from Cyberattacks: The cyber rapid response team, which has members from Lithuania, Croatia, Poland, Estonia, Romania, and the Netherlands, was formed after the U.S. and U.K. blamed Russia for recent cyberattacks against Ukrainian banking and government websites.

Intellectual Property U.S. Copyright Office Affirms Ruling that AI Can’t Copyright Art: A three-person review board confirmed that an AI-generated artwork lacked the element of “human authorship” necessary to earn copyright protection.

Freedom of Expression and Censorship Neighborhood-Based Social Networking App “Nextdoor” Reaffirms Community Moderation Approach: As the U.S. and other countries weigh efforts to tighten regulation of social media, Nextdoor relies on community volunteers to serve as moderators. The app will also show “kindness reminders” or “antiracism warnings,” which, according to the company’s first-ever transparency report, prompted a third of users who received such a notification to delete or edit their post.

Practice Note Metaverse Opens a New World of Employment Law Concerns: Questions are starting to emerge about jurisdiction, privacy, and harassment, among other topics, as employees become geographically disconnected from employers and enter into a digital workforce.

On the Lighter Side Retrofitted 3D Printer Uses Added Smarts to Tackle Wordle: A fan of the puzzle game is trying to become a Wordle master using a 3D printer-turned-robot with a touchscreen stylus and dictionary access.

If you enjoy reading CLIP-ings, please consider making a contribution to Fordham CLIP. Your support provides crucial funding at a time when the study of information law and policy is more important than ever.

Ron Lazebnik Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP Elyssa Diamond Editorial Fellow

Internet Governance Texas Sues Meta for Collecting Facial Recognition Data: Texas alleges that Meta collected facial recognition data from tens of millions of Texans without their consent using a now-defunct Facebook photo tagging feature in contravention of the state’s biometric data law. Facebook discontinued the tagging tool in 2021 and claimed that it had deleted the data collected.

Privacy New York City CCTV Cameras Disproportionately Monitor People of Color: A new report from Amnesty International finds that in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens, there are more publicly owned cameras in census tracts with higher concentrations of people of color and that there is a correlation between the number of publicly owned cameras and the frequency of stop-and-frisk searches. Experts fear that the NYPD will use facial recognition technology on the camera feeds, thereby reinforcing discriminatory policing against minority communities.

Information Security and Cyberthreats Cyberattacks Make Ukrainian Websites Unreachable: Distributed denial-of-service attacks, which send a flood of malicious traffic designed to prevent visitors from viewing a website, targeted the websites of Ukraine’s defense ministry, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and two Ukrainian banks. The attacks occurred at a time of continued tension between Russia and Ukraine, but there is no evidence linking the Russian government or citizens to the actions.

Intellectual Property Dutch Regulators to Levy Weekly Fines Against Apple Until It Allows Dating App Developers to Use Alternative Payment Methods: The Dutch Authority of Consumers and Markets (ACM) has fined Apple €20 million so far for not adequately complying with its order, issued last year, to allow dating app developers to use alternatives to Apple’s in-app payment system. At the same time, Apple and Google both face a potential class-action lawsuit in the Netherlands over app store charges.

Freedom of Expression and Censorship Cambodia Launches Full-Time Internet Surveillance: As of this week, all internet service providers and carriers in Cambodia must route their traffic through the country’s National Internet Gateway. In effect, the move “will restrict Cambodians’ ability to access a free and open internet and greatly harm the country’s nascent digital economy.”

Practice Note Pretrial Risk-Assessment Tools Should Only Be Used if They’re Transparent and Unbiased, Warns ABA: The ABA House of Delegates passed a resolution urging government entities to avoid pretrial risk assessment tools unless “the data supporting the risk assessment is transparent, publicly disclosed and validated to demonstrate the absence of conscious or unconscious racial, ethnic or other demographic, geographic or socioeconomic bias.”

On the Lighter Side White Castle Introduces Burger-Flipping Robot to Approximately One-Third of U.S. Locations: The fast-food chain teamed up with Miso Robotics during the pandemic to develop a robot chef that can perform the same tasks as a team of fry cooks. Flippy the robot uses AI to identify, cook, and then deliver food to a hot holding area without any human intervention.

If you enjoy reading CLIP-ings, please consider making a contribution to Fordham CLIP. Your support provides crucial funding at a time when the study of information law and policy is more important than ever.

