Congested Google servers in the eastern United States caused problems for<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-preparing-antitrust-probe-of-google-report-223296"> users of Snapchat and YouTube</a> on Sunday, with complaints on social media that the popular apps weren't accessible.

Google acknowledged the issue, writing in a statement on its <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/huawei-unwanted-asian-shops-shun-phone-trade-ins-on-google-suspension-worries-220614">Cloud Platform status page</a> that it was dealing with "high levels of network congestion in the eastern USA, affecting multiple services in Google Cloud, G Suite and YouTube."

"Users may see slow performance or intermittent errors," it said, adding that engineers had completed the first of two steps to restore normal operations.

Earlier in the day, social media users complained of trouble loading a slew of popular websites and apps.

"Google, YouTube, Snapchat, Shopify, all currently down. Is the internet melting?" asked one Twitter post.

Snapchat and Google-owned YouTube both acknowledged the server issue on their Twitter accounts.

Cloud computing is one of Google's most lucrative services, but faces stiff competition from other technology companies like Amazon and Microsoft.

In March, the world's largest social network, Facebook, blamed a "server configuration change" for a massive outage affecting its applications around the world.

The outage affected users for at least 12 hours in most areas of the world, with the biggest impact in North America and Europe, a tracking website said at the time.

Congested Google servers in the eastern United States caused problems for users of Snapchat and YouTube on Sunday, with complaints on social media that the popular apps weren't accessible.

Congested Google servers in the eastern United States caused problems for users of Snapchat and YouTube on Sunday, with complaints on social media that the popular apps weren't accessible. Google acknowledged the issue, writing in a statement on its Cloud Platform status page that it was dealing with "high levels of network congestion in the eastern USA, affecting multiple services in Google Cloud, G Suite and YouTube." "Users may see slow performance or intermittent errors," it said, adding that engineers had completed the first of two steps to restore normal operations. Earlier in the day, social media users complained of trouble loading a slew of popular websites and apps. "Google, YouTube, Snapchat, Shopify, all currently down. Is the internet melting?" asked one Twitter post. Snapchat and Google-owned YouTube both acknowledged the server issue on their Twitter accounts. Cloud computing is one of Google's most lucrative services, but faces stiff competition from other technology companies like Amazon and Microsoft. In March, the world's largest social network, Facebook, blamed a "server configuration change" for a massive outage affecting its applications around the world. The outage affected users for at least 12 hours in most areas of the world, with the biggest impact in North America and Europe, a tracking website said at the time.

Google servers cause problems for YouTube, Snapchat in US

In what could spell further embarrassment for social media giant Facebook, a massive database containing the contact information of millions of Instagram influencers, celebrities and brand accounts has been found online. Reports suggest, as many as 49 million accounts have been compromised.&nbsp;

The database was left exposed without a password online, allowing anyone to access it.

According to reports, each record contained public data scraped from influencer Instagram accounts, including their bio, profile picture, the number of followers they have, if they’re verified and their location by city and country.

The database also contained their private contact information, such as the Instagram account owner’s email address and phone number.

According to Facebook, scraping data of any kind is prohibited on Instagram, but it's still unclear how the data was procured or how it may have been used. &nbsp;

As Facebook works to emphasize privacy, it will have to address Instagram's vulnerabilities as well.

This discovery comes just after Mark Zuckerberg-led Facebook has been heavily criticised by the European leaders.&nbsp;

Just like Friday, the European Commission - which is the independent executive arm of the European Union - rebuked tech giants Google, Facebook and Twitter for not doing enough to tackle fake news.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-says-it-stored-millions-of-unencrypted-instagram-passwords-211684">Just last month, Facebook released a blog post</a> wherein it said that "millions" of Instagram users had their passwords stored in unencrypted form on internal servers, Facebook said Thursday, raising its original estimate of tens of thousands.

"We discovered additional logs of Instagram passwords being stored in a readable format. We now estimate that this issue impacted millions of Instagram users," Facebook said in a blog post.

"We will be notifying these users as we did the others. Our investigation has determined that these stored passwords were not internally abused or improperly accessed," the social network said.

Facebook, Instagram's parent company, revealed last month that the unencrypted passwords of hundreds of millions of users had been stored, putting the number of Instagram users affected in the tens of thousands, news agency AFP reported.&nbsp;

In what could spell further embarrassment for social media giant Facebook, a massive database containing the contact information of millions of Instagram influencers, celebrities and brand accounts has been found online.

In what could spell further embarrassment for social media giant Facebook, a massive database containing the contact information of millions of Instagram influencers, celebrities and brand accounts has been found online. Reports suggest, as many as 49 million accounts have been compromised. The database was left exposed without a password online, allowing anyone to access it. According to reports, each record contained public data scraped from influencer Instagram accounts, including their bio, profile picture, the number of followers they have, if they’re verified and their location by city and country. The database also contained their private contact information, such as the Instagram account owner’s email address and phone number. According to Facebook, scraping data of any kind is prohibited on Instagram, but it's still unclear how the data was procured or how it may have been used. As Facebook works to emphasize privacy, it will have to address Instagram's vulnerabilities as well. This discovery comes just after Mark Zuckerberg-led Facebook has been heavily criticised by the European leaders. Just like Friday, the European Commission - which is the independent executive arm of the European Union - rebuked tech giants Google, Facebook and Twitter for not doing enough to tackle fake news. Just last month, Facebook released a blog post wherein it said that "millions" of Instagram users had their passwords stored in unencrypted form on internal servers, Facebook said Thursday, raising its original estimate of tens of thousands. "We discovered additional logs of Instagram passwords being stored in a readable format. We now estimate that this issue impacted millions of Instagram users," Facebook said in a blog post. "We will be notifying these users as we did the others. Our investigation has determined that these stored passwords were not internally abused or improperly accessed," the social network said. Facebook, Instagram's parent company, revealed last month that the unencrypted passwords of hundreds of millions of users had been stored, putting the number of Instagram users affected in the tens of thousands, news agency AFP reported.

Instagram in trouble as nearly 50 million users' data gets leaked online

Facebook announced Wednesday it would tighten access to its live streaming feature as New Zealand's <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/new-zealand-votes-to-amend-gun-laws-after-christchurch-attack-209275">premier Jacinda Ardern</a> and French leader Emmanuel Macron prepared to launch the global "Christchurch Call" initiative to tackle the spread of extremism online.

Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg has been under intense pressure since March when a white supremacist gunman used Facebook Live to stream his rampage at two mosques in the<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/new-zealand-has-not-yet-seen-intel-linking-sri-lanka-bombings-to-christchurch-pm-212941"> New Zealand city of Christchurch</a>, which left 51 people dead.

The California-based platform said it would ban Facebook Live users who shared extremist content and seek to reinforce its own internal controls to stop the spread of offensive videos.

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/facebook-under-pressure-to-censor-hate-speech-217637/embed" width="560" height="350" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" autoplay=1 allowfullscreen></iframe></div>

"Following the horrific recent terrorist attacks in New Zealand, we've been reviewing what more we can do to limit our services from being used to cause harm or spread hate," Facebook vice-president of integrity Guy Rosen said in a statement.

&nbsp;

Ardern and Macron will later issue the Christchurch Call to fight the spread of hateful and terror-related content along with leaders from Britain, Canada, Norway, Jordan and Senegal, who will also be in Paris.

The largely symbolic initiative is intended to keep up the pressure on social media companies who face growing calls from politicians across the world to stop their platforms being abused.

"It's an action plan, it's the start of something," Ardern told CNN in an interview on Wednesday.&nbsp;

Many countries have already tightened legislation to introduce penalties for companies that fail to take down offensive content once it is flagged by authorities.

"We need to get in front of this (problem) before harm is done," Ardern added. "This is not just about regulation, but bringing companies to the table and saying they have a role too."&nbsp;

The political meeting in Paris will run in parallel to an initiative launched by Macron called "Tech for Good" which will bring together 80 tech chiefs to discuss how to harness technologies for the common good.

The heads of US tech giants Wikipedia, Uber, Twitter, Microsoft and Google will attend, but not Zuckerberg who held private one-to-one talks with Macron last week.

The social network giant will instead be represented by its vice president for global affairs and communications Nick Clegg, the former British deputy premier.

"I've spoken to Mark Zuckerberg directly twice now... and he did give Facebook's support for this call to action," Ardern said.

The US government has not endorsed the Christchurch Call and will only be represented at a junior level at a meeting of G7 digital ministers which is also taking place on Wednesday in Paris.

In an opinion piece in The New York Times over the weekend, Ardern said the Christchurch massacre underlined "a horrifying new trend" in extremist atrocities.

"It was designed to be broadcast on the internet. The entire event was livestreamed... the scale of this horrific video's reach was staggering," she wrote.

Ardern said Facebook removed 1.5 million copies of the video within 24 hours of the attack, but she still found herself among those who inadvertently saw the footage when it auto-played on their social media feeds.

Around 8,000 New Zealanders called a mental health hotline after seeing the video, she told CNN.

"(We're) asking both nations and private corporations to make changes to prevent the posting of terrorist content online, to ensure its efficient and fast removal and to prevent the use of livestreaming as a tool for broadcasting terrorist attacks," she wrote in The Times.

In Wednesday's statement, Facebook acknowledged the inadequacy of its own systems.

"One of the challenges we faced in the days after the attack was a proliferation of many different variants of the video of the attack," vice-president of integrity Rosen said.

"People -- not always intentionally -- shared edited versions of the video which made it hard for our systems to detect."

New Zealand officials said Ardern found a natural partner for the fight against online extremism in Macron, who has repeatedly stated that the status quo is unacceptable.

"Macron was one of the first leaders to call the prime minister after the attack, and he has long made removing hateful online content a priority," New Zealand's ambassador to France, Jane Coombs, told journalists on Monday.

"It's a global problem that requires a global response," she said.

A French presidential source said it was time for tech companies to "anticipate how their features will be exploited."

Firms themselves will be urged to come up with concrete measures, the source said, for example by reserving live broadcasting to social media accounts whose owners have been identified.

Facebook announced Wednesday it would tighten access to its live streaming feature as New Zealand's premier Jacinda Ardern and French leader Emmanuel Macron prepared to launch the global "Christchurch Call" initiative to tackle the spread of extremism online.

Facebook announced Wednesday it would tighten access to its live streaming feature as New Zealand's premier Jacinda Ardern and French leader Emmanuel Macron prepared to launch the global "Christchurch Call" initiative to tackle the spread of extremism online. Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg has been under intense pressure since March when a white supremacist gunman used Facebook Live to stream his rampage at two mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch, which left 51 people dead. The California-based platform said it would ban Facebook Live users who shared extremist content and seek to reinforce its own internal controls to stop the spread of offensive videos. "Following the horrific recent terrorist attacks in New Zealand, we've been reviewing what more we can do to limit our services from being used to cause harm or spread hate," Facebook vice-president of integrity Guy Rosen said in a statement. Ardern and Macron will later issue the Christchurch Call to fight the spread of hateful and terror-related content along with leaders from Britain, Canada, Norway, Jordan and Senegal, who will also be in Paris. The largely symbolic initiative is intended to keep up the pressure on social media companies who face growing calls from politicians across the world to stop their platforms being abused. "It's an action plan, it's the start of something," Ardern told CNN in an interview on Wednesday. Many countries have already tightened legislation to introduce penalties for companies that fail to take down offensive content once it is flagged by authorities. "We need to get in front of this (problem) before harm is done," Ardern added. "This is not just about regulation, but bringing companies to the table and saying they have a role too." The political meeting in Paris will run in parallel to an initiative launched by Macron called "Tech for Good" which will bring together 80 tech chiefs to discuss how to harness technologies for the common good. The heads of US tech giants Wikipedia, Uber, Twitter, Microsoft and Google will attend, but not Zuckerberg who held private one-to-one talks with Macron last week. The social network giant will instead be represented by its vice president for global affairs and communications Nick Clegg, the former British deputy premier. "I've spoken to Mark Zuckerberg directly twice now... and he did give Facebook's support for this call to action," Ardern said. The US government has not endorsed the Christchurch Call and will only be represented at a junior level at a meeting of G7 digital ministers which is also taking place on Wednesday in Paris. In an opinion piece in The New York Times over the weekend, Ardern said the Christchurch massacre underlined "a horrifying new trend" in extremist atrocities. "It was designed to be broadcast on the internet. The entire event was livestreamed... the scale of this horrific video's reach was staggering," she wrote. Ardern said Facebook removed 1.5 million copies of the video within 24 hours of the attack, but she still found herself among those who inadvertently saw the footage when it auto-played on their social media feeds. Around 8,000 New Zealanders called a mental health hotline after seeing the video, she told CNN. "(We're) asking both nations and private corporations to make changes to prevent the posting of terrorist content online, to ensure its efficient and fast removal and to prevent the use of livestreaming as a tool for broadcasting terrorist attacks," she wrote in The Times. In Wednesday's statement, Facebook acknowledged the inadequacy of its own systems. "One of the challenges we faced in the days after the attack was a proliferation of many different variants of the video of the attack," vice-president of integrity Rosen said. "People -- not always intentionally -- shared edited versions of the video which made it hard for our systems to detect." New Zealand officials said Ardern found a natural partner for the fight against online extremism in Macron, who has repeatedly stated that the status quo is unacceptable. "Macron was one of the first leaders to call the prime minister after the attack, and he has long made removing hateful online content a priority," New Zealand's ambassador to France, Jane Coombs, told journalists on Monday. "It's a global problem that requires a global response," she said. A French presidential source said it was time for tech companies to "anticipate how their features will be exploited." Firms themselves will be urged to come up with concrete measures, the source said, for example by reserving live broadcasting to social media accounts whose owners have been identified.

Facebook to curb live streaming amid pressure over 'Christchurch Call'

A security flaw in WhatsApp, one of the most popular messaging apps in the world, allowed sophisticated attackers to install spyware on phones, the company said Tuesday, in the latest trouble for its parent Facebook.

The vulnerability -- first reported by the Financial Times, and fixed in the latest WhatsApp update -- allowed hackers to insert malicious software on phones by calling the target using the app, which is used by 1.5 billion people around the world.

The FT cited a spyware dealer as saying the tool was developed by a shadowy Israel-based firm called the NSO Group, which has been accused of helping governments from the Middle East to Mexico snoop on activists and journalists. Security researchers said the malicious code bore similarities to other tech developed by the firm, according to The New York Times.

The latest exploit -- which impacts Android devices and Apple's iPhones, among others -- was discovered earlier this month and WhatsApp scrambled to fix it, rolling out an update in less than 10 days.

"WhatsApp encourages people to upgrade to the latest version of our app, as well as keep their mobile operating system up to date, to protect against potential targeted exploits designed to compromise information stored on mobile devices," a spokesperson said in a statement to AFP.

The firm did not comment on the number of users affected or who targeted them and said it had reported the matter to US authorities.

The breach is the latest in a series of issues troubling WhatsApp's parent<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-rejects-co-founder-call-for-breakup-senator-urges-us-antitrust-probe-217697/amp"> Facebook</a>, which has faced intense criticism for allowing its users' data to be harvested by research companies and over its slow response to Russia using the platform as a means to spread disinformation during the 2016 US election campaign.

Highly invasive software&nbsp;

The WhatsApp spyware is sophisticated and "would be available to only advanced and highly motivated actors", the company said, adding that a "select number of users were targeted".

