So this is a super backstory on Apple’s privacy enhancement rolling out. Importantly, the reporters (@MikeIsaac@jacknicas get the nuance up top in properly framing “tracking” and so does @tim_cook in his response to Facebook CEO Zuckerberg. 1/2 nytimes.com/2021/04/26/tec…
Understanding this distinction is why adtech lobby and Facebook’s hypocrisy claims here are empty. Google search is collecting data when the user intends to interact with it. It’s an antitrust issue of course but it’s different than Facebook’s “tracking.” 2/2
ps and Facebook’s reward for spreading false info in private meetings with ad clients, hiring Definers, attacking Apple, is they get to (once again) be the poster child of surveillance as Apple rolls this out 48 hours prior to Facebook earnings. 🤣
Wow, here is another great report on the Apple changes. This one from @lilyhnewman@WIRED who also nails the nuance in what is impacted here especially the type of data collection being blocked by default without consent. wired.com/story/ios-app-…
OK, adding a few more reports here in this thread. @geoffreyfowler has listened to Facebook and he isn't buying it.
I can't emphasize enough how excited I am at the coverage of Apple's push-out of 14.5. It's nuanced but important, press really nailed it. washingtonpost.com/technology/202…
I'm going to give a special nod to @WSJ. @JoannaStern did a video explainer a few weeks ago on this topic and then got this exclusive interview with Apple's top exec overseeing it. Super good video, can't recommend more highly to watch it. wsj.com/articles/ios-1…
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As Meta’s Andy Stone works overnight criticizing whistleblower testimony today on their role in China, let’s not forget Meta worked furiously thru billions in settlements to keep sealed it provided data access to 86,961 developers in China unsealed after court sanctions in 2023.
That slide is from their own internal audit. The one they promised the public and Congress in testimony then buried it including fighting to keep the forensic clean up artists aka auditors under seal, too, until an attorney said it in open courtroom. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco…
Here is Stone’s statement this morning. He has a track record burying for his bosses so just think it’s important context when he tries to brush aside China. Thank you @HawleyMO for accountability here. nbcnews.com/tech/social-me…
Pretrial orders starting to give taste as to why WSJ reports Mark Zuckerberg is meeting Pres. Trump desperately trying to settle its FTC lawsuit 11 days from trial. Court just ordered Meta to release all internal discussions of "integrity" issues up until 2020. That's toxic. /1
Also included is evidence as to what appears to be Apple warning Facebook/Meta to address CSAM on WhatsApp chat groups. Remember, advertisers built this company investing hundreds of billions of dollars to support it. /2
On that note, we will also likely see the financials for WhatsApp which was acquired by Facebook for nearly $19B despite almost no revenues. The why this happened will be a key argument in the court room. /3
The American values of IP protection have been a cornerstone in the country’s innovative spirit and competitive edge over foreign adversaries. DCN focused on strong copyright protections in our comments filed for the AI Action Plan. Will share some thoughts here. /1
Weakening copyright protections, whether at home or abroad, threatens US economic growth and the global competitiveness. Importantly, this point is inclusive of content creators across all platforms. The invented "right to learn" by machines is BS spin from OpenAI and Google. /2
Simply put, AI firms must not use copyrighted content without consent or compensation, as this undermines fair competition and creator rights. And they should be required to disclose when they've used it without consent. /3
It's time to call it. AI is built on a house of cards of intellectual property violations starting with Facebook which is starting to look a lot like a crime scene as held back discovery documents begin to be compelled and unsealed in court. /1
"what is the probability of getting arrested for using Torrents in the USA?" /2
"Is this LibGen?"
"We suspect some of our competitors are using it" /3
Rare weekend filing in the NdCal lawsuit that now includes allegations and evidence Facebook used torrenting with a massive pirated dataset to train LLaMA and only now is disclosing another 18,000 documents it failed to produce (now after Zuckerberg depo). Watch this space. 1/4
The pirated dataset allegations matter because Facebook would not only be pulling in tens of millions of copyrighted works but also seeding them for others to download. Allegations are this went to the top. 2/4
And here is where Facebook's going to have problems. Plaintiffs are now noting to the Judge - the same one in Facebook's record $700+ million privacy lawsuit - a familiar pattern of discovery abuse, gaslighting and delays. Same thing happened in DC Superior Court, too. 3/4
Woah. Sheryl Sandberg, former COO of Facebook, just sanctioned by Delaware judge for deleting emails ahead of trial this spring. This is the state pension shareholder case alleging the company overpaid the FTC and SEC in $5B+ settlements in order to protect Zuckerberg. /1
Long after the books had been inspected and many lawsuits had played out, it was disclosed last year she had a personal Gmail account under a pseudonym that may have been used for relevant communications. /2
The Judge here calls her a "high sophisticated individual." He probably doesn't know about the 2018 NYT report on how she carved out these issues in her Senate Intel testimony or how their lawyers were sanctioned on related discovery in California. /3