Ron Lazebnik Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP Elyssa Diamond Editorial Fellow

Internet Governance Meta’s Oversight Board Calls on Facebook and Instagram to Crack Down on Address Doxxing: The opinion, which is in response to a request issued by Meta last year, outlines steps that the social media giant can take to protect against doxxing and other forms of targeted harassment. Recommendations include getting rid of an exception for “publicly available” information and creating a specific enforcement channel to prioritize reports of doxxing, while still allowing protests at publicly-owned official residences and posts in which users share their own addresses.

Privacy French Data Protection Authority Finds that Google Analytics Breaches GDPR: Mirroring a decision last month from the Austrian DPA, France’s CNIL held that Google Analytics’ operations contravened the GDPR and are therefore illegal. The decision came days after a report that Meta allegedly threatened to pull its services from the EU if the United States and European Union can’t reach a data-sharing agreement.  IRS Abandons Plan to Use Facial-Recognition Software to Access Tax Records, Other Online Services: At the urging of nearly two dozen members of Congress, the IRS said that it would “transition away” from using a face-scanning verification service offered by the company ID.me. Four Democratic lawmakers also sent a letter this week urging several other federal departments to limit their relationships with the facial recognition surveillance company Clearview AI.

Information Security and Cyberthreats DOJ Seizes $3.6 Billion in Bitcoin: The Justice Department also arrested a married couple who is accused of laundering the cryptocurrency that hackers had stolen from Bitfinex, a digital currency exchange based in Hong Kong, in 2016.

Free Expression and Censorship TikTok Updates Community Guidelines to Limit Hateful Ideologies, Dangerous Acts and Challenges, and Eating Disorder Content: While the company has already addressed these issues in its Safety Center and in previous versions of its community guidelines, TikTok is now clarifying and redefining these policies by providing more detail and specifics as to how they’ll be enforced.

Practice Note UK Law Criminalizes “Grossly Offensive” Tweets: After a British man was recently found guilty of sending a “grossly offensive” tweet, there has been renewed interest in section 127 of the 2003 Communications Act, which proscribes sending public messages of a “grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character,” and can lead to fines, community service, or even jail time.

On the Lighter Side Mazda Drivers in Seattle Area Find Their Radios Stuck on NPR: The issue apparently began at the end of January, after the local NPR affiliate sent album cover images without a valid file extension. To date, there is no known solution besides replacing an expensive component of the onboard display.

If you enjoy reading CLIP-ings, please consider making a contribution to Fordham CLIP. Your support provides crucial funding at a time when the study of information law and policy is more important than ever.

Ron Lazebnik Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP Elyssa Diamond Editorial Fellow

Internet Governance State Attorneys General Back Epic in its Antitrust Suit Against Apple: A coalition of 35 state attorneys general, as well as Microsoft, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and others, have filed amicus briefs on Epic’s behalf in its appeal from a decision that the Apple App Store does not violate antitrust laws. Epic, the maker of the popular video game Fortnight, is challenging the up-to-30-percent cut that Apple takes from in-app purchases.

Privacy Crisis Text Line to Stop Sharing Conversation Data with AI Company: Following a report from Politico examining a data-sharing relationship between nonprofit Crisis Text Line, which provides “mental health crisis intervention services,” and AI company Loris.ai, the 24/7 hotline service announced that it will stop sharing conversation data with Loris.ai.

Information Security and Cyberthreats FBI Urges Winter Olympic Participants to Leave Their Cellphones at Home: Citing potential “malicious cyberattacks,” the FBI suggested that those traveling to Beijing for the Olympics use burner phones instead of their personal cell phones. While the FBI is not aware of any specific threats, the warning comes amid rising concerns about Chinese espionage.

Intellectual Property Blackberry Sells Mobile Patents to Non-practicing Entity: The former smartphone giant agreed to sell its non-core patent assets to a company called Catapult IP Innovations for $600 million. Catapult IP Innovations will likely earn a return on its investment by enforcing the patents it acquired.

Free Expression and Censorship Spotify to Put Content Advisories on Podcasts that Talk About COVID-19: The advisory will direct users to a COVID-19 information hub, which will include data-driven and accessible information about the virus. This announcement came after artists including Neil Young and Joni Mitchell removed their music from the streaming service in protest of misinformation.