"This attack has all the hallmarks of a private company that works with a number of governments around the world" according to initial investigations, it added but did not name the firm.

WhatsApp has briefed human rights organizations on the matter but did not identify them.

The Citizen Lab, a research group at the University of Toronto, said in a tweet it believed an attacker tried to target a human rights lawyer as recently as Sunday using this flaw but was blocked by WhatsApp.

The NSO Group came to prominence in 2016 when researchers accused it of helping spy on an activist in the United Arab Emirates. Its best-known product is Pegasus, a highly invasive tool that can reportedly switch on a target's phone camera and microphone, and access data on it.

The firm said Tuesday that it only licenses its software to governments for "fighting crime and terror".

The NSO Group "does not operate the system, and after a rigorous licensing and vetting process, intelligence and law enforcement determine how to use the technology to support their public safety missions", it said in a statement to AFP.

"We investigate any credible allegations of misuse and if necessary, we take action, including shutting down the system."

A security flaw in WhatsApp, one of the most popular messaging apps in the world, allowed sophisticated attackers to install spyware on phones, the company said Tuesday, in the latest trouble for its parent Facebook.

A security flaw in WhatsApp, one of the most popular messaging apps in the world, allowed sophisticated attackers to install spyware on phones, the company said Tuesday, in the latest trouble for its parent Facebook. The vulnerability -- first reported by the Financial Times, and fixed in the latest WhatsApp update -- allowed hackers to insert malicious software on phones by calling the target using the app, which is used by 1.5 billion people around the world. The FT cited a spyware dealer as saying the tool was developed by a shadowy Israel-based firm called the NSO Group, which has been accused of helping governments from the Middle East to Mexico snoop on activists and journalists. Security researchers said the malicious code bore similarities to other tech developed by the firm, according to The New York Times. The latest exploit -- which impacts Android devices and Apple's iPhones, among others -- was discovered earlier this month and WhatsApp scrambled to fix it, rolling out an update in less than 10 days. "WhatsApp encourages people to upgrade to the latest version of our app, as well as keep their mobile operating system up to date, to protect against potential targeted exploits designed to compromise information stored on mobile devices," a spokesperson said in a statement to AFP. The firm did not comment on the number of users affected or who targeted them and said it had reported the matter to US authorities. The breach is the latest in a series of issues troubling WhatsApp's parent Facebook, which has faced intense criticism for allowing its users' data to be harvested by research companies and over its slow response to Russia using the platform as a means to spread disinformation during the 2016 US election campaign. Highly invasive software The WhatsApp spyware is sophisticated and "would be available to only advanced and highly motivated actors", the company said, adding that a "select number of users were targeted". "This attack has all the hallmarks of a private company that works with a number of governments around the world" according to initial investigations, it added but did not name the firm. WhatsApp has briefed human rights organizations on the matter but did not identify them. The Citizen Lab, a research group at the University of Toronto, said in a tweet it believed an attacker tried to target a human rights lawyer as recently as Sunday using this flaw but was blocked by WhatsApp. The NSO Group came to prominence in 2016 when researchers accused it of helping spy on an activist in the United Arab Emirates. Its best-known product is Pegasus, a highly invasive tool that can reportedly switch on a target's phone camera and microphone, and access data on it. The firm said Tuesday that it only licenses its software to governments for "fighting crime and terror". The NSO Group "does not operate the system, and after a rigorous licensing and vetting process, intelligence and law enforcement determine how to use the technology to support their public safety missions", it said in a statement to AFP. "We investigate any credible allegations of misuse and if necessary, we take action, including shutting down the system."

Hackers exploited WhatsApp flaw to install spyware

A Vietnamese court has jailed two activists on charges of publishing damaging anti-state propaganda about the communist-run country, state media reported Saturday, the latest convictions under a hardline leadership intolerant of dissent.

The women, Vu Thi Dung and Nguyen Thi Ngoc Suong, were sentenced Friday to six and five years respectively for posting videos and articles on Facebook against proposed special economic zones and beefed-up cybersecurity law, the People's Police newspaper reported.

The court, in the country's south, found them both guilty of "making, hoarding and spreading propaganda information, documents and materials against the socialist republic of Vietnam".

Both market vendors, the two women are the latest to face harsh blowback for publicly opposing the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-removes-more-pages-tied-to-russian-operators-216645/amp">cybersecurity law,</a> which would require internet companies to hand over user data and remove content if requested by the government.

The proposed special economic zones are also deeply sensitive and sparked rare nationwide protests last year in which police stations and government offices were ransacked.

Independent media is banned in Vietnam, with online posts, comments and critics strictly monitored and bloggers, activists and rights lawyers routinely jailed.

The hardline leadership in charge since 2016 has been harsh on dissidents, with nearly 60 put behind bars last year according to an AFP tally.

A Vietnamese activist who also criticised both the special economic zones and the cybersecurity law was sentenced to two years in prison in March for "abusing democratic freedoms".

Critics say the draconian cyber law will be used to target online dissent, but it has yet to be implemented.

The draft bill on economic zones also sparked an uproar as many in Vietnam believed it would grant incentives to Chinese companies.

No mention of China was suggested in the legislation but officials put off passing the bill following the protests, which hit the capital Hanoi and the commercial hub Ho Chi Minh City.

Dozens of demonstrators have been jailed since taking part.

A Vietnamese court has jailed two activists on charges of publishing damaging anti-state propaganda about the communist-run country, state media reported Saturday, the latest convictions under a hardline leadership intolerant of dissent.

A Vietnamese court has jailed two activists on charges of publishing damaging anti-state propaganda about the communist-run country, state media reported Saturday, the latest convictions under a hardline leadership intolerant of dissent. The women, Vu Thi Dung and Nguyen Thi Ngoc Suong, were sentenced Friday to six and five years respectively for posting videos and articles on Facebook against proposed special economic zones and beefed-up cybersecurity law, the People's Police newspaper reported. The court, in the country's south, found them both guilty of "making, hoarding and spreading propaganda information, documents and materials against the socialist republic of Vietnam". Both market vendors, the two women are the latest to face harsh blowback for publicly opposing the cybersecurity law, which would require internet companies to hand over user data and remove content if requested by the government. The proposed special economic zones are also deeply sensitive and sparked rare nationwide protests last year in which police stations and government offices were ransacked. Independent media is banned in Vietnam, with online posts, comments and critics strictly monitored and bloggers, activists and rights lawyers routinely jailed. The hardline leadership in charge since 2016 has been harsh on dissidents, with nearly 60 put behind bars last year according to an AFP tally. A Vietnamese activist who also criticised both the special economic zones and the cybersecurity law was sentenced to two years in prison in March for "abusing democratic freedoms". Critics say the draconian cyber law will be used to target online dissent, but it has yet to be implemented. The draft bill on economic zones also sparked an uproar as many in Vietnam believed it would grant incentives to Chinese companies. No mention of China was suggested in the legislation but officials put off passing the bill following the protests, which hit the capital Hanoi and the commercial hub Ho Chi Minh City. Dozens of demonstrators have been jailed since taking part.

Vietnam jails two activists for 'spreading propaganda' on Facebook

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/world-shares-sink-as-us-china-trade-talks-go-to-the-wire-217277">World shares sink as US-China trade talks go to the wire</a>

Chinese Vice Premier Liu He was heading to Washington for two days of talks but Trump's insistence that China "broke the deal", and then Beijing's response that it would retaliate against tariffs were ratcheting up the stakes.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/south-korea-president-moon-says-north-koreas-missile-launch-was-a-protest-after-failed-trump-summit-217292">South Korea President Moon says North Korea's missile launch was a protest after failed Trump summit&nbsp;</a>

"North Korea seemed to be discontented it could not reach a deal in Hanoi," Moon said in an interview with South Korean broadcaster KBS.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/facebook-co-founder-says-it-is-time-to-break-up-the-company-217297">Facebook co-founder says it is time to break up the company</a>

Facebook Inc co-founder and former Mark Zuckerberg roommate Chris Hughes has called for the break up of the social network in an opinion piece in the New York Times.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/cyclone-fani-nasa-shares-before-after-photos-of-power-outage-caused-by-storm-in-odisha-217271">Cyclone Fani: NASA shares before-after photos of power outage caused by storm in Odisha</a>

The images released on Thursday by NASA showed data visualisations of the scale of destruction caused to the state due to the storm.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-general-elections-2019/gautam-gambhir-demands-proofs-after-aaps-atishi-accuses-him-of-distributing-pamphlets-against-her-217298">Gambhir demands proof after AAP's Atishi accuses him of distributing 'derogatory' pamphlets against her</a>

Gambhir further demanded Delhi Chief Minister and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal to step down in case no proof is found against him.

&nbsp;

World shares sink as US-China trade talks go to the wire Chinese Vice Premier Liu He was heading to Washington for two days of talks but Trump's insistence that China "broke the deal", and then Beijing's response that it would retaliate against tariffs were ratcheting up the stakes.

World shares sink as US-China trade talks go to the wire Chinese Vice Premier Liu He was heading to Washington for two days of talks but Trump's insistence that China "broke the deal", and then Beijing's response that it would retaliate against tariffs were ratcheting up the stakes. South Korea President Moon says North Korea's missile launch was a protest after failed Trump summit "North Korea seemed to be discontented it could not reach a deal in Hanoi," Moon said in an interview with South Korean broadcaster KBS. Facebook co-founder says it is time to break up the company Facebook Inc co-founder and former Mark Zuckerberg roommate Chris Hughes has called for the break up of the social network in an opinion piece in the New York Times. Cyclone Fani: NASA shares before-after photos of power outage caused by storm in Odisha The images released on Thursday by NASA showed data visualisations of the scale of destruction caused to the state due to the storm. Gambhir demands proof after AAP's Atishi accuses him of distributing 'derogatory' pamphlets against her Gambhir further demanded Delhi Chief Minister and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal to step down in case no proof is found against him.

News brief: Big stories of the day

Facebook Inc co-founder and former Mark Zuckerberg roommate Chris Hughes has called for the break up of the social network in an opinion piece in the New York Times.

"We are a nation with a tradition of reining in monopolies, no matter how well-intentioned the leaders of these companies may be. Mark's power is unprecedented and un-American," Hughes wrote on Thursday.

Facebook owns the largest social network with more than 2 billion users across the world. It also owns WhatsApp, Messenger and Instagram, each used by more than 1 billion people.

Hughes co-founded Facebook in 2004 at Harvard with the company's Chief Executive Officer Zuckerberg and Dustin Moskovitz. He quit Facebook in 2007.

"It's been 15 years since I co-founded Facebook at Harvard, and I haven't worked at the company in a decade. But I feel a sense of anger and responsibility," said Hughes, who later was an online strategist for Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential campaign.

The company did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

In one of a number of security and privacy scandals to hit the company, Facebook is accused of inappropriately sharing information belonging to 87 million users with the now-defunct British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica.

Hughes said he last met with Zuckerberg in the summer of 2017, several months before the Cambridge Analytica scandal broke.

"Mark is a good, kind person. But I'm angry that his focus on growth led him to sacrifice security and civility for clicks," Hughes said.

"And I'm worried that Mark has surrounded himself with a team that reinforces his beliefs instead of challenging them."

Hughes is not alone in asking for the break-up of Facebook. Some lawmakers have called for federal privacy regulation and anti-trust action to break up big tech companies.

Facebook Inc co-founder and former Mark Zuckerberg roommate Chris Hughes has called for the break up of the social network in an opinion piece in the New York Times.

Facebook Inc co-founder and former Mark Zuckerberg roommate Chris Hughes has called for the break up of the social network in an opinion piece in the New York Times. "We are a nation with a tradition of reining in monopolies, no matter how well-intentioned the leaders of these companies may be. Mark's power is unprecedented and un-American," Hughes wrote on Thursday. Facebook owns the largest social network with more than 2 billion users across the world. It also owns WhatsApp, Messenger and Instagram, each used by more than 1 billion people. Hughes co-founded Facebook in 2004 at Harvard with the company's Chief Executive Officer Zuckerberg and Dustin Moskovitz. He quit Facebook in 2007. "It's been 15 years since I co-founded Facebook at Harvard, and I haven't worked at the company in a decade. But I feel a sense of anger and responsibility," said Hughes, who later was an online strategist for Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential campaign. The company did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In one of a number of security and privacy scandals to hit the company, Facebook is accused of inappropriately sharing information belonging to 87 million users with the now-defunct British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica. Hughes said he last met with Zuckerberg in the summer of 2017, several months before the Cambridge Analytica scandal broke. "Mark is a good, kind person. But I'm angry that his focus on growth led him to sacrifice security and civility for clicks," Hughes said. "And I'm worried that Mark has surrounded himself with a team that reinforces his beliefs instead of challenging them." Hughes is not alone in asking for the break-up of Facebook. Some lawmakers have called for federal privacy regulation and anti-trust action to break up big tech companies.

Facebook co-founder says it is time to break up the company

Facebook on Monday said it removed more pages, groups and accounts that originated in<a href="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/world/russias-increasing-influence-in-cuba-stirs-ghost-of-cold-war-215866&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwj94r7k9YjiAhUN7nMBHVHhDQMQFjAFegQIBhAC&amp;usg=AOvVaw3Kru-6RGJ09WzhGhbiPfqg"> Russia </a>and were being deceptive about who was behind them and what they were up to.

The takedown at <a href="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-bans-louis-farrakhan-alex-jones-and-milo-yiannopoulos-215520&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwi17uz29YjiAhVM7HMBHY2TCHQQFjAEegQIAxAC&amp;usg=AOvVaw2FMLW39dJYpcdu5raIlnp8">Facebook</a> and its image-centric social network Instagram was described as part of an ongoing battle against "coordinated inauthentic behaviour" which has blocked numerous fake accounts from around the world.

"We found two separate, unconnected operations that originated in Russia and used similar tactics, creating networks of accounts to mislead others about who they were and what they were doing," Facebook head of cybersecurity policy Nathaniel Gleicher said in a blog post.

He added that the takedowns were based on the deceptive behaviour of those behind accounts, and not the content posted. Ukraine was the focus of 97 Facebook accounts, pages, or groups removed from the social network, according to Gleicher.

Fake accounts were used to operate pages and groups, spread their content and ramp up engagement, as well as to get people to visit an outside website.

Posts by the account typically involved local and political news; topics including the military conflict in Eastern Ukraine, the civil war in Syria, and Russian politics.&nbsp;Facebook did not disclose the identities of those behind the accounts.

Pages involved had about 34,000 followers each, and about 86,000 Facebook users had joined at least one of the groups. Only a single dollar was spent on a Facebook ad, which ran more than a year ago.

"We identified some of these accounts and Pages through follow-on investigations of the accounts and Pages we removed earlier this year ahead of the elections in Ukraine," Gleicher said.

"We have shared information about our analysis with law enforcement, policymakers and industry partners."

An additional 21 Facebook and Instagram accounts or pages removed focused on Austria, the Baltic states, Germany, Spain, Ukraine and the United Kingdom, according to the California-based internet titan.

Those accounts posted content related to political issues such as immigration, as well as religion and NATO, Facebook said. The campaign used fake accounts, impersonating other users, and amplified "allegations about a public figure working on behalf of intelligence services," Gleicher said.

