Ali Breland

Senators Blumenthal, Rubio press Super Micro for answers on hacking concerns

Sens Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) put pressure on IT company Super Micro, asking in a letter that it cooperate with law enforcement and explain more about the potential breach. Super Micro, Apple and Amazon have all refuted the Bloomberg report that detailed how the Chinese government was able to take advantage of vulnerabilities in Super Micro's supply chain, with the companies saying that their own investigations have not found evidence of a hack or of being compromised in the way described in the report.

Twitter outlines new steps in midterm election integrity fight

Twitter outlined its efforts to help preserve election integrity during the upcoming 2018 midterms, including its removal of a new set of accounts and a ban on the distribution of hacked materials. “As platform manipulation tactics continue to evolve, we are updating and expanding our rules to better reflect how we identify fake accounts, and what types of inauthentic activity violate our guidelines,” Twitter wrote. The company said that it removed around 50 accounts misrepresenting themselves as members different state Republican parties in Aug.

Rural America worries it will miss out on 5G

Lawmakers and consumer advocates are pressing telecommunication companies to ensure that rural areas are not left behind in the race to adopt fifth-generation, or 5G, mobile broadband technology. Rural advocates from both parties, such as Sens. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) and Jon Tester (D-MT), note that large areas of America still lack 4G or even 3G coverage. While most urban areas have access to high-speed internet and 4G mobile broadband, outside of the highways that cut across the country, huge swaths of America often lack any consistent broadband connection.

House Majority Leader McCarthy: Google 'controlling the internet' in a way that hurts conservatives

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) slammed Google as part of his ongoing criticism of the company's alleged bias against conservatives, mentioning its work with China, its search results accidentally showing one of the ideologies of the California Republican Party as “Nazism”, and for work it did to mobilize the Latino vote. “It’s their own executive that they said they have a silent donation where they tried to help people to help Hillary,” he said, referencing a report by Fox News’ Tucker Carlson that described an email sent by Google’s Multicultural Marketing department head.

Twitter rolls out new political ad policies, will exempt news outlets

Twitter said that it would begin requiring some organizations that purchase political ads on topics such as abortion, health-care reform and immigration to disclose more information about themselves to users, part of the tech giant’s attempt to thwart bad actors, including Russia, from spreading propaganda ahead of the 2018 election. The new policy targets promoted tweets that mention candidates or advocate on “legislative issues of national importance,” Twitter executives said. To purchase these ads, individuals and groups must verify their identities.

President Trump broadens attack on Silicon Valley companies

President Donald Trump escalated a brewing battle with various technology companies, issuing a warning to Facebook and Twitter after blasting Google earlier in the day. "Google and Twitter and Facebook, they’re really treading on very, very troubled territory," President Trump cautioned during an event at the White House. "If you look at what is going on with Twitter and if you look at what’s going on in Facebook, they better be careful because you can’t do that to people," he added. The president did not provide specifics to clarify his remarks.

Twitter CEO talks to Reps McCarthy, Walden about allegations of bias

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey spoke with House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and House Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) about the growing firestorm over alleged anti-conservative bias by tech companies. Dorsey thanked the high-ranking GOP Reps for a “productive conversation today about the importance of transparency including how algorithms work,” in a tweet. "It's an important issue in the tech industry and I look forward to continuing the conversation," he added. Dorsey spoke to the lawmakers over the phone.

House passes tech-focused skills training legislation

Lawmakers in the House passed a bill aimed at bolstering skills training for technical jobs in various industries. The Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act unanimously passed the House after passing the Senate on July 23. It is now headed to President Donald Trump’s desk. The bill, introduced by Reps GT Thompson (R-PA) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), increases federal funding for the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Program by up to $1.3 billion annually.

Huawei: FCC proposal would hurt poor, rural communities

Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei is fighting back against some of the negative claims that US government officials have been making about the company in recent months. In a filing with the Federal Communications Commission, Huawei focused on recent moves by the agency to restrict rural carriers from purchasing telecommunications equipment made by Huawei and other Chinese companies. Huawei, with the help of telecommunications economist Allan Shampine, argued that by imposing new rules, the agency could hurt poor, rural communities.

Bipartisan group of lawmakers urge Google to drop partnership with Chinese phone maker Huawei

A bipartisan group of lawmakers sent a letter to Google expressing concerns over the company’s partnership with the Chinese phone maker Huawei. The group of senators and congressmen said that the partnership poses national security concerns, in step with previous efforts to keep Chinese tech firms, including ZTE and Huawei, from doing business in the US.

White House warns Congress against trying to block ZTE deal

The White House pushed back on legislative efforts to reverse President Donald Trump’s deal with China that eases penalties on Chinese telecommunications giant ZTE, helping to revive the company. White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley defended the administration's agreement to impose lessened penalties on the company, maintaining that the punishment was "massive" and "historic." “This will ensure ZTE pays for its violations and gives our government complete oversight of their future activity without undue harm to American suppliers and their workers," Gidley said.