Practice Note Posting Nude Photos Is an Ethics Violation, Says Kansas Commission on Judicial Conduct: The Kansas Supreme Court accepted a disciplinary panel’s ruling that a county judge violated the rules of judicial conduct by posting nude photos of himself on a swingers’ dating website. According to the Commission, the judge, who had already stepped down prior to the Supreme Court’s ruling, failed to “avoid impropriety or the appearance of impropriety in [his] personal life,” casting a negative light on the public image of the judiciary.

On the Lighter Side iOS Software Update Enables Face ID to Work While Wearing a Mask: The update isn’t perfect—Apple warns that Face ID is less accurate when users are wearing a mask, and glasses-wearers might run into some unique issues—but it will still be convenient while out in public during our third pandemic year.

If you enjoy reading CLIP-ings, please consider making a contribution to Fordham CLIP. Your support provides crucial funding at a time when the study of information law and policy is more important than ever.

Ron Lazebnik Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP Elyssa Diamond Editorial Fellow

Internet Governance Major Tech Companies File Brief in Support of the EPA: A group of companies, including Apple, Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, Netflix, and Tesla, filed an amicus brief in West Virginia v. EPA, asking the Supreme Court to uphold the Agency’s authority to regulate CO2 emissions. According to the brief, EPA action would create more regulatory certainty at the federal level, which would help the companies meet their own climate goals.

Privacy Four State AGs Sue Google Over “Deceptive” Location Tracking Practices: According to one of the complaints, Google misled users about how to opt-out of location tracking and circumvented users’ expressed preferences with workarounds to determine location by other means. The parallel lawsuits, filed by a bipartisan group of attorneys general in Washington, D.C., Indiana, Texas, and Washington State, call for an injunction blocking the allegedly illegal conduct and disgorgement of profits linked to the allegedly misleading practices.

Information Security and Cyberthreats COVID Test Related Scam Emails Increased by 521% in Three Months: Though cyber criminals have been exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic since its early days by deploying phishing attacks related to COVID tests and vaccines, the prevalence of such scams has jumped exponentially between October 2021 and January 2022, fueled in part by the Omicron variant.

Intellectual Property Neil Young Pulls Music from Spotify in Protest of Joe Rogan’s Podcast: The iconic musician requested that Spotify remove his catalog from its streaming platform following his objections to podcast host Joe Rogan’s false and misleading statements about the COVID-19 vaccine. The streaming service, which has exclusive distribution rights to “The Joe Rogan Experience,” has agreed to remove Young’s music, but would “welcome him back” if he chooses to return.

Free Expression and Censorship Following Suspension, YouTube Permanently Bans Right-Wing Media Personality Dan Bongino: YouTube issued a week-long suspension of one of Bongino’s accounts on January 14, after he violated the company’s misinformation policy by posting a video calling cloth and surgical masks useless in stopping the spread of COVID-19. YouTube decided to bar him from the service permanently on Wednesday after he posted videos on two additional accounts in the following weeks in an attempt to skirt suspension in violation of YouTube’s terms of service.

Practice Note FTC Fines Online Retailer Fashion Nova $4.2 Million for Blocking Negative Product Reviews: The company allegedly declined to publish hundreds of thousands of negative product reviews between late 2015 and November 2019. Along with the settlement, which was the conclusion of the FTC’s first case involving a company’s efforts to conceal negative reviews, the Commission also released new guidance for online retailers regarding the collection and publication of customer reviews.

On the Lighter Side Company Deploys AI in its Quest to Perfect Plant-Based Meat Substitutes: In an attempt to enter into the plant-based meat substitute market, Swiss company Firmenich uses machine learning to train an AI robot to develop flavors. Even without a true sense of taste, Sam, the robot sous chef, uses the knowledge it gains from his human “flavorist” co-workers to create new flavor formulas.

If you enjoy reading CLIP-ings, please consider making a contribution to Fordham CLIP. Your support provides crucial funding at a time when the study of information law and policy is more important than ever.