Facebook on Monday said it removed more pages, groups and accounts that originated in Russia and were being deceptive about who was behind them and what they were up to.

Facebook on Monday said it removed more pages, groups and accounts that originated in Russia and were being deceptive about who was behind them and what they were up to. The takedown at Facebook and its image-centric social network Instagram was described as part of an ongoing battle against "coordinated inauthentic behaviour" which has blocked numerous fake accounts from around the world. "We found two separate, unconnected operations that originated in Russia and used similar tactics, creating networks of accounts to mislead others about who they were and what they were doing," Facebook head of cybersecurity policy Nathaniel Gleicher said in a blog post. He added that the takedowns were based on the deceptive behaviour of those behind accounts, and not the content posted. Ukraine was the focus of 97 Facebook accounts, pages, or groups removed from the social network, according to Gleicher. Fake accounts were used to operate pages and groups, spread their content and ramp up engagement, as well as to get people to visit an outside website. Posts by the account typically involved local and political news; topics including the military conflict in Eastern Ukraine, the civil war in Syria, and Russian politics. Facebook did not disclose the identities of those behind the accounts. Pages involved had about 34,000 followers each, and about 86,000 Facebook users had joined at least one of the groups. Only a single dollar was spent on a Facebook ad, which ran more than a year ago. "We identified some of these accounts and Pages through follow-on investigations of the accounts and Pages we removed earlier this year ahead of the elections in Ukraine," Gleicher said. "We have shared information about our analysis with law enforcement, policymakers and industry partners." An additional 21 Facebook and Instagram accounts or pages removed focused on Austria, the Baltic states, Germany, Spain, Ukraine and the United Kingdom, according to the California-based internet titan. Those accounts posted content related to political issues such as immigration, as well as religion and NATO, Facebook said. The campaign used fake accounts, impersonating other users, and amplified "allegations about a public figure working on behalf of intelligence services," Gleicher said.

Facebook removes more pages tied to Russian operators

Facebook on Thursday banned controversial black <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-bans-uk-far-right-groups-including-bnp-edl-britain-first-211564">activist leader Louis Farrakhan</a>, far-right icon Alex Jones and several others in a heightened crackdown on hate content at the leading social network.

"We've always banned individuals or organizations that promote or engage in violence and hate, regardless of ideology," Facebook said in a statement.

The most prominent to be banned were Farrakhan, head of the Nation of Islam, accused of being anti-Semitic and black supremacist; and Jones, the far-right conspiracy theorist best known for calling the 9/11 attacks an inside job and describing the Sandy Hook school massacre as a hoax. Jones's organization Infowars was also banned by Facebook.

Others banned Thursday from Facebook and Instagram were Paul Nehlen, a political candidate espousing white supremacist views; Milo Yiannopoulos, know for neo-Nazi rhetoric; and conspiracy theorists Paul Joseph Watson and Laura Loomer.

Facebook announced the bans on the grounds they violated policies against dangerous individuals and organizations.

"Individuals and organizations who spread hate, or attack or call for the exclusion of others on the basis of who they are, have no place on Facebook," a spokeswoman for Facebook said.

Such bans typically include prohibiting others at the social network from using the platform to post praise or support from those no longer welcomed.

"Today's announcement from Facebook is a step in the right direction," said Cristina Lopez G., deputy director for extremism at nonprofit watchdog group Media Matters for America.

"The majority of the newly banned figures -&nbsp;Yiannopoulos, Loomer, Watson, Jones, and Nehlen -&nbsp;owed their influence to the massive reach they were allowed to cultivate through Facebook and Instagram." Banning the accounts should help limit the spread of radical and often violent far-right ideology, according to Lopez.

Facebook last month banned various far-right British groups including the English Defense League from its network for promoting hate and violence.

Other groups kicked off both Facebook or Instagram last month included Knights Templar International, Britain First, the British National Party (BNP) and the National Front.

The tech titan banned the groups for contravening its policy forbidding "terrorist activity, organized hate, mass or serial murder, human trafficking or organized violence or criminal activity".

Former BNP leader Nick Griffin and Britain First leaders Paul Golding and Jayda Fransen were also been banned in the crackdown.

Facebook on Thursday banned controversial black activist leader Louis Farrakhan, far-right icon Alex Jones and several others in a heightened crackdown on hate content at the leading social network.

Facebook on Thursday banned controversial black activist leader Louis Farrakhan, far-right icon Alex Jones and several others in a heightened crackdown on hate content at the leading social network. "We've always banned individuals or organizations that promote or engage in violence and hate, regardless of ideology," Facebook said in a statement. The most prominent to be banned were Farrakhan, head of the Nation of Islam, accused of being anti-Semitic and black supremacist; and Jones, the far-right conspiracy theorist best known for calling the 9/11 attacks an inside job and describing the Sandy Hook school massacre as a hoax. Jones's organization Infowars was also banned by Facebook. Others banned Thursday from Facebook and Instagram were Paul Nehlen, a political candidate espousing white supremacist views; Milo Yiannopoulos, know for neo-Nazi rhetoric; and conspiracy theorists Paul Joseph Watson and Laura Loomer. Facebook announced the bans on the grounds they violated policies against dangerous individuals and organizations. "Individuals and organizations who spread hate, or attack or call for the exclusion of others on the basis of who they are, have no place on Facebook," a spokeswoman for Facebook said. Such bans typically include prohibiting others at the social network from using the platform to post praise or support from those no longer welcomed. "Today's announcement from Facebook is a step in the right direction," said Cristina Lopez G., deputy director for extremism at nonprofit watchdog group Media Matters for America. "The majority of the newly banned figures - Yiannopoulos, Loomer, Watson, Jones, and Nehlen - owed their influence to the massive reach they were allowed to cultivate through Facebook and Instagram." Banning the accounts should help limit the spread of radical and often violent far-right ideology, according to Lopez. Facebook last month banned various far-right British groups including the English Defense League from its network for promoting hate and violence. Other groups kicked off both Facebook or Instagram last month included Knights Templar International, Britain First, the British National Party (BNP) and the National Front. The tech titan banned the groups for contravening its policy forbidding "terrorist activity, organized hate, mass or serial murder, human trafficking or organized violence or criminal activity". Former BNP leader Nick Griffin and Britain First leaders Paul Golding and Jayda Fransen were also been banned in the crackdown.

Facebook bans Louis Farrakhan, Alex Jones and Milo Yiannopoulos

Facebook Inc on Wednesday blew past Wall Street profit estimates in the first quarter and set aside $3 billion to cover a settlement with US regulators, calming investors who had worried about the outcome of a months-long federal probe.

Shares of the world's biggest online social network jumped more than 10 per cent to $200.50 in after-hours trade. They have now regained much of the ground lost last year amid slowing growth and costs associated with the company's privacy scandals.

The settlement accrual, which Facebook set at $3 billion but said could rise as high as $5 billion, cut the company's net income in the first quarter to $2.43 billion, or 85 cents per share.

Excluding the charge, Facebook would have earned $1.89 a share, up from $1.69 in the year-ago quarter and easily beating analysts' average estimate of $1.63 per share, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Total first-quarter revenue rose 26 per cent to $15.1 billion from $12.0 billion last year, again beating analysts' average estimate of $15.0 billion.

"This is a strong report suggesting that advertisers still see value in Facebook's platform, as they did before the controversies and scandals erupted," said Haris Anwar, senior analyst at financial markets platform Investing.com.

Monthly and daily users of the main Facebook app were both up 8 per cent compared to last year, to 2.4 billion and 1.6 billion, respectively, in line with forecasts.

Total expenses in the first quarter were $11.8 billion, including the settlement accrual, up 80 per cent compared with a year ago as the company hired content moderators and invested in new security controls to make its social networks safer.

Executives said in a conference call with investors that they expected expenses to grow 47 to 55 per cent this year, updating their earlier forecast of an increase of 40 to 50 per cent.

The first-quarter operating margin fell to 22 per cent from 46 per cent a year ago, but would have been a comfortable 42 per cent without the one-time expense.

Biggest penalty

The US&nbsp;Federal Trade Commission has been investigating revelations that Facebook inappropriately shared information belonging to 87 million of its users with the now-defunct British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica. The probe has focussed on whether the sharing of data and other disputes violated a 2011 agreement with the FTC to safeguard user privacy.

A settlement of between $3 billion and $5 billion would be the largest civil penalty ever paid to the agency, said David Vladeck, a former FTC official who is now a professor at Georgetown Law School.

"Everyone expected there would be a substantial civil penalty in this case," said Vladeck. "There's no question that Facebook is going to have to settle this matter. Investors want this behind them."

Even once the FTC probe is resolved, other challenges remain. The number of Facebook users barely budged in the United States, Canada and Europe, indicating saturation in the company's most lucrative markets.

Its largest and fastest-growing user base is now in Asia, where monthly active users jumped 12.4 per cent from last year. The region represents nearly half of all Facebook users but brought in less than a fifth of the company's revenue.

That shift in geography, along with slow advertiser adoption of new services like Stories, resulted in a 4 per cent decline in the average price per ad in the first quarter.

Facebook plans to shift focus toward private communications, integrating its messaging services across Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp but has not yet articulated how it will adapt its advertising-driven business model.

The company launched a sales system last month that enables users to purchase products directly on Instagram and is testing a WhatsApp payments system in India that it plans to roll out to other countries, Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said.

"In countries where we already are the leading platform there will be more ability to work on things like payments in the near term and build in additional ways that people want to interact privately," he said. But the services would not be a "major driver" of Facebook's business for at least a couple of years, he said.

Facebook also faces the prospect of action by lawmakers, with some calling for federal privacy regulation and anti-trust action to break up big tech companies.

Representative David Cicilline, who chairs the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee's subcommittee on antitrust issues, said on Twitter that Facebook was "a repeat offender" and called for an FTC response "strong enough to prevent future violations."

"A fine in the low billions of dollars would amount to a slap on the wrist for Facebook. Tonight, we learned that's how Wall Street sees it too - as a slap on the wrist. If the FTC won't act, Congress has to," he said.

Facebook Inc on Wednesday blew past Wall Street profit estimates in the first quarter and set aside $3 billion to cover a settlement with US regulators, calming investors who had worried about the outcome of a months-long federal probe.

Facebook Inc on Wednesday blew past Wall Street profit estimates in the first quarter and set aside $3 billion to cover a settlement with US regulators, calming investors who had worried about the outcome of a months-long federal probe. Shares of the world's biggest online social network jumped more than 10 per cent to $200.50 in after-hours trade. They have now regained much of the ground lost last year amid slowing growth and costs associated with the company's privacy scandals. The settlement accrual, which Facebook set at $3 billion but said could rise as high as $5 billion, cut the company's net income in the first quarter to $2.43 billion, or 85 cents per share. Excluding the charge, Facebook would have earned $1.89 a share, up from $1.69 in the year-ago quarter and easily beating analysts' average estimate of $1.63 per share, according to IBES data from Refinitiv. Total first-quarter revenue rose 26 per cent to $15.1 billion from $12.0 billion last year, again beating analysts' average estimate of $15.0 billion. "This is a strong report suggesting that advertisers still see value in Facebook's platform, as they did before the controversies and scandals erupted," said Haris Anwar, senior analyst at financial markets platform Investing.com. Monthly and daily users of the main Facebook app were both up 8 per cent compared to last year, to 2.4 billion and 1.6 billion, respectively, in line with forecasts. Total expenses in the first quarter were $11.8 billion, including the settlement accrual, up 80 per cent compared with a year ago as the company hired content moderators and invested in new security controls to make its social networks safer. Executives said in a conference call with investors that they expected expenses to grow 47 to 55 per cent this year, updating their earlier forecast of an increase of 40 to 50 per cent. The first-quarter operating margin fell to 22 per cent from 46 per cent a year ago, but would have been a comfortable 42 per cent without the one-time expense. Biggest penalty The US Federal Trade Commission has been investigating revelations that Facebook inappropriately shared information belonging to 87 million of its users with the now-defunct British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica. The probe has focussed on whether the sharing of data and other disputes violated a 2011 agreement with the FTC to safeguard user privacy. A settlement of between $3 billion and $5 billion would be the largest civil penalty ever paid to the agency, said David Vladeck, a former FTC official who is now a professor at Georgetown Law School. "Everyone expected there would be a substantial civil penalty in this case," said Vladeck. "There's no question that Facebook is going to have to settle this matter. Investors want this behind them." Even once the FTC probe is resolved, other challenges remain. The number of Facebook users barely budged in the United States, Canada and Europe, indicating saturation in the company's most lucrative markets. Its largest and fastest-growing user base is now in Asia, where monthly active users jumped 12.4 per cent from last year. The region represents nearly half of all Facebook users but brought in less than a fifth of the company's revenue. That shift in geography, along with slow advertiser adoption of new services like Stories, resulted in a 4 per cent decline in the average price per ad in the first quarter. Facebook plans to shift focus toward private communications, integrating its messaging services across Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp but has not yet articulated how it will adapt its advertising-driven business model. The company launched a sales system last month that enables users to purchase products directly on Instagram and is testing a WhatsApp payments system in India that it plans to roll out to other countries, Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said. "In countries where we already are the leading platform there will be more ability to work on things like payments in the near term and build in additional ways that people want to interact privately," he said. But the services would not be a "major driver" of Facebook's business for at least a couple of years, he said. Facebook also faces the prospect of action by lawmakers, with some calling for federal privacy regulation and anti-trust action to break up big tech companies. Representative David Cicilline, who chairs the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee's subcommittee on antitrust issues, said on Twitter that Facebook was "a repeat offender" and called for an FTC response "strong enough to prevent future violations." "A fine in the low billions of dollars would amount to a slap on the wrist for Facebook. Tonight, we learned that's how Wall Street sees it too - as a slap on the wrist. If the FTC won't act, Congress has to," he said.

Facebook beats profit estimates, sets aside $3 billion for privacy penalty

Facebook Inc more than doubled the money it spent on Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg's security in 2018 to $22.6 million, a regulatory filing showed on Friday.

Zuckerberg has drawn a base salary of $1 for the past three years, and his "other" compensation was listed at $22.6 million, most of which was for his personal security.

Nearly $20 million went towards security for Zuckerberg and his family, up from about $9 million the year prior. Zuckerberg also received $2.6 million for personal use of private jets, which the company said was part of his overall <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-shuts-more-accounts-aimed-at-political-meddling-177243">security programme</a>.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-restores-services-after-global-outage-203386">Facebook </a>has in the past few years faced public outcry over its role in Russia's alleged influence on the 2016 US&nbsp;presidential election and has come under fire following revelations that Cambridge Analytica obtained personal data from millions of Facebook profiles without consent.&nbsp;

Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg took home $23.7 million in 2018 compared to $25.2 million last year.

Separately, Facebook said Netflix Chief Executive Officer Reed Hastings would vacate his seat on the social media company's board and not be nominated for re-election.

Hastings' departure comes as the Menlo Park-based company beefs up its push into videos. Hastings has served on Facebook's board since 2011.

The company also said it would nominate PayPal's senior vice president of core markets, Peggy Alford, to its board in place of University of North Carolina President Emeritus Erskine Bowles, who will also not be re-nominated.

Facebook shares closed at $179.07 Friday evening.

Facebook Inc more than doubled the money it spent on Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg's security in 2018 to $22.6 million, a regulatory filing showed on Friday.

