Politics

Fri
06
Oct
John Lister's picture

Red Cross Issues Hacking Guidelines

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has issued guidelines for civilians who carry out hacking attacks to support one side of a military conflict. It warned that non-combatants need to respect humanitarian rules. The guidelines relate ... to hacktivism, where people disrupt online services or replace text on websites. The tactic has often been associated with people making a political point against businesses or governments. However, it's now also commonly used by those trying to aid countries or regions involved in wars and other military conflicts. The ICRC believes such tactics ... (view more)

Wed
28
Sep
John Lister's picture

Political Spam Coming to Gmail

Google is to test a plan to exempt political campaign messages from its spam filter. It says users will have a clear opportunity to opt out. The move has proven unpopular with many people, particularly since users will need to opt out on a ... sender-by-sender basis. There won't be a simple way to opt out of all political emails. Previously Google had labeled many campaign emails as spam because, well, that's what they often are. In many, if not most, cases people were receiving messages despite not explicitly giving permission for their address to be used in that way. The spam filter appeared to ... (view more)

Thu
04
Jan
John Lister's picture

Politician: Tech Firms Should Fight Terror or Pay Tax

A politician says online companies that don't do enough to help fight terrorism should be punished through the tax system. Ben Wallace's argument is based on the idea that one-off fines don't make enough difference to hugely profitable companies. ... Ben Wallace, a British government politician responsible for security issues, called technology companies "ruthless profiteers" in an interview with the Sunday Times. He complained about some companies refusing to hand over details of users alleged to have encouraged or incited terrorism, saying the companies "will ruthlessly sell our ... (view more)

Tue
31
Oct
John Lister's picture

Facebook to Reveal Details of Advertisers, Ads Used on Site

Facebook says it will be more transparent about who is running ads on its site. It's also introducing tighter controls on election-related ads. The transparency changes follow questions about the influence of political advertising, particularly when ... it was unclear who had actually bought and placed the ads. However, Facebook says it will apply to changes to ads of all kind. (Source: fb.com ) Changes Set For 2018 Campaigns The changes will mean that any paid ad on Facebook must be linked to a Page, which is the business or organization equivalent to a personal account on the site. When the ... (view more)

Tue
15
Nov
John Lister's picture

Google Slammed Over Election News Link

Critics of Google say the search engine's algorithm is giving undue credibility to a website claiming to have final voting figures for the US election. The site, which is given prime position when users search for several election-related terms, ... appears to be unauthoritative and rely on questionable sources. As with any story in this year's US presidential election, its likely to prove partisan responses on both sides. However, this specific scenario is about Google's quality control, rather than political arguments. The issue surrounds the way Google doesn't just produce a ... (view more)

Fri
15
Jun
Dennis Faas's picture

Microsoft, Yahoo Give User Data to Politicians

According to a new report, Microsoft and Yahoo have been handing over the names, zip codes, and other personal information of their clients to both major U.S. political parties. Worse yet, those targeted have no idea that they are the victims of a ... political ploy. Seeing targeted advertisements is nothing new to those who frequent the Internet. In the milliseconds that it takes for a page to load, advertisers can identify a user visiting a site and display ads based on what they know about a user. For example, someone checking the Euro Cup scores on the ESPN website might see an advertisement ... (view more)

Fri
16
Jul
Dennis Faas's picture

Facebook Adds Child Safety Button, But Opt-In Only

After a lengthy dispute, Facebook has agreed to include a "panic button" for children to report threatening behavior. However, critics suggest that the voluntary scheme doesn't go far enough for child safety campaigners. Demands for the button came ... from the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) in the United Kingdom. The group has produced a clickable button which can be added to Internet Explorer: clicking the button takes the user straight to a page where they can report unsuitable material or inappropriate behavior CEOP estimates an average of four youngsters who click the ... (view more)

Tue
17
Nov
Dennis Faas's picture

Obama Censored for Criticizing Chinese Internet Censorship

U.S. President Barack Obama has told Chinese Internet users that online freedom is a "source of strength". But the comments themselves appear to have become the victim of censorship. The president spoke at a "town hall" event attended by students in ... Shanghai. Questioned about online communication he said "I've always been a strong supporter of open Internet use. I'm a big supporter of non-censorship...unrestricted Internet access is a source of strength and I think it should be encouraged." He also argued that the criticism which came with online freedom of speech made him a better president ... (view more)

Mon
02
Nov
Dennis Faas's picture

FCC's Net Neutrality Powers Remain Questionable

It remains unclear whether the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will be able to bring its proposed net neutrality rules into force. Another politician has launched a bid to block the FCC from further regulating the net, while an Internet ... carrier claims the commission doesn't have the legal power to bring the rules into force. Last week, the FCC voted unanimously to adopt plans for new rules enforcing the existing principle of net neutrality. The overall idea is that Internet carriers should treat all traffic equally. In practice that could mean cable firms and ISPs would not be allowed ... (view more)

Tue
27
Oct
Dennis Faas's picture

FCC Backs Net Neutrality; Rule-Making Process Begins

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has backed plans to introduce laws on net neutrality . Unfortunately, they face political and legal challenges which appear to have the support of major Internet carriers. In a unanimous vote, the ... five-strong commission agreed to give force to the principles of net neutrality: that Internet providers treat all legal Internet traffic equally . That would outlaw practices such as slowing down access to people using peer-to-peer file-sharing, or blocking applications from running on cellphone networks. The vote doesn't guarantee the rules will come ... (view more)

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