Ron Lazebnik Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP Elyssa Diamond Editorial Fellow

Internet Governance Senate Judiciary Committee Approves Big Tech Antitrust Bill: If passed, the American Innovation and Choice Online Act would prohibit tech companies from promoting their own products or services over their competitors’ and would require the companies to apply their terms of service uniformly across users; Big Tech companies have come out against the bill, arguing that it will make their services less effective and will risk users’ privacy and security, while other lawmakers have introduced amendments to cover issues of privacy, censorship, and national security.  Spain To Implement Transparency Rules For Cryptocurrency Promoters: In an effort to curb a recent wave of crypto scams, the country will require influencers and other cryptocurrency promoters with more than 100,000 followers to notify the National Securities Market Commission, as well as publish warnings about the risks of crypto investments alongside paid promotions; rule violators may face fines of up to €300,000.

Privacy IRS Introduces Face Recognition Verification To Access Taxes Online: Beginning this summer, users who wish to file their taxes or make payments online via IRS.gov will have to submit a selfie, their government-issued photo ID, and other documents to third-party identity verification company ID.me, who will perform face matching to verify users’ identities; in addition to potential complications with the technology itself, the plan may complicate tax filing for individuals who wish to verify their identification through non-biometric means.

Information Security and Cyberthreats Biden Signs National Security Memorandum To Improve The Federal Government’s Cyberdefenses: The memorandum requires that the National Security Agency, the Department of Defense, and other intelligence-gathering organizations implement cybersecurity measures that are up to par with those implemented in the federal civilian networks, including encryption and multifactor authentication, incident reporting, and tools for sharing data between classified and unclassified systems.  Crypto.com Cryptocurrency Exchange Confirms Hack: After earlier statements from the company vaguely referred to a security “incident,” the exchange’s CEO this week confirmed that nearly 400 users had their accounts breached and their funds stolen.

Intellectual Property German Court Rules That Ad Blocker’s Alteration Of Code Doesn’t Amount To Copyright Infringement: The court sided with the creator of an ad blocker in a suit alleging that the blocker’s AdBlock Plus browser extension altered the defendant-publisher’s websites in violation of copyright law; a similar ongoing suit in the U.S. alleges that Google’s superimposing its own footer element, which blankets the plaintiff’s website with ads from its competitors when clicked, amounts to trespass to chattels.

Free Expression and Censorship UK Royal Society Challenges Efficacy Of Science Misinformation Bans: In a report published this week, the Society suggests that content removal and bans may simply force misinformation peddlers into unreachable corners of cyberspace, and that “collective resilience” that pushes back on scientific disinformation may be more effective than other tactics such as demonetization and displaying fact-checking labels.

On the Lighter Side So Simple A Seven-Year-Old Could Read It: A project called “tl;dr papers” uses AI-driven language processing techniques to generate “accurate and pithy” summaries of academic article abstracts.

If you enjoy reading CLIP-ings, please consider making a contribution to Fordham CLIP. Your support provides crucial funding at a time when the study of information law and policy is more important than ever.

Ron Lazebnik Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP

Internet Governance FTC Defeats Facebook Motion To Dismiss In Antitrust Case: After dismissing the Commission’s original complaint earlier this year, the court found that an amended complaint’s “more robust and detailed” allegations that the company formerly known as Facebook employed a “buy and bury” technique to eliminate competition “cleared the pleading bar”; the court rejected both the Commission’s claim that the company also acted anti-competitively by restricting access to its APIs as well as the company’s argument that FTC Chair Lina Khan be recused.

Privacy Austrian Data Protection Authority Finds Website’s Use Of Google Analytics Violated GDPR: In a ruling that raises red flags for the use of U.S.-based cloud services in the EU, the data watchdog found that an unnamed German publisher violated data-transfer provisions of the GDPR in light of the Court of Justice of the European Union’s decision in the Schrems II case by transferring users’ IP and cookie information to Google through the use of Google Analytics; Max Schrems, who brought the complaint, said that his nonprofit filed 101 similar complaints in almost all EU member states, and that additional rulings are expected to issue soon.

Information Security and Cyberthreats Washington To Meet With Tech Firms To Discuss Open-Source Software Security: In light of the recent Log4j vulnerability, representatives from the major tech companies and the Linux and Apache open-source software organizations will meet with the Biden administration to discuss how open source code can be made more secure. Cyberattack On New Mexico County Incapacitates Jail And Forces Lockdown: The attack crippled government services in Bernalillo County, home of Albuquerque, and forced building closures, including a lockdown at the County’s Metropolitan Detention Center, which lost access to key security features such as camera feeds and automated doors.

