Taylor Hatmaker
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Report: Microsoft in talks to buy TikTok’s US business from China’s ByteDance
President Trump has plans to order China’s ByteDance, the owner of hit social video app TikTok, to divest from the company, according to new reporting from Bloomberg. The app is increasingly a t
Secret documents from US antitrust probe reveal big tech’s plot to control or crush the competition
Nearly 500 pages of evidence were made public during the House Judiciary’s marathon hearing this week on potential anti-competitive actions by Amazon, Facebook, Google and Apple . We’ve co
Before buying Instagram, Zuckerberg warned employees of ‘battle’ to ‘dislodge’ competitor
In one of the first substantive moments at Wednesday’s major tech hearing, Facebook’s 2012 acquisition of Instagram came under fire, unearthing a few new revelations about the company̵
Lawmakers argue that big tech stands to benefit from the pandemic and must be regulated
In his opening statements, the chairman of Wednesday’s historic tech hearing argued that regulating tech’s most dominant players is vital in the midst of the ongoing pandemic that has driv
Watch big tech’s CEOs tangle with Congress on antitrust issues and more
Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook, Sundar Pichai and Mark Zuckerberg will defend their companies before the House Antitrust Subcommittee Wednesday in a hearing that will make tech industry history, no matter what
Read how Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Google plan to defend themselves to Congress
With their big day before lawmakers just around the corner, previews of Google, Facebook, Amazon and Apple’s opening statements are now available on the House Judiciary Committee’s site. O
What to expect from tech’s historic antitrust showdown with Congress
Chief executives from four of the world’s most powerful companies will defend the vast empires they’ve built in testimony before Congress on Wednesday. In a hearing held by the House’
Twitter restricts Donald Trump Jr.’s account for sharing COVID-19 misinformation
Twitter has temporarily frozen Donald Trump Jr.’s account after the president’s son shared a video making false and potentially life-threatening claims about the coronavirus pandemic. The
California is investigating concerns about COVID-19 safety at Amazon centers
According to a new court filing, multiple California state offices are actively investigating Amazon over worker safety concerns as the coronavirus continues to rage throughout the U.S. In the filing,
Tech’s top CEOs will face Congress in antitrust hearing now set for Wednesday
A rare public showdown between Congress and the CEOs of tech’s biggest companies is still on track after being postponed last week. The House Judiciary Committee hearing, originally set for Mond
New York legislature votes to halt facial recognition tech in schools for two years
The state of New York voted this week to pause for two years any implementation of facial recognition technology in schools. The moratorium, approved by the New York Assembly and Senate Wednesday, com
Twitter cracks down on QAnon conspiracy theory, banning 7,000 accounts
Twitter announced Tuesday that many accounts spreading the pervasive right-wing conspiracy theory known as QAnon would no longer be welcome on its platform. Citing concerns about “offline harm,&
Tech watchdog calls on Facebook Oversight Board members to demand real power or resign
A new policy-focused nonprofit that emerged from the recent wave of big tech scrutiny is calling for members of Facebook’s Oversight Board to either step up or step down. In an open letter, Acco
Zuckerberg says there’s ‘no deal of any kind’ between Facebook and Trump
In an interview with Axios, Mark Zuckerberg shot down suspicions that Facebook is giving President Trump lenient treatment on the platform as part of a closed-door agreement. “I’ve heard t
Trump campaign demotes Brad Parscale, who famously led its Facebook political ad blitz in 2016
The Trump campaign’s unlikely digital marketing whiz is on the outs. Brad Parscale made headlines for his social media savvy in 2016, a strategy still credited for giving the then-candidate a ma
On Facebook, Trump’s next false voting claim will come with an info label
As part of its effort to steel its platform against threats to the 2020 election, Facebook will try surfacing accurate voting info in a new place — on politicians’ own posts. Starting today, F
Lawsuits allege Microsoft, Amazon and Google violated Illinois facial recognition privacy law
In a set of new lawsuits, two Illinois residents argue that three tech giants violated state laws prohibiting the use of personal biometric data without permission. Illinois residents Steven Vance and
Apple, Biden, Musk and other high-profile Twitter accounts hacked in crypto scam
A number of high-profile Twitter accounts were simultaneously hacked on Wednesday by attackers who used the accounts — some with millions of followers — to spread a cryptocurrency scam. Apple, Elo
Facebook and Instagram boot close Trump ally Roger Stone for network of fake accounts
Facebook released today its latest report detailing disinformation campaigns operating on its massive social network, and this one came with a few surprises. In the new report, Facebook disclosed that
Blistering civil rights audit raises alarms about Facebook’s ongoing policy failures
The results of a multiyear investigation into Facebook’s policies and their consequences for the civil liberties of its more than 2.5 billion users are out. The audit, conducted by former ACLU d