Facebook Inc more than doubled the money it spent on Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg's security in 2018 to $22.6 million, a regulatory filing showed on Friday. Zuckerberg has drawn a base salary of $1 for the past three years, and his "other" compensation was listed at $22.6 million, most of which was for his personal security. Nearly $20 million went towards security for Zuckerberg and his family, up from about $9 million the year prior. Zuckerberg also received $2.6 million for personal use of private jets, which the company said was part of his overall security programme. Facebook has in the past few years faced public outcry over its role in Russia's alleged influence on the 2016 US presidential election and has come under fire following revelations that Cambridge Analytica obtained personal data from millions of Facebook profiles without consent. Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg took home $23.7 million in 2018 compared to $25.2 million last year. Separately, Facebook said Netflix Chief Executive Officer Reed Hastings would vacate his seat on the social media company's board and not be nominated for re-election. Hastings' departure comes as the Menlo Park-based company beefs up its push into videos. Hastings has served on Facebook's board since 2011. The company also said it would nominate PayPal's senior vice president of core markets, Peggy Alford, to its board in place of University of North Carolina President Emeritus Erskine Bowles, who will also not be re-nominated. Facebook shares closed at $179.07 Friday evening.

Facebook spends $22.6 million to keep Mark Zuckerberg safe

Ahead of Lok Sabha elections, Facebook has said it is making progress in its efforts to prevent online abuses and has blocked or removed about one million accounts a day using artificial intelligence and machine learning, the company’s Managing Director and Vice President Ajit Mohan said in a blog post.

''This work is done across dozens of teams, both in India and around the globe, and began more than 18 months ago. The findings allowed us to concentrate our work on key areas, including blocking and removing <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/facebook-says-no-evidence-of-silver-touch-associated-with-namo-app-207325">fake accounts</a>; fighting the spread of misinformation; and taking action against inauthentic coordinated campaigns,'' he wrote in the blog post.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning help Facebook, at a large scale, to identify <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/lok-sabha-polls-2019-facebook-removes-687-pages-accounts-linked-to-congress-it-cell-ahead-of-elections-207189">abusive</a><a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/lok-sabha-polls-2019-facebook-removes-687-pages-accounts-linked-to-congress-it-cell-ahead-of-elections-207189"> or violating content</a>, quickly locate it across the platform and remove it in bulk, Mohan wrote in a blog post.

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“This dramatically reduces its ability to spread. We continue to expand on this initiative, adding 24 new languages—including 16 for India—to our automatic translation system," Mohan wrote.

According to the blog post, Facebook is working with its family of apps, which includes Instagram and WhatsApp, to make sure the general elections are fair and free from interference—both foreign and domestic. Recently, Facebook took down nearly 700 pages linked to individuals, majority of which were associated with the Congress, along with an IT firm Silver Touch which has worked with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for spamming users.

Mohan said Facebook and its family of apps are making sure the elections are fair and free from interference, both foreign and domestic.

Ahead of Lok Sabha elections, Facebook has said it is making progress in its efforts to prevent online abuses and has blocked or removed about one million accounts a day using artificial intelligence and machine learning, the company’s Managing Director and Vice President Ajit Mohan said in a blog post.

Ahead of Lok Sabha elections, Facebook has said it is making progress in its efforts to prevent online abuses and has blocked or removed about one million accounts a day using artificial intelligence and machine learning, the company’s Managing Director and Vice President Ajit Mohan said in a blog post. ''This work is done across dozens of teams, both in India and around the globe, and began more than 18 months ago. The findings allowed us to concentrate our work on key areas, including blocking and removing fake accounts; fighting the spread of misinformation; and taking action against inauthentic coordinated campaigns,'' he wrote in the blog post. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning help Facebook, at a large scale, to identify abusive or violating content, quickly locate it across the platform and remove it in bulk, Mohan wrote in a blog post. × “This dramatically reduces its ability to spread. We continue to expand on this initiative, adding 24 new languages—including 16 for India—to our automatic translation system," Mohan wrote. According to the blog post, Facebook is working with its family of apps, which includes Instagram and WhatsApp, to make sure the general elections are fair and free from interference—both foreign and domestic. Recently, Facebook took down nearly 700 pages linked to individuals, majority of which were associated with the Congress, along with an IT firm Silver Touch which has worked with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for spamming users. Mohan said Facebook and its family of apps are making sure the elections are fair and free from interference, both foreign and domestic.

Removing one million accounts a day to ensure elections are fair and free: Facebook 

The British government said on Monday it will explore making <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-rights-groups-hit-out-at-singapores-fake-news-bill-207343">social media executives personally </a>liable for harmful content published on their platforms, in a raft of new online safety proposals.

The plans unveiled in a policy paper, which also include creating an independent regulator, aim to tackle all kinds of harmful content from encouraging violence and suicide to spreading disinformation and cyberbullying.

The issue has gained added urgency with <a href="Facebook chief Zuckerberg wants 'more active' govt role regulating internet">Facebook's failure to immediately</a> halt live streams of a March 15 attack by a self-avowed white supremacist on two mosques in New Zealand that killed 50 people.

Prime Minister Theresa May warned tech companies they had "not done enough" to protect users and that her government intended to put "a legal duty of care" on the firms "to keep people safe".

"For too long these companies have not done enough to protect users, especially children and young people, from harmful content," she said in a statement. "That is not good enough, and it is time to do things differently.

"Online companies must start taking responsibility for their platforms, and help restore public trust in this technology."&nbsp;

The new laws envisaged will apply to any company that allows users to share or discover user-generated content or interact with each other online.

That will include file hosting sites and chat forums as well as the better known social media platforms, messaging services and search engines.

Firms could face tough penalties for failing to meet the standards.

"We are consulting on powers to issue substantial fines, block access to sites and potentially to impose liability on individual members of senior management," the government said.

Under the proposals, a new regulator would have the power to force platforms and others to publish annual transparency reports. 
They would include the levels of harmful content disseminated on their sites and how they addressed the problem.

The regulator will also be able to issue codes of practice, which could compel companies to meet certain requirements, such as hiring fact-checkers, particularly during election periods.

"The era of self-regulation for online companies is over," Digital Secretary Jeremy Wright said, adding he wanted the sector to be "part of the solution".

"Those that fail to do this will face tough action," he vowed.

Proponents of tougher social media regulations welcomed the proposals.

"For too long social networks have failed to prioritise children's safety and left them exposed to grooming, abuse, and harmful content," said Peter Wanless, head of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.

"It's high time they were forced to act through this legally binding duty to protect children, backed up with hefty punishments if they fail to do so."&nbsp;

The British government said on Monday it will explore making social media executives personally liable for harmful content published on their platforms, in a raft of new online safety proposals.

The British government said on Monday it will explore making social media executives personally liable for harmful content published on their platforms, in a raft of new online safety proposals. The plans unveiled in a policy paper, which also include creating an independent regulator, aim to tackle all kinds of harmful content from encouraging violence and suicide to spreading disinformation and cyberbullying. The issue has gained added urgency with Facebook's failure to immediately halt live streams of a March 15 attack by a self-avowed white supremacist on two mosques in New Zealand that killed 50 people. Prime Minister Theresa May warned tech companies they had "not done enough" to protect users and that her government intended to put "a legal duty of care" on the firms "to keep people safe". "For too long these companies have not done enough to protect users, especially children and young people, from harmful content," she said in a statement. "That is not good enough, and it is time to do things differently. "Online companies must start taking responsibility for their platforms, and help restore public trust in this technology." The new laws envisaged will apply to any company that allows users to share or discover user-generated content or interact with each other online. That will include file hosting sites and chat forums as well as the better known social media platforms, messaging services and search engines. Firms could face tough penalties for failing to meet the standards. "We are consulting on powers to issue substantial fines, block access to sites and potentially to impose liability on individual members of senior management," the government said. Under the proposals, a new regulator would have the power to force platforms and others to publish annual transparency reports. They would include the levels of harmful content disseminated on their sites and how they addressed the problem. The regulator will also be able to issue codes of practice, which could compel companies to meet certain requirements, such as hiring fact-checkers, particularly during election periods. "The era of self-regulation for online companies is over," Digital Secretary Jeremy Wright said, adding he wanted the sector to be "part of the solution". "Those that fail to do this will face tough action," he vowed. Proponents of tougher social media regulations welcomed the proposals. "For too long social networks have failed to prioritise children's safety and left them exposed to grooming, abuse, and harmful content," said Peter Wanless, head of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. "It's high time they were forced to act through this legally binding duty to protect children, backed up with hefty punishments if they fail to do so."

UK plans to hold social media giants liable for harmful content

With elections drawing closer, campaigning on social media platform Facebook is also picking up the pace with political parties and their supporters spending well over Rs 10 crore on advertisements in February-March this year.

According to Facebook's Ad Library Report, there were 51,810 political ads with total spending of more than Rs 10.32 crore between February and March 30 this year, with a major chunk coming in from BJP and its supporters.

Till the previous week (ending March 23), the number of such ads was 41,974, while the total spending was Rs 8.58 crore.

Facebook said these ads were related to politics and issues of national importance.&nbsp;

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its supporters continued to corner a bulk of ad spends with 'Bharat Ke Mann Ki Baat' page continuing to be the top spender with well over 3,700 ads and pumping in more than Rs 2.23 crore (under two categories).&nbsp;

The BJP had about 1,100 ads and spent over Rs 36.2 lakh, while other pages like 'My First Vote for Modi' and 'Nation with NaMo' also had large spending.&nbsp;

Compared to this, the Indian National Congress page had 410 ads and its ad spend was Rs 5.91 lakh in the February to March 30 period, as per the data.

Biju Janata Dal had the spending of Rs 8.56 lakh, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) Rs 1.58 lakh and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Rs 58,355 in the said timeframe.

In February, Facebook had said political advertisements on its platform will carry a 'disclaimer' offering details about those responsible for running the ad as the social media giant looks to bring transparency into political ads ahead of elections in India. This was done to give people more information about who is responsible for the ads they see.&nbsp;

With ensuing general elections, the Indian government had warned social media platforms of strong action if any attempt was made to influence the country's electoral process through undesirable means.&nbsp;

Over the past few months, social media players like Facebook, Twitter and Google have promised to infuse more transparency into political advertisements on their platform and have since announced a slew of measures as part of election integrity efforts.&nbsp;

Facebook, which has over 200 million users in India, has stated that it is committed to creating a new standard of transparency and authenticity for political advertising on its platform and Instagram.

With elections drawing closer, campaigning on social media platform Facebook is also picking up the pace with political parties and their supporters spending well over Rs 10 crore on advertisements in February-March this year.

With elections drawing closer, campaigning on social media platform Facebook is also picking up the pace with political parties and their supporters spending well over Rs 10 crore on advertisements in February-March this year. According to Facebook's Ad Library Report, there were 51,810 political ads with total spending of more than Rs 10.32 crore between February and March 30 this year, with a major chunk coming in from BJP and its supporters. Till the previous week (ending March 23), the number of such ads was 41,974, while the total spending was Rs 8.58 crore. Facebook said these ads were related to politics and issues of national importance. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its supporters continued to corner a bulk of ad spends with 'Bharat Ke Mann Ki Baat' page continuing to be the top spender with well over 3,700 ads and pumping in more than Rs 2.23 crore (under two categories). The BJP had about 1,100 ads and spent over Rs 36.2 lakh, while other pages like 'My First Vote for Modi' and 'Nation with NaMo' also had large spending. Compared to this, the Indian National Congress page had 410 ads and its ad spend was Rs 5.91 lakh in the February to March 30 period, as per the data. Biju Janata Dal had the spending of Rs 8.56 lakh, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) Rs 1.58 lakh and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Rs 58,355 in the said timeframe. In February, Facebook had said political advertisements on its platform will carry a 'disclaimer' offering details about those responsible for running the ad as the social media giant looks to bring transparency into political ads ahead of elections in India. This was done to give people more information about who is responsible for the ads they see. With ensuing general elections, the Indian government had warned social media platforms of strong action if any attempt was made to influence the country's electoral process through undesirable means. Over the past few months, social media players like Facebook, Twitter and Google have promised to infuse more transparency into political advertisements on their platform and have since announced a slew of measures as part of election integrity efforts. Facebook, which has over 200 million users in India, has stated that it is committed to creating a new standard of transparency and authenticity for political advertising on its platform and Instagram.

With elections drawing closer, political ad spend on Facebook crosses Rs 10 crore

Facebook cracked down 103 pages linked to Pak military

Singapore submitted wide-ranging fake news legislation in parliament on Monday, stoking fears from internet firms and <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/opinion-why-the-term-fake-news-is-doing-more-harm-than-good-155397">human rights groups</a> that it may give the government too much power and hinder freedom of speech.

The law would require social media sites like Facebook to carry warnings on posts the government deems false and remove comments against "public interest".

The move came two days after <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/lok-sabha-polls-2019-facebook-removes-687-pages-accounts-linked-to-congress-it-cell-ahead-of-elections-207189">Facebook</a> founder Mark Zuckerberg said governments should play a more active role in regulating the online platform.

But Simon Milner, who works on Facebook's public policy in Asia, said after the law was tabled, the firm was "concerned with aspects of the law that grant broad powers to the Singapore executive branch to compel us to remove content they deem to be false and proactively push a government notification to users".

"As the most far-reaching legislation of its kind to date, this level of overreach poses significant risks to freedom of expression and speech, and could have severe ramifications both in Singapore and around the world," said Jeff Paine, managing director of the Asia Internet Coalition, an industry association of internet and technology companies in the region.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Singapore's Law Minister K. Shanmugam said the new legislation would not hinder free speech.

"This legislation deals with false statements of facts. It doesn't deal with opinions, it doesn't deal with viewpoints. You can have whatever viewpoints however reasonable or unreasonable," he said.

Tech giants Facebook, Twitter and Google all have their Asia headquarters in the city-state, a low-tax finance hub seen as a island of stability in the middle of the fast-growing but often-turbulent Southeast Asia region.

"Malicious actors"

Singapore, which has been run by the same political party since independence from Britain more than 50 years ago, says it is vulnerable to fake news because of its position as a global financial hub, its mixed ethnic and religious population and widespread internet access.

It is ranked 151 among 180 countries rated in the World Press Freedom Index of Reporters Without Borders, a non-government group that promotes freedom of information, below the likes of Russia and Myanmar.

The new bill proposes that the government get online platforms to publish warnings or "corrections" alongside posts carrying false information, without removing them.

This would be the "primary response" to counter falsehoods online, the Law Ministry said.

"That way, in a sense, people can read whatever they want and make up their minds. That is our preference," Law Minister K. Shanmugam told reporters on Monday.

Under the proposals, which must be approved by parliament, criminal sanctions including hefty fines and jail terms will be imposed if the falsehoods are spread by "malicious actors" who "undermine society", the ministry said, without elaborating.

It added that it would cut off an online site's "ability to profit", without shutting it down, if the site had published three falsehoods that were "against the public interest" over the previous six months.

It did not say how it would block a site's profit streams.

The bill came amid talk of a possible general election this year. Law Minister Shanmugam declined to comment when asked if the new legislation was related to a vote.

"This draft law will be a disaster for human rights, particularly freedom of expression and media freedom," said Phil Robertson, deputy director, Asia division, at Human Rights Watch.

