AT&T questioned a CableLabs study that argued the FCC can safely make additional changes to its 6 GHz rules proposed in a Further NPRM (see 2008270021). The study “suffers from significant flaws and mischaracterizations and provides no sound legal or engineering basis for Commission decisions in this docket,” said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 17-183. “The use of low-power indoor radio local area network devices without Automated Frequency Control constitutes a serious threat of harmful interference to 6 GHz Fixed Service at the power levels permitted in the 6 GHz Order -- a threat that would be exacerbated by the doubling of power proposed in the 6 GHz FNPRM,” AT&T said.

Twitter’s alleged censoring of a New York Post article on Hunter Biden is “unusual intervention that is not universally applied,” Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., wrote CEO Jack Dorsey Wednesday. "I find this behavior stunning but not surprising from a platform that has censored the President of the United States,” he wrote, saying it raises questions “about the applicability” of Twitter policy. Twitter didn’t comment by our deadline. Hawley also cited Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ recent statement urging the high court to consider reviewing Communications Decency Act Section 230’s language (see 2010130044), during SCOTUS nominee Amy Coney Barrett’s Wednesday confirmation hearing session. The Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing on Barrett, which began Monday, hasn’t touched much on telecom and tech issues. Hawley’s Section 230 citation came as a reference in a question about courts’ authority to expand statute. Hawley noted Thomas’ assertion that courts had dramatically rewritten Section 230 in decisions since 1996. Barrett noted she hadn’t ruled on any Section 230 cases but said generally she sees a “danger” in courts substituting their own judgment in place of statutory language, which would subvert “the will of the people.” Hawley said he believes that's what courts have done in the case of Section 230.

The FBI detected more than 200 unmanned aerial systems flying in restricted national security airspace October 2019-September, DOJ announced Tuesday. The FBI monitored dozens of events, including the Super Bowl, World Series and Rose Bowl and took corrective action, the department said. Officials expect an “increase in enforcement activity in response to the misuse of UAS,” Justice said. The bureau has seized about a dozen UASs violating flight restrictions at events in fiscal 2020.

Twitter won’t allow anyone to use the platform “to manipulate or interfere in elections,” blogged the company Friday. People on Twitter, including candidates for office, will be barred from claiming an election win “before it is authoritatively called,” it said. “We require either an announcement from state election officials, or a public projection from at least two authoritative, national news outlets that make independent election calls.” Starting this week, when someone tries to retweet a post labeled as containing “misleading information,” they will see a prompt “pointing them to credible information about the topic before they are able to amplify it,” said the company. “Tweets with labels are already de-amplified through our own recommendation systems and these new prompts will give individuals more context.” Facebook announced its own election safeguards earlier in the week, stipulating its policy for contested races. If the candidate declared the winner by major media outlets “is contested by another candidate or party, we will show the name of the declared winning candidate with notifications at the top of Facebook and Instagram, as well as label posts from presidential candidates, with the declared winner’s name and a link to the Voting Information Center,” it said. If a candidate declares “premature victory,” Facebook will add to the notifications that “counting is still in progress and no winner has been determined.”

The Office of Justice Programs can procure and operate drones only in a manner “that promotes public safety, protects individuals’ privacy and civil liberties, and mitigates the risks of cyber intrusion and foreign influence,” DOJ said in a revised policy issued Thursday. It applies to grants for the purchase and operation of foreign-made unmanned aircraft systems. Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen cited risks from “foreign-made UAS and the potential for related data compromise.”

ICANN efforts to align domain name registration rules with EU privacy law continue but no board action is expected at the Oct. 19-22 virtual meeting in Hamburg, Germany, said gTLD Process and Integration Manager Steve Chan Thursday. The expedited policy development process team working on a temporary spec for generic top-level domain name registration data compliant with the EU general data protection regulation published its final report Aug. 10. It recommends a standardized system for granting access to and disclosure of nonpublic gTLD registration data. Chan couldn't predict when directors might consider the recommendations, which first need approval by the Generic Names Supporting Organization Council followed by another public consultation. It's unresolved whether the rules should apply to legal and natural persons and questions about data accuracy, he said at a policy update webinar. GDPR compliance remains a high priority for the Governmental Advisory Committee, said ICANN Senior Policy Director Rob Hoggarth. In August, GAC published a minority statement on completion of the second phase of the Whois policy development process. It said the proposed regime for access to nonpublic registration data is fragmented; doesn't include enforceable standards to review disclosure decisions; and doesn't adequately address consumer protection and trust concerns. A minority of the Stability and Security Advisory Committee also opposed (SAC112) the recommendations, saying the process didn't provide results that "are reasonably suitable for security and stability." An Oct. 21 session at the ICANN meeting will address the impact of Whois changes under GDPR on end users and public safety.