President Trump 2020 campaign manager calls for single, privatized 5G network

Brad Parscale, President Donald Trump's 2020 campaign manager, is calling for a single, privatized 5G mobile network across the country, arguing the current system is outdated. Parscale’s position contrasts with a reported proposal floated by the White House earlier in 2018 that included a plan to nationalize 5G networks in an attempt to guard against China. "It is time for America to have a single 5G network for all carriers. The days of dropped calls, slow speeds, and no service need to end.

Sen Warner to Facebook: 'Does our personal info reside on a server in China?'

Senate Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Mark Warner (D-VA) said he is concerned that companies like Huawei and ZTE, which government officials believe are a threat to national security, might have been able to get user data from Facebook after it was revealed the company had data-sharing partnerships with roughly 60 device makers. “Does our personal info reside on a server in China? I think Facebook owes us that answer,” Ranking Member Warner said.

House Commerce Ranking Member Pallone wants answers on Facebook sharing data with phone makers

House Commerce Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone (D-NJ) said that Facebook “should be prepared to come before Congress" and answer questions about its data collection practices. “It’s deeply concerning that Facebook continues to withhold critical details about the information it has and shares with others.

Rep Cicilline: ‘Looks like Zuckerberg lied to Congress’

House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee Ranking Member David Cicilline (D-RI) hammered Facebook and its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, following a report that the company is sharing large amounts of its users’ data with other companies. “Sure looks like Zuckerberg lied to Congress about whether users have ‘complete control’ over who sees our data on Facebook," Rep Cicilline tweeted. “This needs to be investigated and the people responsible need to be held accountable,” he continued.

House Majority Leader McCarthy blasts Google over 'Nazism' association

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) went after Google for displaying “Nazism” as one of the ideologies of the California Republican Party. A search on the site for “California Republican Party” apparently returned with a sidebar result listing Nazism as an ideology alongside “conservativism” and “market liberalism.” Majority Leader McCarthy noted the sidebar in a tweet at the company.

Treasury Sec Mnuchin urges antitrust review of big tech amid Google scrutiny

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin encouraged the Department of Justice to review major technology companies like Google over concerns related to the potential harm they pose to market competition. “These issues deserve to be reviewed carefully,” Sec Mnuchin said.  “These are issues the Justice Department needs to look at seriously, not for any one company, but as these technology companies have a greater and greater impact on the economy,” he continued.

Twitter CEO meets with senators to talk net neutrality, privacy

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey met with several Sens to discuss issues such as data privacy and network neutrality. "Pleasure to meet with @Twitter’s @jack today," Sen Ed Markey (D-MA) tweeted. Sen Markey also wrote that Sens Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Maria Cantwell (D-WW) attended the meeting with Dorsey as well. Dorsey also met with top Republican lawmakers including Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune (R-SD).

Lawmakers increasingly see 'electoral dynamite' in net neutrality fight

Democrats are increasing looking to make their support for net neutrality regulations a campaign issue in the midterm elections. On Capitol Hill, the Senate is expected to vote on a measure to restore the Obama-era rules repealed by the GOP-controlled Federal Communications Commission. Even if they fail they think the public fight will crystalize their image as the party battling to support an open internet. 

Commerce Sec Ross: Building a 5G Network is a Priority

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said that building a 5G mobile broadband network is a chief concern for the Trump administration. “I think the pitch that Sprint and T-Mobile are making is an interesting one, that their merger would propel Verizon and AT&T into more active pursuit of 5G,” Sec Ross said. “Whoever pursues it, whoever does it, we’re very much in support of 5G. We need it. We need it for defense purposes, we need it for commercial purposes,” he continued.

Senate to Hold Net Neutrality Vote

Democratic Sens are planning to take a first step the week of May 7 toward forcing a vote to restore the Federal Communications Commission's network neutrality regulations. Democrats have been gathering signatures under the Congressional Review Act to force a vote to overturn the decision by the FCC to repeal the net neutrality rules. Sen Ed Markey (D-MA) tweeted that Democrats will file the petition to force the vote on May 9. The vote could take place as soon as the week after.

Tech rivalries spill into Washington

Alliances between Silicon Valley powerhouses and their cousins in Seattle (WA) are constantly forming and breaking apart, with big names often coming down on the opposite side of policy and legislative debates. The result is that the “tech lobby” is far from monolithic, with big names in the industry often at odds with one another.

Democratic Sens Slam Chairman Pai for Proposed Limits to Lifeline Program

A group of Democratic Sens slammed Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai over his proposal to cut down on a program that helps make broadband and phone service more affordable for low-income households. The Sens' letter targets a proposal introduced by Chairman Pai in November that would significantly curb the scope of benefits from the Lifeline program, which roughly 6.5 million people in poor communities rely on to get access to high-speed internet. Eight million people are eligible for the subsidy program.

State AGs press Facebook over Cambridge Analytica scandal

A coalition of 37 state attorneys general are urging Facebook to provide more answers on how Cambridge Analytica improperly obtained the data of 50 million Facebook users. “These revelations raise many serious questions concerning Facebook’s policies and practices, and the processes in place to ensure they are followed,” the bipartisan group of attorneys general wrote.  “We need to know that users can trust Facebook. With the information we have now, our trust has been broken.”