Intellectual Property Apple Removes Wordle Clone Apps From App Store: After numerous publications wrote about the many copycat versions of the popular web-based word game that appeared on the App Store, Apple seems to have cracked down and removed the unauthorized copies.

Free Expression and Censorship Nigeria Restores Twitter Access After Seven-Month Ban: President Muhammadu Buhari imposed the ban in the interests of national security and cohesion after Twitter deleted one of his tweets in which he threatened to kill rebels, but lifted it after Twitter made a number of concessions to restore service in the country, which include establishing a physical presence there.

Practice Note FCC Proposes New Data Breach Notification Rules: The Commission issued a proposal for a new rulemaking to craft stricter data breach notification rules that would, among other things, require notification to customers impacted by “inadvertent” breaches, do away with a mandatory one-week waiting period for notifications, and impose upon carriers a duty to disclose breaches to the FCC, FBI, and Secret Service.

On the Lighter Side AI-Powered App Turns You Into A Composer: This music-making app allows users to create songs using AI and send them to music streaming sites to be heard.

If you enjoy reading CLIP-ings, please consider making a contribution to Fordham CLIP. Your support provides crucial funding at a time when the study of information law and policy is more important than ever.

Ron Lazebnik Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP

Internet Governance Antitrust Class Action Alleges Google Pays Apple To Forego Search Business: The suit alleges that the companies held “clandestine meetings” to form agreements that Apple would make Google’s search engine the default on its devices, avoid developing its own search functionality so as to not compete, and receive a share of Google’s search ad profits.

Privacy CNIL Fines Google And Facebook Over Cookie Consent: The data protection authority fined Google €150 million and Facebook €60 million after finding that the companies’ practice of offering users a single button to accept cookies, while requiring “several clicks” to refuse them, nudged users to agree to the cookies in violation of data protection rules mandating that consent be freely given.

Information Security and Cyberthreats Morgan Stanley To Settle Data Breach Class Action For $60 Million: The suit alleges that Morgan Stanley failed to wipe clean decommissioned data center equipment, and that a software flaw on the old servers left vulnerable the remaining data, which included Social Security numbers and birth dates.

Intellectual Property Snap Sues USPTO For Rejecting Application To Trademark “Spectacles”: The suit is the latest development in the company’s five-year battle to trademark the term in connection with its camera-equipped eyewear; while the Office has determined that the term is generic, Snap maintains that the product’s media coverage, coupled with the term’s declining popular usage, makes “Spectacles” distinctive to Snap.

Free Expression and Censorship Twitter, Facebook, Suspend Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene Over Covid Misinformation: Twitter permanently banned the Republican lawmaker’s personal account after she posted false claims about the safety of Covid vaccines, while Facebook removed a similar post and suspended her account for one day.

Practice Note FTC Urges Organizations To Patch Log4j Vulnerability: In an alert issued this week, the Commission urged organizations to patch the vulnerability, which Microsoft says remains “complex and high-risk,” to reduce the likelihood of harm to consumers and avoid legal action for failing to take reasonable steps to protect consumer data.

On the Lighter Side Sicilian Police Arrest Mobster After Spotting Him On Google Maps: The mafia boss, who had been on the lam for 20 years, was perplexed about how the police found him, as he purportedly hadn’t contacted even his family in over a decade.

If you enjoy reading CLIP-ings, please consider making a contribution to Fordham CLIP. Your support provides crucial funding at a time when the study of information law and policy is more important than ever.

Ron Lazebnik Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP

Internet Governance D.C. Circuit Ruling Rejects Challenges To 2020 FCC Wi-Fi Upgrade Order: The order, which was challenged by AT&T, will open up 1,200MHz of spectrum in the 6GHz band for unlicensed use.

Information Security and Cyberthreats “Serious” Cyberattack Halts Operations At Norwegian News Publisher: An attack on the central systems of Amedia, which owns 78 newspapers, has resulted in the stoppage of printing and subscription services, and it’s possible that employees and subscribers have had personal data compromised. T-Mobile Suffers Another Cyberattack: After a data breach exposed nearly 50 million of its customers’ data in August, another attack has compromised “a small number” of customer accounts to expose billing account names, phone and account numbers, and plan information.

Intellectual Property Dutch Competition Authority Orders Apple To Allow Dating Apps To Offer Alternate Payment Options: The Authority for Consumers and Markets said that payment conditions for dating app providers are unreasonable, and that Apple must change its policy to allow dating apps to offer users methods for payment that are alternatives to the App Store.