ON Semiconductor bowed a high-performance sensor for machine-vision cameras, augmented- and virtual reality headsets and autonomous mobile robots, it said Wednesday. The sensor captures single frames and 1080p video operating up to 120 frames per second. The 2.3 megapixel sensor minimizes frame-to-frame distortion in high-speed scenes and reduces motion artifacts, said the company.

Apple stopped selling Bose, Logitech and Sonos audio products. Sonos closed 7% lower Tuesday at $14.54, Logitech down 6.1% at $75.83. A Bose spokesperson confirmed its products are no longer being sold via Apple. She noted that it isn’t the only audio company yanked from Apple’s shelves. Removal of competing Bluetooth and smart speakers from Apple led to speculation Apple is going to add to its audio line at its Oct. 13 virtual event, announced Tuesday, where it’s expected to launch the next generation of iPhones. Apple didn’t respond to questions. Sonos didn’t comment. Apple’s move underscores a risk Sonos highlighted in an SEC filing last fall that if partner competitors, such as Amazon and Apple, continue to compete with Sonos more directly, they would be able to promote their products more prominently than Sonos, refusing to promote its speakers. A Logitech spokesperson didn’t comment now, saying the company is in a quiet period ahead of its Oct. 20 quarterly report. The company has been targeting videoconferencing and gaming with its audio products amid a slowdown in the Bluetooth speaker category.

The Commerce Department Bureau of Industry and Security's handling of emerging and foundational technologies drew rhetorical fire on a Center for Strategic and International Studies webinar. Experts said Friday the lengthy process is impeding Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. work. “It’s a hard list," said Wiley's Nova Daly of BIS work to come up with information on such technologies that need curbs when involving certain other countries. "Emerging technologies shift and change.” Putting controls on emerging and foundational technologies is "a requirement by law," the expert added. "It will help CFIUS do its job in terms of being able to make sure we don't lose those critical technologies.” The Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act (FIRRMA) let CFIUS review transactions involving such tech. Because of some BIS delays in issuing those controls, CFIUS may not have a clear definition for what technologies to target, experts say. Making CFIUS partly dependent on BIS “was a really bad idea, and I think it needs to be re-looked,” said David Hanke, who helped draft FIRRMA and now is at Arent Fox. “There needs to be more agility, there needs to be more speed, the ability for [Treasury] to see something coming, and whether or not it's covered by BIS and the commerce control list, to be able to designate that in a quick manner.” Thomas Feddo, Treasury's CFIUS lead, cautioned critics from placing too much blame on BIS. “I'm not an export controls expert. I wish Commerce was here to defend themselves,” he said. “I think they might make some argument that they're making a great deal of progress.” Feddo said CFIUS doesn't necessarily need BIS to designate critical technologies for the committee to target transactions. BIS didn't comment Monday. A BIS spokesperson Friday pointed to its notice that day announcing six additional emerging technology controls. The agency hasn't issued foundational tech final controls (see 2008260013).

Comcast’s next-generation xFi Pod, available Thursday, delivers twice the Wi-Fi speed of its predecessor, said the company. The Pod, $119 for one or $199 for two at Xfinity stores and xfinity.com/xfipods, has a tri-band radio and works with the xFi gateway to extend Wi-Fi coverage via a mesh network. Users can add the device to a network using the Xfinity mobile app; they can also view connection status and monitor and pause Wi-Fi devices, it said. It has two Ethernet ports. Since March, Comcast has seen demand for Pods double as households increase their Wi-Fi use, said Dana Strong, president-Xfinity Consumer Services.