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Twitter tests a way for accounts to let people know they're bots
Twitter is testing a new label that lets automated bot self-identify as such in their labels.
India's government threatens to jail Twitter employees unless they block critics
India’s government has warned Twitter that it must obey its orders to remove “inflammatory content” or employees will face potential jail time.
Twitter suspends 1,600 accounts linked to state disinformation networks
It blocked accounts allegedly run by Iran, Saudi Arabia, Cuba and Thailand.
Twitter removes 170,000 state-backed accounts based in China
In its latest sweep, Twitter has removed 32,242 state-linked accounts with ties to the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Russia and Turkey.
TikTok gives parents more control over their kids' accounts
TikTok was recently fined $5.7 million for violating the child privacy act and has been criticized for putting children at risk from predators. The company is now trying to give parents more control over their kids’ privacy and security with a feature called Family Pairing. It lets parents link directly to their kids accounts and remotely disable direct messages, set screen time limits and enable “restricted content” mode.
Facebook reveals the AI tool it used to ban 6.6 billion fake accounts
Today, Facebook unveiled a machine learning tool that, in the last year, has removed more than six billion fake accounts. That's in addition to the millions of new fake accounts that Facebook blocks from being created daily. According to Facebook, the tool has been in production for two years and it's one of the most advanced methods Facebook has for fighting bogus accounts.
Netflix says 26.4 million accounts watched ‘The Irishman’ in its first week
Netflix had a lot riding on The Irishman -- the Martin Scorsese crime saga starring Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci. The film has been in the works for almost a decade, and Netflix, which reportedly invested as much as $200 million, has been involved for years. So, the company is understandably braggadocious that, in The Irishman's first seven days on the platform, it was watched by 26.4 million accounts globally -- 26,404,081 to be precise.
Sony disables PlayStation 4 Facebook integration
Sony has turned off Facebook integration on the PlayStation 4, meaning users can no longer link their Facebook and console accounts, the company announced in a terse blog post. As a result, users will not be able to find Facebook friends, share gameplay videos and screenshots, or use their Facebook profile photo as an PlayStation Network avatar.
Former Yahoo engineer hacked 6,000 accounts in search of sexual content
A former Yahoo engineer pleaded guilty to hacking into roughly 6,000 accounts in search of sexual photos and videos. According to court documents, Reyes Daniel Ruiz, 34, used his employee access to Yahoo's internal network to crack users' passwords. He then downloaded explicit photos and videos to a personal hard drive, which he stored at home.
Twitter bans thousands of state-backed accounts spreading misinformation
Twitter has suspended thousands of accounts linked with state-backed misinformation campaigns. In a transparency report shared today, Twitter says it removed 4,248 accounts from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), 273 accounts from the UAE and Egypt, 1,019 accounts based in Ecuador, 265 accounts from Spain and six accounts from Saudi Arabia. It also released more data on 4,301 of the 200,000 accounts from China and Hong Kong that were suspended for stoking unrest around the Hong Kong protests.
Twitter bans advertising from state-controlled news outlets
Twitter announced today that it will no longer accept advertising from state-controlled news outlets. Those accounts will still be able to use the platform, but not its advertising. The change comes after China's state-backed media outlet Xinhua sponsored ads attacking Hong Kong protestors.
Instagram will notify you before it disables your account
Instagram is making a few changes to the way it disables accounts. Currently, the platform removes accounts with a certain percentage of violating content. But it's rolling out a new policy that will also allow it to disable accounts with a certain number of violations in a given timeframe.
TrickBot malware may have hacked 250 million email accounts
TrickBot malware may have stolen as many as 250 million email accounts, including some belonging to governments in the US, UK and Canada. The malware isn't new. In fact, it's been circulating since 2016. But according to cybersecurity firm Deep Instinct, it has started harvesting email credentials and contacts. The researchers are calling this new approach TrickBooster, and they say it first hijacks accounts to send malicious spam emails and then deletes the sent messages from both the outbox and trash folders.
Facebook takes down more fake accounts from Iran
Today, Facebook removed 51 accounts, 36 Pages, seven groups and three Instagram accounts that were involved in "coordinated inauthentic behavior" based in Iran. According to the company, the individuals responsible pretended to be located in the US and Europe, impersonated news organizations and journalists in the Middle East and tried to contact public figures under the guise.
Facebook bans white nationalism and separatism accounts in Canada
Last week, Facebook announced it would ban white nationalism and separatism content, in addition to the white supremacy content it already prohibits. Today, we're getting a sense of which accounts that might include. According to BuzzFeed News, Facebook will ban groups, Pages and Instagram accounts associated with Faith Goldy, the Canadian Nationalist Front, Soldiers of Odin, Wolves of Odin, Kevin Goudreau and the Aryan Strikeforce.
Facebook removes over 1,000 pages ahead of India's election
Facebook announced today that it has removed 1,126 Pages, groups and accounts ahead of India's general election. Most of the accounts, which were based in India and Pakistan, were flagged for "coordinated inauthentic behavior." In total, Facebook removed 702 Pages, groups and accounts linked with two networks in India. Another 103 Pages, groups and accounts (across Facebook and Instagram) were deleted in connection with a network in Pakistan, and 321 Facebook Pages and accounts in India were removed for violating the company's rules against spam.
Sinemia offers more details on why it has been terminating accounts
A few weeks after Sinemia users reported their accounts were wrongfully terminated, the company is offering more details. Sinemia is sticking to its explanation that accounts were closed due to fraudulent activity or misuse. Now it says misuse could include using the Sinemia card to purchase concession stand items, using multiple Sinemia accounts on the same device or seeing the same movie more than three times -- a full list was provided to Engadget via email and is reproduced below.
Sinemia is terminating accounts and users don't know why
Something strange is going on at Sinemia, where customers are reporting their accounts are being wrongfully terminated. Beginning last week, subscribers of the discounted movie ticket company took to Twitter and Reddit, where they report their accounts have been closed for suspected fraudulent activity. To make matters worse, Sinemia's response has been vague.
Facebook confirms accounts banned ahead of election had Russian ties
Facebook has confirmed that the 115 accounts it blocked yesterday due to "inauthentic behavior" are likely linked to Russia. In a new statement, the company says that a site claiming association with the Russia-based Internet Research Agency (IRA) posted a list of fake Instagram accounts it had made ahead of the midterm elections, many of which included those removed by Facebook yesterday. The IRA has been linked to previous interference with US politics and the 2016 Presidential election.
Gmail's iOS app finally has a unified inbox to view multiple accounts
The Gmail app on iOS just got a major upgrade, allowing users to view multiple email accounts at the same time. This much-wanted feature has been available to Android users for years, but has finally made its over to Apple's operating system. The update has already started rolling out, and will hit all users over the next 15 days.