"The definitions in the law are broad and poorly defined, leaving maximum regulatory discretion to the government officers skewed to view as "misleading" or "false" the sorts of news that challenge Singapore’s preferred political narratives."

Singapore submitted wide-ranging fake news legislation in parliament on Monday, stoking fears from internet firms and human rights groups that it may give the government too much power and hinder freedom of speech.

Singapore submitted wide-ranging fake news legislation in parliament on Monday, stoking fears from internet firms and human rights groups that it may give the government too much power and hinder freedom of speech. The law would require social media sites like Facebook to carry warnings on posts the government deems false and remove comments against "public interest". The move came two days after Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said governments should play a more active role in regulating the online platform. But Simon Milner, who works on Facebook's public policy in Asia, said after the law was tabled, the firm was "concerned with aspects of the law that grant broad powers to the Singapore executive branch to compel us to remove content they deem to be false and proactively push a government notification to users". "As the most far-reaching legislation of its kind to date, this level of overreach poses significant risks to freedom of expression and speech, and could have severe ramifications both in Singapore and around the world," said Jeff Paine, managing director of the Asia Internet Coalition, an industry association of internet and technology companies in the region. Speaking to reporters on Monday, Singapore's Law Minister K. Shanmugam said the new legislation would not hinder free speech. "This legislation deals with false statements of facts. It doesn't deal with opinions, it doesn't deal with viewpoints. You can have whatever viewpoints however reasonable or unreasonable," he said. Tech giants Facebook, Twitter and Google all have their Asia headquarters in the city-state, a low-tax finance hub seen as a island of stability in the middle of the fast-growing but often-turbulent Southeast Asia region. "Malicious actors" Singapore, which has been run by the same political party since independence from Britain more than 50 years ago, says it is vulnerable to fake news because of its position as a global financial hub, its mixed ethnic and religious population and widespread internet access. It is ranked 151 among 180 countries rated in the World Press Freedom Index of Reporters Without Borders, a non-government group that promotes freedom of information, below the likes of Russia and Myanmar. The new bill proposes that the government get online platforms to publish warnings or "corrections" alongside posts carrying false information, without removing them. This would be the "primary response" to counter falsehoods online, the Law Ministry said. "That way, in a sense, people can read whatever they want and make up their minds. That is our preference," Law Minister K. Shanmugam told reporters on Monday. Under the proposals, which must be approved by parliament, criminal sanctions including hefty fines and jail terms will be imposed if the falsehoods are spread by "malicious actors" who "undermine society", the ministry said, without elaborating. It added that it would cut off an online site's "ability to profit", without shutting it down, if the site had published three falsehoods that were "against the public interest" over the previous six months. It did not say how it would block a site's profit streams. The bill came amid talk of a possible general election this year. Law Minister Shanmugam declined to comment when asked if the new legislation was related to a vote. "This draft law will be a disaster for human rights, particularly freedom of expression and media freedom," said Phil Robertson, deputy director, Asia division, at Human Rights Watch. "The definitions in the law are broad and poorly defined, leaving maximum regulatory discretion to the government officers skewed to view as "misleading" or "false" the sorts of news that challenge Singapore’s preferred political narratives."

Facebook, rights groups hit out at Singapore's fake news bill

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/lok-sabha-polls-2019-facebook-removes-687-pages-accounts-linked-to-congress-it-cell-ahead-of-elections-207189">Lok Sabha polls 2019: Facebook removes 687 pages, accounts linked to Congress IT cell ahead of elections</a>

Facebook Inc said on Monday it was removing 687 pages and accounts linked to the Congress party, just days before voting begins in a general election, because of “coordinated inauthentic behaviour” on the social media platform.&nbsp;

 
<a href="https://www.wionews.com/business-economy/indias-february-infrastructure-output-grows-21-per-cent-207225">India's February infrastructure output grows 2.1 per cent&nbsp;</a>

India's infrastructure output grew at 2.1 percent in February from a year earlier, government data showed on Monday.

 
<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/listing-of-masood-azhar-as-global-terrorist-china-claims-positive-progress-made-207217">Listing of Masood Azhar as global terrorist: China claims 'positive progress' made</a>

China on Monday claimed that "positive progress" has been made to resolve the issue of the UN designating Pakistan-based JeM chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist and accused the US of scuttling the UN's efforts by taking the matter directly to the Security Council.&nbsp;

 
<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/british-mps-to-vote-yet-again-tonight-on-various-brexit-options-207229">British MPs to vote yet again tonight on various Brexit options</a>

British MPs will try again to chart a new Brexit path on Monday after rejecting Prime Minister Theresa May's deal for a third time, but the EU warned its patience was wearing thin.

Less than two weeks before Britain risks crashing out of the European Union, MPs will hold a second round of votes on various options to try to break the political deadlock.

 
<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/money-laundering-case-robert-vadra-gets-anticipatory-bail-cant-leave-country-without-permission-207216">Money-laundering case: Robert Vadra gets anticipatory bail, cannot leave </a><a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/money-laundering-case-robert-vadra-gets-anticipatory-bail-cant-leave-country-without-permission-207216">country</a><a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/money-laundering-case-robert-vadra-gets-anticipatory-bail-cant-leave-country-without-permission-207216"> without permission</a>

A special CBI court here granted anticipatory bail on Monday to Robert Vadra and his close aide Manoj Arora in the money-laundering case against them.

Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar, while granting the bail to the duo, directed them to furnish personal bail bonds of Rs 5 lakh each and surety of a like amount.

Lok Sabha polls 2019: Facebook removes 687 pages, accounts linked to Congress IT cell ahead of elections Facebook Inc said on Monday it was removing 687 pages and accounts linked to the Congress party, just days before voting begins in a general election, because of “coordinated inauthentic behaviour” on the social media platform.

Lok Sabha polls 2019: Facebook removes 687 pages, accounts linked to Congress IT cell ahead of elections Facebook Inc said on Monday it was removing 687 pages and accounts linked to the Congress party, just days before voting begins in a general election, because of “coordinated inauthentic behaviour” on the social media platform. India's February infrastructure output grows 2.1 per cent India's infrastructure output grew at 2.1 percent in February from a year earlier, government data showed on Monday. Listing of Masood Azhar as global terrorist: China claims 'positive progress' made China on Monday claimed that "positive progress" has been made to resolve the issue of the UN designating Pakistan-based JeM chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist and accused the US of scuttling the UN's efforts by taking the matter directly to the Security Council. British MPs to vote yet again tonight on various Brexit options British MPs will try again to chart a new Brexit path on Monday after rejecting Prime Minister Theresa May's deal for a third time, but the EU warned its patience was wearing thin. Less than two weeks before Britain risks crashing out of the European Union, MPs will hold a second round of votes on various options to try to break the political deadlock. Money-laundering case: Robert Vadra gets anticipatory bail, cannot leave country without permission A special CBI court here granted anticipatory bail on Monday to Robert Vadra and his close aide Manoj Arora in the money-laundering case against them. Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar, while granting the bail to the duo, directed them to furnish personal bail bonds of Rs 5 lakh each and surety of a like amount.

Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg called Saturday for governments to play a "more active role" in regulating the internet, urging more countries to adopt versions of sweeping European rules aimed at safeguarding user privacy.

Facebook and other internet giants have long resisted <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/australian-watchdog-calls-for-more-scrutiny-of-google-facebook-182777">government intervention</a>, but the leading social network has reversed course amid growing calls for regulation, in an apparent bid to help steer the debate.

"I believe we need a more active role for governments and regulators," Zuckerberg wrote in an op-ed published in The Washington Post.

"By updating the rules for the internet, we can preserve what's best about it -- the freedom for people to express themselves and for entrepreneurs to build new things -- while also protecting society from broader harms," he said.

Zuckerberg argues that new regulations are needed in four areas: harmful content, protection of elections, privacy and data portability.

Facebook has drawn fire over all four, from hate speech on the platform and the recent live streaming of attacks on mosques in New Zealand, to its use in foreign efforts to meddle in elections and concerns over its collection of personal user data.

Addressing protection of user privacy, Zuckerberg said he would support more countries adopting rules in line with the European Union's sweeping General Data Protection Regulation, which gives regulators sweeping powers to sanction organizations which fail to adhere to heightened standards of security when processing personal data.

"I believe it would be good for the internet if more countries adopted regulation such as GDPR as a common framework," Zuckerberg wrote, also calling for regulation to guarantee data portability between services.

On harmful content, Zuckerberg said he agreed with lawmakers who have argued that "we have too much power over speech," saying that "third-party bodies" could set standards on distribution of harmful material and "measure companies against those standards."

And on elections, Zuckerberg noted that existing laws are focused on candidates and elections instead of "divisive political issues where we've seen more attempted interference," urging legislation to be updated to "reflect the reality of the threats."

"The rules governing the internet allowed a generation of entrepreneurs to build services that changed the world and created a lot of value in people's lives," Zuckerberg wrote.

"It's time to update these rules to define clear responsibilities for people, companies and governments going forward."

Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg called Saturday for governments to play a "more active role" in regulating the internet, urging more countries to adopt versions of sweeping European rules aimed at safeguarding user privacy.

Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg called Saturday for governments to play a "more active role" in regulating the internet, urging more countries to adopt versions of sweeping European rules aimed at safeguarding user privacy. Facebook and other internet giants have long resisted government intervention, but the leading social network has reversed course amid growing calls for regulation, in an apparent bid to help steer the debate. "I believe we need a more active role for governments and regulators," Zuckerberg wrote in an op-ed published in The Washington Post. "By updating the rules for the internet, we can preserve what's best about it -- the freedom for people to express themselves and for entrepreneurs to build new things -- while also protecting society from broader harms," he said. Zuckerberg argues that new regulations are needed in four areas: harmful content, protection of elections, privacy and data portability. Facebook has drawn fire over all four, from hate speech on the platform and the recent live streaming of attacks on mosques in New Zealand, to its use in foreign efforts to meddle in elections and concerns over its collection of personal user data. Addressing protection of user privacy, Zuckerberg said he would support more countries adopting rules in line with the European Union's sweeping General Data Protection Regulation, which gives regulators sweeping powers to sanction organizations which fail to adhere to heightened standards of security when processing personal data. "I believe it would be good for the internet if more countries adopted regulation such as GDPR as a common framework," Zuckerberg wrote, also calling for regulation to guarantee data portability between services. On harmful content, Zuckerberg said he agreed with lawmakers who have argued that "we have too much power over speech," saying that "third-party bodies" could set standards on distribution of harmful material and "measure companies against those standards." And on elections, Zuckerberg noted that existing laws are focused on candidates and elections instead of "divisive political issues where we've seen more attempted interference," urging legislation to be updated to "reflect the reality of the threats." "The rules governing the internet allowed a generation of entrepreneurs to build services that changed the world and created a lot of value in people's lives," Zuckerberg wrote. "It's time to update these rules to define clear responsibilities for people, companies and governments going forward."

Facebook chief  Zuckerberg wants 'more active' govt role regulating internet

Facebook on Friday said it is tightening live video streaming rules in response to the service being used to broadcast deadly attacks on mosques in New Zealand.

The Christchurch attacks -- carried out by a self-avowed white supremacist who opened fire on worshippers at two mosques -- claimed 50 lives.

Many people have "rightly questioned how online platforms such as Facebook were used to circulate horrific videos of the attack," chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg said in an online post.

"In the wake of the terrorist attack, we are taking three steps: strengthening the rules for using Facebook Live, taking further steps to address hate on our platforms, and supporting the New Zealand community," she added.

Facebook is looking into barring people who have previously violated the social network's community standards from live-streaming on its platform, according to Sandberg.

The social network is also investing in improving the software to quickly identify edited versions of violent video or images to prevent them from being shared or re-posted.

"While the original New Zealand attack video was shared Live, we know that this video spread mainly through people re-sharing it and re-editing it to make it harder for our systems to block it," Sandberg said.

"People with bad intentions will always try to get around our security measures." Facebook identified more than 900 different videos showing portions of the streamed violence.

The social network is using artificial intelligence tools to identify and remove hate groups in Australia and New Zealand, according to Sandberg. Those groups will be banned from Facebook services, she said.

Facebook this week announced it would ban praise or support for white nationalism and white separatism as part of a stepped-up crackdown on hate speech.

The ban will be enforced starting next week on the leading online social network and its image-centric messaging service Instagram.

"It's clear that these concepts are deeply linked to organized hate groups and have no place on our services," the social network said in a statement.

Facebook policies already banned posts endorsing white supremacy as part of its prohibition against spewing hate at people based on characteristics such as race, ethnicity or religion.

The ban had not applied to some postings because it was reasoned they were expressions of broader concepts of nationalism or political independence, according to the social network.

Facebook said that conversations with academics and "members of civil society" in recent months led it to view white nationalism and separatism as linked to organized hate groups.

People who enter search terms associated with white supremacy will get results referring them to resources such as Life After Hate, which focus on helping people turn their backs on such groups, according to Facebook.

Amid pressure from governments around the world, Facebook has ramped up machine learning and artificial intelligence tools for finding and removing hateful content.

"We are deeply committed to strengthening our policies, improving our technology and working with experts to keep Facebook safe," Sandberg said.

"We must all stand united against hate and work together to fight it wherever and whenever it occurs."&nbsp;

Facebook on Friday said it is tightening live video streaming rules in response to the service being used to broadcast deadly attacks on mosques in New Zealand. The Christchurch attacks -- carried out by a self-avowed white supremacist who opened fire on worshippers at two mosques -- claimed 50 lives.

Facebook on Friday said it is tightening live video streaming rules in response to the service being used to broadcast deadly attacks on mosques in New Zealand. The Christchurch attacks -- carried out by a self-avowed white supremacist who opened fire on worshippers at two mosques -- claimed 50 lives. Many people have "rightly questioned how online platforms such as Facebook were used to circulate horrific videos of the attack," chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg said in an online post. "In the wake of the terrorist attack, we are taking three steps: strengthening the rules for using Facebook Live, taking further steps to address hate on our platforms, and supporting the New Zealand community," she added. Facebook is looking into barring people who have previously violated the social network's community standards from live-streaming on its platform, according to Sandberg. The social network is also investing in improving the software to quickly identify edited versions of violent video or images to prevent them from being shared or re-posted. "While the original New Zealand attack video was shared Live, we know that this video spread mainly through people re-sharing it and re-editing it to make it harder for our systems to block it," Sandberg said. "People with bad intentions will always try to get around our security measures." Facebook identified more than 900 different videos showing portions of the streamed violence. The social network is using artificial intelligence tools to identify and remove hate groups in Australia and New Zealand, according to Sandberg. Those groups will be banned from Facebook services, she said. Facebook this week announced it would ban praise or support for white nationalism and white separatism as part of a stepped-up crackdown on hate speech. The ban will be enforced starting next week on the leading online social network and its image-centric messaging service Instagram. "It's clear that these concepts are deeply linked to organized hate groups and have no place on our services," the social network said in a statement. Facebook policies already banned posts endorsing white supremacy as part of its prohibition against spewing hate at people based on characteristics such as race, ethnicity or religion. The ban had not applied to some postings because it was reasoned they were expressions of broader concepts of nationalism or political independence, according to the social network. Facebook said that conversations with academics and "members of civil society" in recent months led it to view white nationalism and separatism as linked to organized hate groups. People who enter search terms associated with white supremacy will get results referring them to resources such as Life After Hate, which focus on helping people turn their backs on such groups, according to Facebook. Amid pressure from governments around the world, Facebook has ramped up machine learning and artificial intelligence tools for finding and removing hateful content. "We are deeply committed to strengthening our policies, improving our technology and working with experts to keep Facebook safe," Sandberg said. "We must all stand united against hate and work together to fight it wherever and whenever it occurs."