Free Expression and Censorship TikTok Content Moderator Sues For Failure To Provide Adequate Protection And Psychological Support: The proposed class action alleges that moderators, who spend up to 12 hours per day reviewing “disturbing content” including “genocide in Myanmar, mass shootings, children being raped, and animals being mutilated,” suffer psychological trauma as a result of the company’s inadequate support systems. Tumblr Blocks “Sensitive Content” To Remain On App Store: To ensure that it meets Apple’s guidelines, Tumblr will begin to limit the results for tags or search terms that fall under an expanded definition of “sensitive content”; due to the blocks, it may be more difficult to find content related to mental health, racism, and sexuality on the site

Practice Note West Virginia Federal Court Rules Retweet Does Not Reset Statute Of Limitations In Defamation Suit: The court ruled that a defamation defendant’s retweet of the earlier, allegedly defamatory article did not reset the one-year statute of limitations period because the retweet served as a mere “reference for [the article’s] existing audience” rather than the “republish[ing of] old content to new target audiences.”

On the Lighter Side Out With Touchscreen, In With Tastescreen: A professor from Japan’s Meiji University has developed a prototype “lickable” screen that can imitate the flavors of items appearing on it.

If you enjoy reading CLIP-ings, please consider making a contribution to Fordham CLIP. Your support provides crucial funding at a time when the study of information law and policy is more important than ever.

Ron Lazebnik Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP

Internet Governance FCC Settles With Mobile Carriers Over Failed 911 Calls During Network Outages: AT&T, Verizon, Intrado, and CenturyLink will pay a combined $6 million and have ensured that they will comply with the Commission’s 911 availability rules after network outages in mid-2020 caused 911 calls to fail.

Privacy Internal Facebook Documents Reveal Company Position On International Data Transfer: Legal documents obtained by POLITICO conclude that “relevant U.S. law and practice,” including the Federal Trade Commission’s role in policing data practices, “provides protection of personal data that is essentially equivalent to the level of protection required by EU law,” and that recent rulings of the Court of Justice of the European Union striking down data transfer frameworks between the EU and U.S. “should not be relied on”; the revelations come as Ireland’s Data Protection Commission finalizes a decision about whether to stop Facebook from transferring data to the U.S. pursuant to the rulings.

Information Security and Cyberthreats Hackers Access Belgian Ministry Of Defense Systems By Exploiting Log4j Vulnerability: The Ministry confirmed that unidentified attackers breached its network through a vulnerability in the Log4j logging utility that is bundled with the widely-used Apache Server; Apache has issued numerous updates to patch the vulnerability after its discovery, and CISA, the FBI, the NSA, and the cybersecurity agencies of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UK have released a joint Cybersecurity Advisory on mitigation. United States, Britain, Send Cyberwarfare Experts To Ukraine To Prepare For Potential Russian Attack: The countries dispatched the teams in response to intelligence suggesting that Russian President Vladimir Putin may be planning another cyberattack against Ukraine’s infrastructure in an effort to destabilize the country to justify an invasion and the eventual installation of a puppet leader.

Intellectual Property Meta Sues Phishing Scammers For Trademark Infringement: The lawsuit alleges that the scammers infringed the company’s trademarks by impersonating the login pages of the Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger sites as a way to capture the personal information of users who had unknowingly been automatically re-routed to the fake sites.

Free Expression and Censorship India Blocks YouTube Channels And Websites For Alleged Anti-India Content: The country’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting invoked the controversial IT Act to order the blocking of twenty channels and two sites, which allegedly had 3.5 million subscribers and 500 readers, on the basis that they comprised a “coordinated disinformation network operating from Pakistan” that spread “fake news” and “divisive content”  about “various sensitive subjects related to India.”

On the Lighter Side Vodafone Turns First-Ever Text Message Into NFT: The NFT of the first text, which was sent in December 29 years ago and read “Merry Christmas,” sold at auction for $150,000 worth of Ether; Vodafone will donate the proceeds to the United Nations Refugee Agency.

If you enjoy reading CLIP-ings, please consider making a contribution to Fordham CLIP. Your support provides crucial funding at a time when the study of information law and policy is more important than ever.

Ron Lazebnik Academic Director, Fordham CLIP Tom Norton Executive Director, Fordham CLIP