Stories about Tech Industry
#KeepItOn: How the Twitter ban is affecting young Nigerians
Twitter is a connected public square for many young Nigerians. The ban is taking a toll on their businesses, advocacy, and social life.
Russian court issues bigger fines to social media companies for breaching data localization rules
The data localization law, adopted in 2015, requires all internet companies processing Russian users' data to store such data on servers physically located inside Russia.
Pegasus spyware revelation indicates Indian state snooping on journalists, activists and politicians
The Pegasus Project released a report detailing the potential hacking and surveillance of more than 1,000 activists, journalists and politicians from India using the Israeli-made spyware, Pegasus.
Twitter Japan appears to suspend government critics
Twitter Japan typically provides no explanation for the bans, or why accounts are restored.
Social media companies could be liable for user-generated content in India
Twitter in India has found itself outside the “safe harbour” that otherwise would have protected itself legally from being implicated for the content generated by its users.
More internet security for many, not for Central Asians
Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan are among the few countries that will not enjoy a new privacy tool unveiled by US giant tech company Apple for its users. Apple's focus in 2021 is privacy. On its website, the company states that “Privacy is a fundamental human right.” Yet this policy comes with...
Mexican registry for cell phone users sparks privacy concerns
"The creation of a similar registry was attempted in 2009, but the database ended up being leaked and for sale."
Twitter vs India: The battle of BJP and Congress over a ‘fake toolkit’ on COVID-19
Twitter expressed concern about the “use of intimidation tactics by the police” and “the potential threat to freedom of expression” for the Indian users.
Several NGOs denounce censorship of Palestinian voices by tech companies
The NGOs' statement labelled as "improbable mistakes" the fact that Facebook reported two "technical issues" within 48 hours which they said targeted Palestinian users and "compromised Jerusalemites’ right to freedom of expression..."
Israeli phone hacking firm stops sales to Belarus and Russia
Cellebrite, an Israeli software company known for making tools used to extract data from smartphones, has announced it will halt sales to Russian and Belarus state bodies and law enforcement.
Pakistan bans TikTok for the second time
TikTok was blocked in Pakistan for 10 days in October 2020. Access was restored after the app's parent company ByteDance assured authorities it would bolster moderation.
Google’s plans for Saudi-based Cloud is ‘dangerous,’ says digital rights advocacy group
"With data stored in Saudi Arabia, Google and Snap will find themselves with little ability to resist government demands for users’ personal information."
In Pakistan, social media platforms risk bans under new ‘draconian’ rules
New rules vesting the government with the power to regulate online content and ban entire platforms drew criticism from human rights groups and tech companies.
An internet with borders: A perspective from Pakistan
Pakistan recently adopted new rules imposing fines and bans on services that fail to take down and restrict content within short time frames.
How Facebook derailed Nigeria’s #EndSARS movement
Online free speech advocates insist that Facebook’s flagging of #EndSARS content was neither a “mistake” nor a “bug,” but rather due to sparse investment in content moderation.
Facebook denies accusations of fuelling hate speech and pro-BJP bias in India
On September 16, Facebook India’s chief issued a statement denying accusations that the social media giant is making profits by giving a platform to hate speech in India.
In Sudan, women and minorities targeted by online harassment lack legal protections
Sudan currently does very little to protect women and other minority groups and communities from harassment, putting their ability to exercise their fundamental rights online at risk.
Holocaust denial should be considered hate speech, survivors demand of Facebook
Hate speech is a criminal offense in most European countries that experienced the horrors of World War II, but the US does not have such laws at the national level.
Australian government on collision course with Facebook and Google over news revenue
"The code is justified by a News Corp lie, that Google steals news content and makes billions of dollars from it."
Social media in Latin America: Caught between a rock and a hard place
As researchers, it is very difficult to know how, or even if, high profile global announcements are actually impacting users in Latin America.