Facebook to tighten live stream access after mosque attacks

The <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-bans-white-nationalism-white-separatism-on-its-platforms-206154">US Department of Housing and Urban Development</a> (HUD) charged Facebook Inc on Thursday with violating the Fair Housing Act, alleging that the company's targeted advertising discriminated on the basis of race and colour.

Seeking damages and unspecified appropriate relief for the harm caused, HUD said that <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-shuts-more-inauthentic-accounts-linked-to-iran-russia-macedonia-kosovo-205835">Facebook also restricted </a>who could see housing-related ads based on national origin, religion, familial status, sex and disability.

Facebook said it had been working with HUD on the issue and was surprised by the department's decision to issue the charge, having taken significant steps to prevent ads that discriminate across its platforms.

The social media giant said last week it would create a new advertising portal for ads linked to housing and employment that would limit targeting options for advertisers and pledged to build a tool that would allow users to search all current housing ads listed in the United States, regardless of whether the ads were directed at them.

The HUD charge said that Facebook enabled advertisers to exclude people whom the social network's data classified as parents, non-American-born, non-Christian, or a variety of other interests that closely align with the Fair Housing Act's protected classes.

"Facebook is discriminating against people based upon who they are and where they live," HUD Secretary Ben Carson said. "Using a computer to limit a person's housing choices can be just as discriminatory as slamming a door in someone's face."

Advertising practices at the world's largest social network, with 2.7 billion users and nearly $56 billion in annual revenue, have been under the microscope for about two years of growing discontent over Facebook's approach to privacy and user data.

News organization ProPublica reported as far back as 2016 that advertisers could target ads through Facebook based on people's self-reported jobs, even if the job was "Jew hater".

ProPublica later reported that it was able to buy discriminatory housing ads and slip them past Facebook's review process, despite the company's claims it was blocking such ads.

Since then, Facebook has undergone legal pressure over the issue from the National Fair Housing Alliance, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Communications Workers of America, among other groups and individuals.

The civil charge follows an investigation by HUD in August when it filed a formal complaint against Facebook for violating the Fair Housing Act by allowing landlords and home sellers to use its advertising platform to engage in housing discrimination.

The charge will be heard by a US law administrative judge who can award damages for harm caused by the discrimination, along with fines and injunctive and other equitable relief.

The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing and related services, which includes online advertisements, based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, or familial status.

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) charged Facebook Inc on Thursday with violating the Fair Housing Act, alleging that the company's targeted advertising discriminated on the basis of race and colour.

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) charged Facebook Inc on Thursday with violating the Fair Housing Act, alleging that the company's targeted advertising discriminated on the basis of race and colour. Seeking damages and unspecified appropriate relief for the harm caused, HUD said that Facebook also restricted who could see housing-related ads based on national origin, religion, familial status, sex and disability. Facebook said it had been working with HUD on the issue and was surprised by the department's decision to issue the charge, having taken significant steps to prevent ads that discriminate across its platforms. The social media giant said last week it would create a new advertising portal for ads linked to housing and employment that would limit targeting options for advertisers and pledged to build a tool that would allow users to search all current housing ads listed in the United States, regardless of whether the ads were directed at them. The HUD charge said that Facebook enabled advertisers to exclude people whom the social network's data classified as parents, non-American-born, non-Christian, or a variety of other interests that closely align with the Fair Housing Act's protected classes. "Facebook is discriminating against people based upon who they are and where they live," HUD Secretary Ben Carson said. "Using a computer to limit a person's housing choices can be just as discriminatory as slamming a door in someone's face." Advertising practices at the world's largest social network, with 2.7 billion users and nearly $56 billion in annual revenue, have been under the microscope for about two years of growing discontent over Facebook's approach to privacy and user data. News organization ProPublica reported as far back as 2016 that advertisers could target ads through Facebook based on people's self-reported jobs, even if the job was "Jew hater". ProPublica later reported that it was able to buy discriminatory housing ads and slip them past Facebook's review process, despite the company's claims it was blocking such ads. Since then, Facebook has undergone legal pressure over the issue from the National Fair Housing Alliance, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Communications Workers of America, among other groups and individuals. The civil charge follows an investigation by HUD in August when it filed a formal complaint against Facebook for violating the Fair Housing Act by allowing landlords and home sellers to use its advertising platform to engage in housing discrimination. The charge will be heard by a US law administrative judge who can award damages for harm caused by the discrimination, along with fines and injunctive and other equitable relief. The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing and related services, which includes online advertisements, based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, or familial status.

Facebook charged with racial discrimination over targeted housing ads

Social media major Facebook Tuesday launched a feature 'Candidate Connect' through which Lok Sabha candidates can record their poll promises in 20-second videos.

"We actually think the greatest contribution that we can make is to help everybody be more informed. Candidate Connect is essentially a visual guide for voters," Samidh Chakrabarti, Director - Product Management for Civic Integrity, Facebook, told PTI.

He said Facebook has already started removing fake accounts and "bad actors who mislead people" and has brought in transparency in political advertisements.

The company created 'Candidate Connect' based on research that it conducted in the country so that people can directly hear views of candidates in their constituencies, he said.

Facebook will pose a set of four questions to the candidates, who will be allowed to post 20-second videos in response to each query.

"Only videos by Lok Sabha candidates will be shown in Candidate Connect. Facebook is working with a third-party non-partisan organisation to receive candidate names. The organisation receives information such as candidate lists from the Election Commission," Chakrabarti said.

The videos of all contestants in a constituency will show up on the timeline of people in that area.

"People can access videos of candidates from other districts as well but it is actually intended to show up on the timeline of voters in a particular constituency," he said.

Facebook will also send out reminders to people on polling dates in their constituencies under 'Share You Voted' tag.

"On election day people can show that they voted and upload picture. We will aggregate those pictures, prepare a collage of friends and show it on the timeline of people connected to them in a video format. This will amplify voting spirit," Chakrabarti said. &nbsp;

Social media major Facebook Tuesday launched a feature 'Candidate Connect' through which Lok Sabha candidates can record their poll promises in 20-second videos.

Social media major Facebook Tuesday launched a feature 'Candidate Connect' through which Lok Sabha candidates can record their poll promises in 20-second videos. "We actually think the greatest contribution that we can make is to help everybody be more informed. Candidate Connect is essentially a visual guide for voters," Samidh Chakrabarti, Director - Product Management for Civic Integrity, Facebook, told PTI. He said Facebook has already started removing fake accounts and "bad actors who mislead people" and has brought in transparency in political advertisements. The company created 'Candidate Connect' based on research that it conducted in the country so that people can directly hear views of candidates in their constituencies, he said. Facebook will pose a set of four questions to the candidates, who will be allowed to post 20-second videos in response to each query. "Only videos by Lok Sabha candidates will be shown in Candidate Connect. Facebook is working with a third-party non-partisan organisation to receive candidate names. The organisation receives information such as candidate lists from the Election Commission," Chakrabarti said. The videos of all contestants in a constituency will show up on the timeline of people in that area. "People can access videos of candidates from other districts as well but it is actually intended to show up on the timeline of voters in a particular constituency," he said. Facebook will also send out reminders to people on polling dates in their constituencies under 'Share You Voted' tag. "On election day people can show that they voted and upload picture. We will aggregate those pictures, prepare a collage of friends and show it on the timeline of people connected to them in a video format. This will amplify voting spirit," Chakrabarti said.

Lok Sabha polls 2019: Facebook rolls out 'Candidate Connect' feature

Facebook said Tuesday it shut down more than<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-admits-storing-passwords-in-plain-text-204732"> 2,600 fake accounts linked to Iran, Russia</a>, Macedonia and Kosovo and aiming to influence political sentiment in various parts of the world.

It was the latest effort by the leading social network to shut down "inauthentic" accounts on Facebook and Instagram seeking to influence politics in the US and elsewhere.

Facebook said the accounts blocked in the four countries were not necessarily centrally coordinated but "used similar tactics by creating networks of accounts to mislead others about who they were and what they were doing," said Nathaniel Gleicher, head of cybersecurity policy for the company.

"We are constantly working to detect and stop this type of activity because we don't want our services to be used to manipulate people," Gleicher said in a blog post.

"In each case, the people behind this activity coordinated with one another and used fake accounts to misrepresent themselves, and that was the basis for our action."

Gleicher said Facebook -- which has made similar moves in recent months - was making progress in rooting out fake accounts but noted that "it's an ongoing challenge because the people responsible are determined and well-funded. We constantly have to improve to stay ahead."

In the latest action, Facebook said it removed 513 pages, groups and accounts tied to Iran and operating in Egypt, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Kashmir, Kazakhstan and various areas of the Middle East and North Africa.

Similar to other manipulation campaigns, the users posed as locals and "made-up media entities" and posted news stories about topics including sanctions against Iran, tensions between India and Pakistan, issues in the Middle East and the crisis in Venezuela.

"Although the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their identities, our review linked these accounts to Iran," Gleicher said.

Another 1,907 accounts linked to Russia were also blocked. These sought to influence sentiment related to Ukrainian news and politics, the situation in Crimea and corruption.

Facebook said 212 Facebook accounts originating in Macedonia and Kosovo were shut down for misrepresenting themselves as users in Australia, the United States and Britain and sharing content about politics, astrology, celebrities and beauty tips.

Earlier this month, Facebook said it blocked online manipulation efforts in Britain and Romania from users seeking to spread hate speech and divisive comments.

In January, Facebook took down hundreds of accounts from Iran that were part of a vast manipulation campaign operating in more than 20 countries.

Facebook said Tuesday it shut down more than 2,600 fake accounts linked to Iran, Russia, Macedonia and Kosovo and aiming to influence political sentiment in various parts of the world.

Facebook said Tuesday it shut down more than 2,600 fake accounts linked to Iran, Russia, Macedonia and Kosovo and aiming to influence political sentiment in various parts of the world. It was the latest effort by the leading social network to shut down "inauthentic" accounts on Facebook and Instagram seeking to influence politics in the US and elsewhere. Facebook said the accounts blocked in the four countries were not necessarily centrally coordinated but "used similar tactics by creating networks of accounts to mislead others about who they were and what they were doing," said Nathaniel Gleicher, head of cybersecurity policy for the company. "We are constantly working to detect and stop this type of activity because we don't want our services to be used to manipulate people," Gleicher said in a blog post. "In each case, the people behind this activity coordinated with one another and used fake accounts to misrepresent themselves, and that was the basis for our action." Gleicher said Facebook -- which has made similar moves in recent months - was making progress in rooting out fake accounts but noted that "it's an ongoing challenge because the people responsible are determined and well-funded. We constantly have to improve to stay ahead." In the latest action, Facebook said it removed 513 pages, groups and accounts tied to Iran and operating in Egypt, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Kashmir, Kazakhstan and various areas of the Middle East and North Africa. Similar to other manipulation campaigns, the users posed as locals and "made-up media entities" and posted news stories about topics including sanctions against Iran, tensions between India and Pakistan, issues in the Middle East and the crisis in Venezuela. "Although the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their identities, our review linked these accounts to Iran," Gleicher said. Another 1,907 accounts linked to Russia were also blocked. These sought to influence sentiment related to Ukrainian news and politics, the situation in Crimea and corruption. Facebook said 212 Facebook accounts originating in Macedonia and Kosovo were shut down for misrepresenting themselves as users in Australia, the United States and Britain and sharing content about politics, astrology, celebrities and beauty tips. Earlier this month, Facebook said it blocked online manipulation efforts in Britain and Romania from users seeking to spread hate speech and divisive comments. In January, Facebook took down hundreds of accounts from Iran that were part of a vast manipulation campaign operating in more than 20 countries.

Facebook shuts more 'inauthentic' accounts linked to Iran, Russia, Macedonia & Kosovo

Facebook Inc confirmed Tuesday it had briefly blocked White House social media director Dan Scavino from replying to comments from a reader, saying it was aimed at stopping "automated bots" and had apologized to him.

The social media company said in an emailed statement that it caps "the amount of identical, repetitive activity coming from one account in a short period of time, such as @mentioning people. These limits can have the unintended consequence of temporarily preventing real people like Dan Scavino from engaging in such activity but lift in an hour or two, which is what happened in this case. We’ve been in touch with him and have apologized for the inconvenience."

Earlier Tuesday US&nbsp;President Donald Trump said&nbsp;he will look into Facebook's decision to block public comments by White House social media director Dan Scavino.

Scavino posted a screenshot late on Monday of a message from Facebook saying he was temporarily blocked from making public comments because some of his comments had been reported as spam.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-restores-services-after-global-outage-203386">Facebook </a>said the issue was an "unintended consequence" of the platform's policy on scam, adding, it has been in touch with Scavino and has apologized to him.

Explaining the error, Facebook said it caps the amount of identical, repetitive activity coming from one account in a short period of time as to stop automated bots.

"These limits can have the unintended consequence of temporarily preventing real people like Dan Scavino from engaging in such activity, but lift in an hour or two, which is what happened in this case," a Facebook spokesperson said.

"Dear Facebook—AMAZING. WHY ARE YOU STOPPING ME from replying to comments followers have left me - on my own Facebook Page!!?? People have the right to know. Why are you silencing me??? Please LMK!" Scavino said in his post earlier.

Trump pounced on the issue. "I will be looking into this!" Trump said in a Twitter post.

Facebook said the issue is "content-agnostic and is solely about addressing potentially scammy repetitive behaviour."

Earlier on Tuesday, Trump accused social media platforms Facebook, YouTube and Twitter of favouring his Democratic opponents over him and his fellow Republicans. Alphabet Inc's Google owns YouTube.

Twitter declined to comment while Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Facebook Inc confirmed Tuesday it had briefly blocked White House social media director Dan Scavino from replying to comments from a reader, saying it was aimed at stopping "automated bots" and had apologized to him.

