NEWSLETTER #154/ March 17, 2019
No Images? Click here
CRIMINAL PROBE FOR FACEBOOK
The New York Times reported this week that federal investigators were looking into data sharing relationships Facebook had with several large tech companies.
Several months ago it was disclosed that Facebook had agreements with over 100 large tech companies -- including Apple, Amazon, and Microsoft -- to supply them with personal data about hundreds of millions of Facebook users, including information about their friends and contacts. Often, if not mostly, this information was shared without the knowledge or consent of the Facebook users.
According to The Times, a grand jury has subpoenaed records from at least two of the tech companies Facebook has been supplying with data. My guess: nothing will come of this. Facebook's data abuse has been disgusting and reprehensible, but with no laws protecting consumers, I doubt it's illegal. If Facebook executives were locked up every time they did something appalling with data, Menlo Park would be a ghost town.
Facebook, Part 2
A report from the Australian Broadcasting Company (ABC) claims that popular Facebook pages were controlled by foreigners looking to create trouble. The group of Facebook pages "catering to Australians agitated over hot button issues such as Islam, refugees and political correctness is under the control of trolls and scammers from the Balkans who profit from the outrage they stir up."
According to the report, the Facebook pages have over 130,000 followers in Australia and have been operating since at least 2013. Investigators were only able to find out who was behind these groups recently when Facebook changed policies and allowed more transparency. Quoting from the report...
- A network of popular Australian Facebook pages is controlled from the Balkans
- The pages post memes and stories designed to fuel intolerance and racial vilification
- Using content stolen from other publishers, they earn revenue from Facebook's ad network
Facebook, Part 3
In one paragraph, Bloomberg summed up how one horrible week seemed to be a microcosm of a horrible year for Facebook.
"The week of bad news actually started March 8 with a proposal from US senator and presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren to break up the company. Then there was the longest-ever outage of Facebook’s social network and services, which almost
overshadowed news of a criminal investigation into its data-agreements with other companies. Facebook’s technical glitch was resolved just in time for it to post the departure of two key executives, including the one closely linked with the company’s most iconic product. But the ultimate blow came on Friday with the massacre of 49 people in New Zealand, live streamed on Facebook."
Cybersecurity Snake Oil
Anyone who is alive and paying attention knows that nothing about online activity can be trusted. This week, it was reported that tests conducted by an antivirus testing outfit showed that the 2/3 of "antivirus apps" for Android devices are useless. Said ZDNet about the report, the "Android antivirus industry...appears to be filled with more snake-oilers than actual cyber-security vendors."
The report, issued by Austrian cybersecurity testing firm, AV-Comparatives, said that "roughly two-thirds of all Android antivirus apps are a sham..." According to ZDNet, "of the 250 apps they've tested, only 80 detected more than 30 percent of the malware..." For your "you can't make this shit up" file, several of the apps reported themselves as malware.
Test Your Ad Fraud Knowledge
Speaking of fraud, here we go...how many ads do you think Google took down last year because of scams and fraud? You ready? 2.3 billion! Who the hell knew there were that many ads in the world?
Question 2: How much geolocation data is fake, stale, or wrong? You ready? -- 99%. According to Dr. Augustine Fou, "Geolocation Data is 99% Wrong, Stale, or Outright Fake." Read it here.
Amazing Technological Breakthrough
Coors and Budweiser continue their idiotic self-destructive shit fight and refuse to learn the first rule of adulthood: Sometimes it's best to just shut-the-fuck-up.
Just when we thought the Great Corn Syrup Massacre of 2019 might be coming to an end, Coors comes up with "smart beer taps" that -- you ready? -- light up when Budweiser says something hurtful on social media about the sensitive folks at Coors. No, this is not a joke.
My Big Mouth
And speaking of not shutting up, I will be speaking at the NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) show in Las Vegas in a few weeks.
Come listen to me rattle on for a half-hour on April 9 at 9:30 am. It'll be cheaper than blackjack and only slightly more disreputable than hookers. Info here.
