The DOJ announced actions Wednesday shutting more than 300 websites “purporting to sell scarce health and safety items.” The department secured restraining orders in federal court against three residents of Vietnam: Thu Phan Dinh, Tran Khanh and Nguyen Duy Toan, who “are alleged to have engaged in a wire fraud scheme seeking to profit from the COVID-19 pandemic.”

R Street Institute Resident Fellow-Technology and Innovation Jeffrey Westling clarified that he doesn’t agree with a past position of a client of NTIA acting Administrator Adam Candeub on Communications Decency Act Section 230 (see 2008100046).

Zoom “falsely and repeatedly” claimed it used end-to-end encryption to protect users’ videoconferencing communications, Consumer Watchdog alleged in a lawsuit announced Tuesday. Zoom made false promises throughout its website when the company has always had access to data on the platform, the lawsuit said. Filed in D.C. Superior Court, the lawsuit alleges violations against the District of Columbia Consumer Protection Procedures Act. "We take privacy and security extremely seriously and are committed to continuous enhancements, including the timely beta testing and implementation of end-to-end encryption," a company spokesperson said.

Congress should consider “strengthening the consumer privacy framework” to reflect face-scanning technology and marketplace changes, the GAO said Tuesday. The agency repeated its 2013 recommendation with particular focus on consumer data used for marketing. Face-scanning technology can be used to enable payments, locate shoplifters and monitor COVID-19, but there are concerns, the GAO said: loss of anonymity, lack of consent and the potential for racial bias.

U.S. and EU officials started talks for a potential “enhanced EU-U.S. Privacy Shield framework,” Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders announced Monday (see 2007240031): “The European Union and the United States recognize the vital importance of data protection and the significance of cross-border data transfers to our citizens and economies.” The two sides are committed to privacy and rule of law and have collaborated for decades, they said.

Interoperability of open software interfaces enables the app economy, and is good for developers and consumers, Google argued in a supplemental Supreme Court brief Friday (18-956). The high court will hear oral argument Oct. 7 in Google v. Oracle, an intellectual property case (see 2007130056). Oracle sued Google for its use of Java programming code. A decision in favor of Oracle would limit consumers’ ability to use technologies across devices, Google Senior Vice President-Global Affairs Kent Walker argued. Oracle cited a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals finding on fair use: “It is not fair use for Google to copy popular portions of Oracle’s software for an identical, superseding purpose in a platform that competes with Oracle’s work and its derivatives.” Google exploited the code “for the same purpose for which Oracle created it in a protected market for Oracle’s work,” Oracle said.

Congress should force Amazon to divest its storage and shipping business to ensure the company isn’t abusing its dominance, more than 20 advocacy groups wrote the House Judiciary Committee Thursday. Demand Progress, Fight for the Future, Open Markets Institute and Public Citizen signed the letter to Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., and Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David Cicilline, D-R.I., commending the recent hearing with Big Tech CEOs (see 2007290063). The groups suggested lawmakers consider structural separations and bright lines rules in its report to rein in the power of Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google. Amazon and the Internet Association didn’t comment.

Facebook should allow “third-party audits of hate content and enforcement to guide best practices,” 20 state attorneys general wrote the company Wednesday. AGs Karl Racine of Washington, D.C., Gurbir Grewal of New Jersey and Kwame Raoul of Illinois, all Democrats, announced the coalition’s letter. They cited the platform's internal audit finding the company “refused to enforce its own policies against dangerous organizations and individuals.” They recommended the company expand policies to “limit inflammatory advertisements that vilify minority groups” and offer live, real-time assistance to victims of harassment and intimidation on the platform. Users should have a stronger ability to filter, report and block bad content, they wrote. "Hate speech is an issue across the internet and we are working to make Facebook as safe as possible by investing billions to keep hate off our platform and fight misinformation," a company spokesperson emailed. "We share the Attorneys General’s goal of ensuring people feel safe on the internet and look forward to continuing our work with them."

All Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act applications in question in a March inspector general report “contained sufficient basis for probable cause,” DOJ said Monday, defending the agency’s surveillance practices (see 2003310068). The FBI and the DOJ National Security Division took “more than 40 corrective actions.” The IG uncovered widespread FBI wiretapping application flaws in the March report, with specific issues for the FBI’s Woods files. Woods procedures require DOJ officials verify that information submitted to the FISA court matches FBI investigatory data. Justice reviewed the 29 FISA applications and “uncovered only two material errors, neither of which invalidated the authorizations granted by the FISA Court,” Assistant Attorney General John Demers said: That included “one material misstatement and one material omission.” The FBI compiled Woods files for the four applications where an original file was missing, “and the FBI was able in many instances to locate documentation to support a factual assertion,” Demers said.

Google’s proposed buy of Fitbit “is about devices, not data,” blogged Rick Osterloh, Google senior vice president-devices and services Tuesday. It would “increase choice, and create engaging products and helpful experiences,” said Osterloh of the deal announced in November (see 1911010051). The European Commission is concerned it would further entrench Google's market position in online advertising “by increasing the already vast amount of data that Google could use” for targeted ads, it said. EU Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager said European consumers’ wearables use is expected to grow, along with data that provides “key insights” about their health. It wants to ensure Google’s control over data collected through wearables due to the transaction “does not distort competition.” Osterloh said Google doesn’t make or sell wearables that compete with smartwatches and fitness trackers from Apple, Samsung, Garmin, Fossil, Huawei and Xiaomi: the combination of Google and Fitbit's hardware efforts "will increase competition in the sector, making the next generation of devices better and more affordable." Google has been "clear from the beginning that we will not use Fitbit health and wellness data for Google ads,” said the executive, noting the company recently offered to make a legally binding commitment. “We will give Fitbit users the choice to review, move or delete their data.”