Facebook Inc confirmed Tuesday it had briefly blocked White House social media director Dan Scavino from replying to comments from a reader, saying it was aimed at stopping "automated bots" and had apologized to him. The social media company said in an emailed statement that it caps "the amount of identical, repetitive activity coming from one account in a short period of time, such as @mentioning people. These limits can have the unintended consequence of temporarily preventing real people like Dan Scavino from engaging in such activity but lift in an hour or two, which is what happened in this case. We’ve been in touch with him and have apologized for the inconvenience." Earlier Tuesday US President Donald Trump said he will look into Facebook's decision to block public comments by White House social media director Dan Scavino. Scavino posted a screenshot late on Monday of a message from Facebook saying he was temporarily blocked from making public comments because some of his comments had been reported as spam. Facebook said the issue was an "unintended consequence" of the platform's policy on scam, adding, it has been in touch with Scavino and has apologized to him. Explaining the error, Facebook said it caps the amount of identical, repetitive activity coming from one account in a short period of time as to stop automated bots. "These limits can have the unintended consequence of temporarily preventing real people like Dan Scavino from engaging in such activity, but lift in an hour or two, which is what happened in this case," a Facebook spokesperson said. "Dear Facebook—AMAZING. WHY ARE YOU STOPPING ME from replying to comments followers have left me - on my own Facebook Page!!?? People have the right to know. Why are you silencing me??? Please LMK!" Scavino said in his post earlier. Trump pounced on the issue. "I will be looking into this!" Trump said in a Twitter post. Facebook said the issue is "content-agnostic and is solely about addressing potentially scammy repetitive behaviour." Earlier on Tuesday, Trump accused social media platforms Facebook, YouTube and Twitter of favouring his Democratic opponents over him and his fellow Republicans. Alphabet Inc's Google owns YouTube. Twitter declined to comment while Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Facebook confirms it briefly limited White House official Dan Scavino's account

Anurag Thakur, chairman of Parliamentary IT Committee, briefed the media after concluding the meeting with officials of Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram on Wednesday. Thakur informed that the officials of social media platforms "accepted there is a need for corrective measures and that they're ready for them," news agency ANI reported.&nbsp;

"They have said they will be in touch with the Election Commission and work on the information provided by the concerned ministries,"&nbsp;Thakur noted, adding that the Parliamentary Committee has asked the officials to ensure the respective platforms are not used to "create division in society or incite violence."&nbsp;

"We asked them to ensure their platforms aren't used to create division in society, incite violence, pose threat to India's security or let foreign powers meddle in Indian elections," Thakur told reporters in New Delhi.&nbsp;

A parliamentary panel Wednesday expressed concern over social media giant Facebook's ability to prevent misuse of its platform during elections in India, news agency PTI reported.

The 31-member panel had met to hear the views of the representatives of Facebook and its affiliates WhatsApp and Instagram on 'safeguarding citizens rights on social/online news media platforms'.&nbsp;

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Anurag Thakur, Chairman, Parliamentary IT Committee: They accepted there is a need for corrective measures &amp; that they're ready for them. They have said they will be in touch with the Election Commission &amp; work on the information provided by the concerned ministries. <a href="https://t.co/pjDkGT5WXq">https://t.co/pjDkGT5WXq</a>
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A senior official of Facebook appeared before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology headed by BJP MP Anurag Thakur and responded to concerns raised by the lawmakers over the possible misuse of social media to influence elections, PTI reported.&nbsp;

Facebook has given a commitment to the panel that identity, location and who paid for advertisements during elections will be available on a special web page for users, sources said.

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Facebook Vice-President, Joel Kaplan after meeting with Parliamentary IT Comm: We are very grateful to the honourable Parliamentary Comm for giving us opportunity to come &amp; share how we are preparing for the Indian election &amp; helping keep people in India safe on our platform. <a href="https://t.co/SzcWpTkU9T">pic.twitter.com/SzcWpTkU9T</a>
— ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1103281734978723842?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2019</a></blockquote>
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According&nbsp;to reports, Facebook told the committee members that it was a "hybrid company" and failed to clearly answer which regulatory framework apply to their content, advertising and marketing operations in India.

The US-based company also admitted it doesn't "always get it right" regarding content moderation on its platform, PTI reported.&nbsp;

One of the sources said that the sense of committee members was that "despite all the apologies for past mistakes that Facebook has made, it still seems unwilling to be properly scrutinised and transparent."

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

Anurag Thakur, chairman of Parliamentary IT Committee, briefed the media after concluding the meeting with officials of Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram on Wednesday.

Anurag Thakur, chairman of Parliamentary IT Committee, briefed the media after concluding the meeting with officials of Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram on Wednesday. Thakur informed that the officials of social media platforms "accepted there is a need for corrective measures and that they're ready for them," news agency ANI reported. "They have said they will be in touch with the Election Commission and work on the information provided by the concerned ministries," Thakur noted, adding that the Parliamentary Committee has asked the officials to ensure the respective platforms are not used to "create division in society or incite violence." "We asked them to ensure their platforms aren't used to create division in society, incite violence, pose threat to India's security or let foreign powers meddle in Indian elections," Thakur told reporters in New Delhi. A parliamentary panel Wednesday expressed concern over social media giant Facebook's ability to prevent misuse of its platform during elections in India, news agency PTI reported. The 31-member panel had met to hear the views of the representatives of Facebook and its affiliates WhatsApp and Instagram on 'safeguarding citizens rights on social/online news media platforms'. Anurag Thakur, Chairman, Parliamentary IT Committee: They accepted there is a need for corrective measures & that they're ready for them. They have said they will be in touch with the Election Commission & work on the information provided by the concerned ministries. https://t.co/pjDkGT5WXq — ANI (@ANI) March 6, 2019 × A senior official of Facebook appeared before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology headed by BJP MP Anurag Thakur and responded to concerns raised by the lawmakers over the possible misuse of social media to influence elections, PTI reported. Facebook has given a commitment to the panel that identity, location and who paid for advertisements during elections will be available on a special web page for users, sources said. Facebook Vice-President, Joel Kaplan after meeting with Parliamentary IT Comm: We are very grateful to the honourable Parliamentary Comm for giving us opportunity to come & share how we are preparing for the Indian election & helping keep people in India safe on our platform. pic.twitter.com/SzcWpTkU9T — ANI (@ANI) March 6, 2019 × According to reports, Facebook told the committee members that it was a "hybrid company" and failed to clearly answer which regulatory framework apply to their content, advertising and marketing operations in India. The US-based company also admitted it doesn't "always get it right" regarding content moderation on its platform, PTI reported. One of the sources said that the sense of committee members was that "despite all the apologies for past mistakes that Facebook has made, it still seems unwilling to be properly scrutinised and transparent." (With inputs from agencies)

Facebook officials agreed to ensure that their platforms aren't used to create division in society: Parliamentary panel

The Delhi High Court has directed Facebook to ensure that links of a video containing allegations against yoga guru Ramdev are removed from its platform.

The court said Google and YouTube have rightly removed the video from their platforms.

After viewing the video, the court noted that it showed a protagonist casting various aspersions, making wild allegations and levelling threats against Ramdev and Patanjali.

"The video clearly is violative of the guidelines which Google and YouTube have prescribed for themselves. The video is also not just offensive against the plaintiffs (Patanjali Ayurved Ltd and Ramdev) but could border on threats constituting violations of law," Justice Prathiba M Singh said.

"Facebook Inc. Is also directed to ensure that the links to the said video links are no longer made available on its platform," the court said.

It said if any further instances of uploading of same video comes to the knowledge of the plaintiffs, they are permitted to intimate the platforms which shall take down the video within 48 hours.&nbsp;

"In view of the stand taken by Google and YouTube, since the video itself has now stated to have been taken down not just on the India domain but from all the international platforms of Google and YouTube no further orders are required to be passed in the present suit," the court said and disposed of the suit.

The court was hearing a suit by Ramdev alleging that they came across a video uploaded by some unknown person who made several defamatory, disparaging and threatening statements against him and Patanjali.

Earlier on January 24, the Delhi High Court had issued an interim order directing Facebook, Google, its subsidiary YouTube and Twitter to forthwith remove, block or disable links to a video containing allegations against yoga guru Ramdev.

It also asked the social media platforms to give in a sealed cover the subscriber information regarding the individual who uploaded the video.

After perusing the video, Justice Pratibha M Singh had noted that it contained excerpts of a book on Ramdev that were ordered to be deleted by the high court in September last year.

The high court had on September 29, 2018 restrained the publisher and author of the book -- Godman from Tycoon -- from publishing it till the offending portions were deleted, the judge noted.

The court said that the un-deleted portions of the book were being communicated to the public through the video which was uploaded on Facebook, Google, YouTube and Twitter.

Regarding the question whether such platforms can be directed to remove, block or disable content on the international domain and not merely on the Indian domain, the court said it is left open to be adjudicated in an appropriate case.

However, in January Justice Singh had observed that orders of a US court to remove such links would have been implemented by Facebook globally and not just in the US.

The court said the basic subscriber information of the person or entity who has uploaded the video shall be filed in a sealed cover before it.

"Upon receiving the basic subscriber information of the persons/entities that had uploaded the impugned video, the plaintiffs are permitted to avail their remedies in law," it said.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

The Delhi High Court has directed Facebook to ensure that links of a video containing allegations against yoga guru Ramdev are removed from its platform. The court said Google and YouTube have rightly removed the video from their platforms.

The Delhi High Court has directed Facebook to ensure that links of a video containing allegations against yoga guru Ramdev are removed from its platform. The court said Google and YouTube have rightly removed the video from their platforms. After viewing the video, the court noted that it showed a protagonist casting various aspersions, making wild allegations and levelling threats against Ramdev and Patanjali. "The video clearly is violative of the guidelines which Google and YouTube have prescribed for themselves. The video is also not just offensive against the plaintiffs (Patanjali Ayurved Ltd and Ramdev) but could border on threats constituting violations of law," Justice Prathiba M Singh said. "Facebook Inc. Is also directed to ensure that the links to the said video links are no longer made available on its platform," the court said. It said if any further instances of uploading of same video comes to the knowledge of the plaintiffs, they are permitted to intimate the platforms which shall take down the video within 48 hours. "In view of the stand taken by Google and YouTube, since the video itself has now stated to have been taken down not just on the India domain but from all the international platforms of Google and YouTube no further orders are required to be passed in the present suit," the court said and disposed of the suit. The court was hearing a suit by Ramdev alleging that they came across a video uploaded by some unknown person who made several defamatory, disparaging and threatening statements against him and Patanjali. Earlier on January 24, the Delhi High Court had issued an interim order directing Facebook, Google, its subsidiary YouTube and Twitter to forthwith remove, block or disable links to a video containing allegations against yoga guru Ramdev. It also asked the social media platforms to give in a sealed cover the subscriber information regarding the individual who uploaded the video. After perusing the video, Justice Pratibha M Singh had noted that it contained excerpts of a book on Ramdev that were ordered to be deleted by the high court in September last year. The high court had on September 29, 2018 restrained the publisher and author of the book -- Godman from Tycoon -- from publishing it till the offending portions were deleted, the judge noted. The court said that the un-deleted portions of the book were being communicated to the public through the video which was uploaded on Facebook, Google, YouTube and Twitter. Regarding the question whether such platforms can be directed to remove, block or disable content on the international domain and not merely on the Indian domain, the court said it is left open to be adjudicated in an appropriate case. However, in January Justice Singh had observed that orders of a US court to remove such links would have been implemented by Facebook globally and not just in the US. The court said the basic subscriber information of the person or entity who has uploaded the video shall be filed in a sealed cover before it. "Upon receiving the basic subscriber information of the persons/entities that had uploaded the impugned video, the plaintiffs are permitted to avail their remedies in law," it said.

High Court directs Facebook to remove links to video disparaging Ramdev

Facebook on Tuesday removed the accounts of leading <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/new-york-governor-orders-probe-into-facebook-access-to-data-from-other-apps-199093">British far-right activist Tommy Robinson </a>for violating its "community standards" by promoting "organised hate" and other prohibited behaviour.

The US social media giant said Robinson, a controversial figure who founded the anti-Islam English Defence League (EDL), had used its platform to share "dehumanising language" and "calls for violence targeted at Muslims".

The company added it was closing his Facebook page and Instagram profile because its community standards forbid "hate speech that may create an environment of intimidation and exclusion for certain groups".

"Tommy Robinson's Facebook page has repeatedly broken these standards, posting material that uses dehumanising language and calls for violence targeted at Muslims," the company said in a statement.

"He has also behaved in ways that violate our policies around organised hate.

"This is not a decision we take lightly, but individuals and organisations that attack others on the basis of who they are have no place on Facebook or Instagram."

The social media firm is under pressure to rein in disinformation and the use of its platform to share hate speech and other malign material.

It follows a wave of scandals, mainly over the sharing of its users' data without their consent but also over the rampant use of its platform for Russian "fake news" influence campaigns during the 2016 US presidential elections.

A scathing British parliamentary report released last week branded Facebook "digital gangsters" who failed to fight the spread of fake news and violated data privacy.

Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon -- the name of a well-known football hooligan from his hometown of Luton in central England that he has adopted -- is highly divisive in Britain.&nbsp;

He has prior convictions for drugs and assault and was also imprisoned last year for live-streaming outside a court in breach of reporting restrictions on a trial of a gang accused of sexual assault.

Robinson has a large following in the United States.

He defended himself in an interview with Britain's Press Association saying: "Where is free speech? I've breached no laws of Facebook... What I've done is shown people the truth, and that is what they are removing, the truth."

On Saturday he led a 4,000-strong protest against the BBC, which is preparing a documentary about him, outside its Manchester headquarters.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Facebook on Tuesday removed the accounts of leading British far-right activist Tommy Robinson for violating its "community standards" by promoting "organised hate" and other prohibited behaviour.

Facebook on Tuesday removed the accounts of leading British far-right activist Tommy Robinson for violating its "community standards" by promoting "organised hate" and other prohibited behaviour. The US social media giant said Robinson, a controversial figure who founded the anti-Islam English Defence League (EDL), had used its platform to share "dehumanising language" and "calls for violence targeted at Muslims". The company added it was closing his Facebook page and Instagram profile because its community standards forbid "hate speech that may create an environment of intimidation and exclusion for certain groups". "Tommy Robinson's Facebook page has repeatedly broken these standards, posting material that uses dehumanising language and calls for violence targeted at Muslims," the company said in a statement. "He has also behaved in ways that violate our policies around organised hate. "This is not a decision we take lightly, but individuals and organisations that attack others on the basis of who they are have no place on Facebook or Instagram." The social media firm is under pressure to rein in disinformation and the use of its platform to share hate speech and other malign material. It follows a wave of scandals, mainly over the sharing of its users' data without their consent but also over the rampant use of its platform for Russian "fake news" influence campaigns during the 2016 US presidential elections. A scathing British parliamentary report released last week branded Facebook "digital gangsters" who failed to fight the spread of fake news and violated data privacy. Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon -- the name of a well-known football hooligan from his hometown of Luton in central England that he has adopted -- is highly divisive in Britain. He has prior convictions for drugs and assault and was also imprisoned last year for live-streaming outside a court in breach of reporting restrictions on a trial of a gang accused of sexual assault. Robinson has a large following in the United States. He defended himself in an interview with Britain's Press Association saying: "Where is free speech? I've breached no laws of Facebook... What I've done is shown people the truth, and that is what they are removing, the truth." On Saturday he led a 4,000-strong protest against the BBC, which is preparing a documentary about him, outside its Manchester headquarters.

Facebook bans British far-right activist Tommy Robinson for violating 'community standards'

Pakistani intelligence agencies are using fake Facebook profiles with names of Indian women in an attempt to honey trap Indian defence forces'&nbsp;personnel, prompting authorities here to send out an alert.

The alert was sent out after one such Facebook profile was detected, from which friend requests are being sent.

"After inputs were received from our personnel about a Facebook profile (Facebook ID name deliberately withheld) using the name of an Indian woman and sending friend requests to military personnel, a thorough check was carried out and found that it was confirmed Pakistani Intelligence Operative and the profile was also created there only," defence intelligence sources told ANI.

"After this, a warning has been issued to defence forces'&nbsp;personnel to be alert about this profile to avoid falling in their trap," they said.

In the recent past, there have several cases where intelligence operatives using fake social media profiles honey-trapped Army personnel and passed on sensitive secret information to them.

