A proposal from the top Republican on the House Commerce Committee to add technologists, psychologists and youth development experts to the FTC is “one of the best ideas in the modern tech debate that has received way too little attention,” Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya said Tuesday. Bedoya is “thrilled” the proposal from House Commerce Committee ranking member Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., was included in the committee’s bipartisan privacy bill, the American Data Privacy and Protection Act (HR-8152) (see 2207200061). Speaking at the National Association of Attorneys General Presidential Summit, Bedoya said he, Commissioner Christine Wilson and the rest of the commission are studying legislation and “looking at other constructive steps we can take to advance research, heighten awareness, and protect children online.” Bedoya expressed interest in protections against online scams in “all languages” and protections for geolocation data. Any company that uses location data “should think hard about how to better protect their users,” he said. Bedoya said he will ask companies whether the data collection is necessary, how the data is being used and what more can be done to protect it.

Nearly seven in 10 cybersecurity professionals cite an increasing number of cyberattacks since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February, reported VMware Monday. The company canvassed 125 “incident responders” in June, finding two out of three reporting “malicious deepfakes” used as part of an attack, a 13% increase from last year, “with email as the top delivery method,” it said. Deepfake attacks use AI to create realistic video and audio content to trick victims into disclosing sensitive information. VMware said “burnout” among cybersecurity professionals “remains a critical issue.” Slightly fewer than half of respondents reported having experienced burnout or extreme stress in the past 12 months, down slightly from 51% in a similar survey last year, it said: “Of this group, 69% (versus 65% in 2021) of respondents have considered leaving their job as a result.”

Government officials can’t circumvent the First Amendment by inducing, threatening or colluding with private companies to suppress protected speech, Louisiana and Missouri argued Tuesday in an amended complaint for their free speech lawsuit against the Biden administration (see 2207130051). The states sued the administration in May, claiming officials colluded with social media companies to censor and suppress truthful information on topics like COVID-19, the efficacy of masks and election integrity. Among the lawsuit's targets: Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, White House Chief Medical Adviser Anthony Fauci, the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention, Homeland Security Department Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jen Easterly and DHS Disinformation Governance Board Nina Jankowicz. The states claim government officials colluded with Big Tech platforms to label misinformation and disinformation. “Counterspeech, not censorship, is the proper response to supposed ‘misinformation,’” they wrote.

President Joe Biden will sign the Chips and Science Act into law Tuesday and speak in the Rose Garden, the White House said Wednesday (see 2207280060). “This bill will lower the cost of everyday goods, strengthen American manufacturing and innovation, create good-paying jobs, and bolster our economic and national security,” the White House said.

Meta has until Aug. 22 to list its personal social networking features on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger so the FTC can better define the relevant market in its antitrust lawsuit against the company, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ruled Monday in 1:20-cv-03590 before the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (see 2201110071). Meta asked the court to compel the FTC to “more fully answer” whether certain features or activities available to platform users are within the definition of personal social networking. Meta “understandably seeks a clearer definition of what the FTC maintains is the personal-social-networking-services market,” Boasberg wrote. The FTC argued it sufficiently answered the question and will know more during discovery. Boasberg said a “middle ground” is the “wisest approach.” Meta is in a “much better” position than the agency to list each feature and activity, Boasberg said, ordering the company to produce the list. Meta “seems reasonable in asking the FTC to define the relevant market, given that its investigation has long since commenced,” he wrote. After Meta provides the list by Aug. 22, the FTC has until Sep. 22 to “inform Meta whether each such feature or activity is or is not within that definition,” Boasberg wrote. If the FTC changes its position on any of the items in the future, it can issue a supplemental response, he said.

Ohio will lead a class-action lawsuit against Facebook claiming the platform “misled” users about how a “proprietary algorithm promoted offensive and dangerous content to users,” a federal judge decided Wednesday. "This case is about lies and losses -- Facebook's lies, and the losses incurred by our pension systems and others," said Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R), concerning the filing before the U.S. District Court in Northern California. "Ohio is happy and determined to lead in enforcing accountability against Facebook." Ohio will be joint lead plaintiff with PFA Pension of Denmark. Between April and October 2021, the company and senior executives “violated federal securities laws by purposely misleading the public about the negative effects its products have on the health and well-being of children,” Yost’s office said. “Those misrepresentations boosted the price of Facebook stock, harming investors.” Yost represents the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System. “Ohio PERS and PFA Pension are the presumptive lead plaintiff by virtue of having the largest financial interest,” Judge Jon Tigar wrote in his ruling. Yost claims that testimony from Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen caused the company’s stock to plummet, resulting in about $3 million losses for the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System. The company didn’t comment.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is attempting an “illegal acquisition” to expand his “virtual reality empire,” the FTC said Tuesday in a lawsuit seeking to block the company’s purchase of Within Unlimited and its virtual reality fitness app Supernatural. The commission recorded a 3-2 party line vote to authorize staff to seek a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Meta’s “virtual reality empire includes the top-selling device, a leading app store, seven of the most successful developers, and one of the best-selling apps of all time,” the FTC said. The agency alleges Meta is attempting to acquire a “dedicated fitness app that proves the value of virtual reality to users.” The company is trying to buy its way to the top instead of competing on the merits, said FTC Competition Bureau Deputy Director John Newman. The case is “based on ideology and speculation, not evidence,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement. “The idea that this acquisition would lead to anticompetitive outcomes in a dynamic space with as much entry and growth as online and connected fitness is simply not credible.” The commission’s party-line vote sends a “chilling message to anyone who wishes to innovate in VR. We are confident that our acquisition of Within will be good for people, developers and the VR space.” The FTC claims the deal violates Section 7 of the Clayton Act, which prohibits transactions that may “substantially” decrease competition, “or tend to create a monopoly,” or Section 5 of the FTC Act.

Connectivity accessories supplier Covid announced an 8K HDMI cable for integrators that supports 8K@60 Hz, Deep Color and x.v.Color, HDR10, enhanced Audio Return Channel for Dolby Atmos and DTS-X, lossless Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD surround sound. The 15-foot 48-Gbps cable also supports Consumer Electronics Control extension commands and functions and HDMI Ethernet channel, the company said Wednesday.

The Software and Information Industry Association named Senior Vice President-Intellectual Property and General Counsel Chris Mohr interim president, the board of directors announced Monday. Mohr will replace President Jeff Joseph, who is leaving at the end of July to join a global communications company. Mohr joined SIIA in 2015 as vice president-IP and general counsel.

Comments are due Sept. 26 on the FTC’s proposed revisions for ad endorsement guidelines (see 2205190058), said a notice for Tuesday's Federal Register. The agency said it plans to expand definitions for online influencers and set clear rules for prohibiting manipulation of consumer reviews, omission of bad reviews and buying fake reviews. The updated guidelines will reflect the “extent to which advertisers have turned increasingly to the use of social media and product reviews to market their products,” said the FTC.