Recently, an Army jawan was arrested after he was found to be in touch with a suspected ISI spy using the profile name of 'Anika Chopra'&nbsp;on Facebook and were chatting regularly on the social media and exchanging details and information about the jawam's armoured unit and its movement.

The Army is now tracking multiple accounts of officers and jawans to probe if the Pakistani spy account was in touch with other personnel also to get information from them, the sources said.

A Group Captain of the Indian Air Force was apprehended by the counter-intelligence units of the Army, Air Force and the Intelligence Bureau for sharing information about transport aircraft operations as he was posted in the Air Headquarters here.

A BrahMos employee was also caught where the Pakistani spy had used the same modus-operandi to trap the official.

Sources in the defence intelligence agencies say that there are several Facebook profiles which have been identified and have been deactivated by the operators but a large number of new profiles are created by the enemy intelligence operatives to extract information from Indian personnel.

The three services also keep issuing advisories to their personnel against posting any military-related pictures on their social media profiles to avoid attracting attention of such spies and those found violating the norms also get punished.

Recently, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat had also warned his personnel against falling in the social media trap of the enemy.

"Soldiers have been told not to accept social media friend requests with names of film stars. These could be honey traps. We are taking this very seriously and cannot allow security to be compromised through social media. For those (soldiers) who are not reporting the matter, the punishment is heavy," he had stated.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Pakistani intelligence agencies are using fake Facebook profiles with names of Indian women in an attempt to honey trap Indian defence forces' personnel, prompting authorities here to send out an alert.

Pakistani intelligence agencies are using fake Facebook profiles with names of Indian women in an attempt to honey trap Indian defence forces' personnel, prompting authorities here to send out an alert. The alert was sent out after one such Facebook profile was detected, from which friend requests are being sent. "After inputs were received from our personnel about a Facebook profile (Facebook ID name deliberately withheld) using the name of an Indian woman and sending friend requests to military personnel, a thorough check was carried out and found that it was confirmed Pakistani Intelligence Operative and the profile was also created there only," defence intelligence sources told ANI. "After this, a warning has been issued to defence forces' personnel to be alert about this profile to avoid falling in their trap," they said. In the recent past, there have several cases where intelligence operatives using fake social media profiles honey-trapped Army personnel and passed on sensitive secret information to them. Recently, an Army jawan was arrested after he was found to be in touch with a suspected ISI spy using the profile name of 'Anika Chopra' on Facebook and were chatting regularly on the social media and exchanging details and information about the jawam's armoured unit and its movement. The Army is now tracking multiple accounts of officers and jawans to probe if the Pakistani spy account was in touch with other personnel also to get information from them, the sources said. A Group Captain of the Indian Air Force was apprehended by the counter-intelligence units of the Army, Air Force and the Intelligence Bureau for sharing information about transport aircraft operations as he was posted in the Air Headquarters here. A BrahMos employee was also caught where the Pakistani spy had used the same modus-operandi to trap the official. Sources in the defence intelligence agencies say that there are several Facebook profiles which have been identified and have been deactivated by the operators but a large number of new profiles are created by the enemy intelligence operatives to extract information from Indian personnel. The three services also keep issuing advisories to their personnel against posting any military-related pictures on their social media profiles to avoid attracting attention of such spies and those found violating the norms also get punished. Recently, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat had also warned his personnel against falling in the social media trap of the enemy. "Soldiers have been told not to accept social media friend requests with names of film stars. These could be honey traps. We are taking this very seriously and cannot allow security to be compromised through social media. For those (soldiers) who are not reporting the matter, the punishment is heavy," he had stated.

Defence personnel alerted against Pak spy on Facebook

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/trump-speaks-on-pulwama-attack-says-very-dangerous-situation-between-india-pakistan-199055">Trump speaks on Pulwama attack, says 'very dangerous situation' between India and Pakistan</a>

US President Donald Trump voiced alarm Friday at the "very dangerous situation" between India and Pakistan, warning that New Delhi was considering "very strong" action after Pulwama terror attack in Kashmir.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/un-chief-warns-venezuela-against-lethal-force-on-protesters-199058">UN chief warns Maduro government against lethal force on protesters</a>

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday urged authorities in Venezuela not to use lethal force against protesters, after soldiers shot dead two indigenous people who were attempting to prevent the sealing of a border crossing to Brazil.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/michael-cohen-gave-prosecutors-information-on-trump-family-business-report-199063">Michael Cohen gave prosecutors information on Trump family business: Report</a>

US President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen met last month with federal prosecutors in Manhattan and provided information about potential irregularities in the Trump family business, the New York Times reported on Friday.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/sudan-president-bashir-declares-year-long-state-of-emergency-across-the-country-199057">President Bashir declares </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/sudan-president-bashir-declares-year-long-state-of-emergency-across-the-country-199057">year-long</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/sudan-president-bashir-declares-year-long-state-of-emergency-across-the-country-199057"> state of emergency across Sudan</a>

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir declared a nationwide state of emergency on Friday and dissolved the government in an effort to quell weeks of demonstrations that have rocked his iron-fisted rule.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/apps-send-intimate-user-data-to-facebook-report-199073">Smartphone apps send intimate user data to Facebook: Report</a>

A news report Friday said many smartphone apps were sending highly personal information such as menstrual cycles and body weight to Facebook, without notifying users.

Trump speaks on Pulwama attack, says 'very dangerous situation' between India and Pakistan US President Donald Trump voiced alarm Friday at the "very dangerous situation" between India and Pakistan, warning that New Delhi was considering "very strong" action after Pulwama terror attack in Kashmir.

Trump speaks on Pulwama attack, says 'very dangerous situation' between India and Pakistan US President Donald Trump voiced alarm Friday at the "very dangerous situation" between India and Pakistan, warning that New Delhi was considering "very strong" action after Pulwama terror attack in Kashmir. UN chief warns Maduro government against lethal force on protesters UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday urged authorities in Venezuela not to use lethal force against protesters, after soldiers shot dead two indigenous people who were attempting to prevent the sealing of a border crossing to Brazil. Michael Cohen gave prosecutors information on Trump family business: Report US President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen met last month with federal prosecutors in Manhattan and provided information about potential irregularities in the Trump family business, the New York Times reported on Friday. President Bashir declares year-long state of emergency across Sudan Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir declared a nationwide state of emergency on Friday and dissolved the government in an effort to quell weeks of demonstrations that have rocked his iron-fisted rule. Smartphone apps send intimate user data to Facebook: Report A news report Friday said many smartphone apps were sending highly personal information such as menstrual cycles and body weight to Facebook, without notifying users.

An Indian parliamentary panel has summoned representatives of Facebook Inc, its messaging services WhatsApp and photo-sharing app Instagram to appear before it early next month and discuss how to safeguard citizens' rights on social media.

Social media in the world's largest democracy have become a hotbed for circulation of fake political news and tech firms face intense scrutiny ahead of a general election due before May, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will seek a second term.

In a circular late on Thursday, the parliamentary committee on information technology, chaired by Anurag Thakur, said it would hear the views of officials from Facebook and its units on March 6.

The subject would be "safeguarding citizens' rights on social or online news media platforms," it added.

It was not immediately clear whether the panel had asked Indian or global executives of the three firms to appear.

Facebook declined to comment, while WhatsApp and Instagram did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The panel has previously summoned social network Twitter Inc's Chief Executive Jack Dorsey to appear on Monday to discuss the same topic.

"These are issues for all Internet services globally," Twitter said on Friday, adding that Colin Crowell, its global vice president of public policy, is to meet the panel on Monday.

Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter have overhauled policies to boost transparency ahead of the general election and rein in misinformation.

Alphabet Inc's Google this week launched a programme to train journalists in areas such as online verification and fact checking before the polls. 
&nbsp;

An Indian parliamentary panel has summoned representatives of Facebook Inc, its messaging services WhatsApp and photo-sharing app Instagram to appear before it early next month and discuss how to safeguard citizens' rights on social media.

An Indian parliamentary panel has summoned representatives of Facebook Inc, its messaging services WhatsApp and photo-sharing app Instagram to appear before it early next month and discuss how to safeguard citizens' rights on social media. Social media in the world's largest democracy have become a hotbed for circulation of fake political news and tech firms face intense scrutiny ahead of a general election due before May, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will seek a second term. In a circular late on Thursday, the parliamentary committee on information technology, chaired by Anurag Thakur, said it would hear the views of officials from Facebook and its units on March 6. The subject would be "safeguarding citizens' rights on social or online news media platforms," it added. It was not immediately clear whether the panel had asked Indian or global executives of the three firms to appear. Facebook declined to comment, while WhatsApp and Instagram did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The panel has previously summoned social network Twitter Inc's Chief Executive Jack Dorsey to appear on Monday to discuss the same topic. "These are issues for all Internet services globally," Twitter said on Friday, adding that Colin Crowell, its global vice president of public policy, is to meet the panel on Monday. Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter have overhauled policies to boost transparency ahead of the general election and rein in misinformation. Alphabet Inc's Google this week launched a programme to train journalists in areas such as online verification and fact checking before the polls.

Indian lawmakers summon Facebook officials over citizens' rights protection

Twitter on Tuesday rolled out tools in Europe which will make it easier for voters to identify political campaign ads tied to crucial European Parliament elections in May amidst fears of Russian disinformation campaigns and threats of regulatory action.

Social networks such as Twitter and Facebook have come under pressure to do more to combat fake news and the spread of extremism and propaganda online. The European Union is concerned about Russia's role. Russia has repeatedly denied any such actions.

Twitter said its political campaigning ads policy, introduced during the US&nbsp;midterm elections, will also be launched in India and Australia, both of which are also heading to the polls.

In essence, it means that anyone can view ads put on Twitter endorsing a party or a candidate on its Ads Transparency Center, with details on billing information, ad spending and demographic targeting data. The ads will be available indefinitely.

A visual label and disclaimer information on promoted content will allow users to identify political campaign ads and who paid for them.

"Our political campaigning ads policy is being expanded to cover #EUElections2019, providing the general public with an additional layer of insight into who is running a political campaign ad on Twitter," the company said in a blog post.

It said candidates or organisations will have to go through a certification process with proof of identity before they can run political campaigning ads on its site. This policy will kick off on March 11.

Twitter on Tuesday rolled out tools in Europe which will make it easier for voters to identify political campaign ads tied to crucial European Parliament elections in May amidst fears of Russian disinformation campaigns and threats of regulatory action.

Twitter on Tuesday rolled out tools in Europe which will make it easier for voters to identify political campaign ads tied to crucial European Parliament elections in May amidst fears of Russian disinformation campaigns and threats of regulatory action. Social networks such as Twitter and Facebook have come under pressure to do more to combat fake news and the spread of extremism and propaganda online. The European Union is concerned about Russia's role. Russia has repeatedly denied any such actions. Twitter said its political campaigning ads policy, introduced during the US midterm elections, will also be launched in India and Australia, both of which are also heading to the polls. In essence, it means that anyone can view ads put on Twitter endorsing a party or a candidate on its Ads Transparency Center, with details on billing information, ad spending and demographic targeting data. The ads will be available indefinitely. A visual label and disclaimer information on promoted content will allow users to identify political campaign ads and who paid for them. "Our political campaigning ads policy is being expanded to cover #EUElections2019, providing the general public with an additional layer of insight into who is running a political campaign ad on Twitter," the company said in a blog post. It said candidates or organisations will have to go through a certification process with proof of identity before they can run political campaigning ads on its site. This policy will kick off on March 11.

Twitter launches political ad tracking tools in Europe ahead of key EU polls

The European Union reached a provisional deal Wednesday to overhaul the <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/european-parliament-rejects-controversial-eu-copyright-law-149273">bloc's online copyright law,</a> a top official said, after a tense battle that has pitted media firms against internet giants like Google.

The European Parliament and the European Council, which represents the 28 member states, struck the agreement after three days of intense negotiations led by the European Commission, the EU's executive arm.

"Agreement reached on #copyright! Europeans will finally have modern copyright rules fit for digital age with real benefits for everyone: guaranteed rights for users, fair remuneration for creators, clarity of rules for platforms," European Commission Vice President Andrus Ansip tweeted.

He said the rules would give people "more possibilities to use and access copyrighted material with full legal certainty. Freedom of expression is guaranteed, and users will have the power to swiftly contest any unjustified removal of their content by platform."

EU Parliament president Antonio Tajani added on Twitter that "the agreement just reached on the #copyright directive protects European creativity".&nbsp;

"Musicians, actors, writers, journalists, audiovisual, will be entitled to fair remuneration from web giants too."

The deal must still be formally approved by the European Council and European lawmakers ahead of European parliamentary elections in May.

The commission proposed reforms in September 2016 designed to modernise copyright for the digital age, sparking a major debate between member states.

Under the deal, online platforms will be required to pay "neighbouring rights" fees to media for links to, and short excerpts of, news stories.

News organisations, including AFP, have pushed for the move, arguing that giants like Facebook and Google make billions in revenue from advertising tied to news stories, while publishers suffer.

This sparked a fight between media and creators seeking payment for online content on the one hand, and lobbyists defending the business model of the Silicon Valley giants backed by internet freedom activists on the other.

Another part of the agreement intends to ensure that platforms such as YouTube pay more to those who provide its content.

The European Parliament backed a draft law of the copyright reform in September last year, but it was held up in negotiations with EU member states, notably because of a disagreement between France and Germany in the text.

The European Union reached a provisional deal Wednesday to overhaul the bloc's online copyright law, a top official said, after a tense battle that has pitted media firms against internet giants like Google.

The European Union reached a provisional deal Wednesday to overhaul the bloc's online copyright law, a top official said, after a tense battle that has pitted media firms against internet giants like Google. The European Parliament and the European Council, which represents the 28 member states, struck the agreement after three days of intense negotiations led by the European Commission, the EU's executive arm. "Agreement reached on #copyright! Europeans will finally have modern copyright rules fit for digital age with real benefits for everyone: guaranteed rights for users, fair remuneration for creators, clarity of rules for platforms," European Commission Vice President Andrus Ansip tweeted. He said the rules would give people "more possibilities to use and access copyrighted material with full legal certainty. Freedom of expression is guaranteed, and users will have the power to swiftly contest any unjustified removal of their content by platform." EU Parliament president Antonio Tajani added on Twitter that "the agreement just reached on the #copyright directive protects European creativity". "Musicians, actors, writers, journalists, audiovisual, will be entitled to fair remuneration from web giants too." The deal must still be formally approved by the European Council and European lawmakers ahead of European parliamentary elections in May. The commission proposed reforms in September 2016 designed to modernise copyright for the digital age, sparking a major debate between member states. Under the deal, online platforms will be required to pay "neighbouring rights" fees to media for links to, and short excerpts of, news stories. News organisations, including AFP, have pushed for the move, arguing that giants like Facebook and Google make billions in revenue from advertising tied to news stories, while publishers suffer. This sparked a fight between media and creators seeking payment for online content on the one hand, and lobbyists defending the business model of the Silicon Valley giants backed by internet freedom activists on the other. Another part of the agreement intends to ensure that platforms such as YouTube pay more to those who provide its content. The European Parliament backed a draft law of the copyright reform in September last year, but it was held up in negotiations with EU member states, notably because of a disagreement between France and Germany in the text.

After battle with Google, European Union reaches provisional deal on online copyright law

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