Yahoo Finance reported that the US government plans to introduce a rule that will disallow Chinese software in vehicles that have level 3 automation and above in the American market.

This autonomous cars software ban effectively makes testing of Chinese manufactured driverless vehicles on US roads illegal.

Limiting Chinese EVs

The US government has already taken steps to limit the entry of Chinese manufactured EVs into the American market. The government introduced tariffs of more than 100% on such EVs. In June this year, a U.S. representative introduced the ‘Connected Vehicle National Security Review Act’.

The purpose of this bill is to set up formal security reviews on Chinese made EVs. If it takes effect, this law will result in a complete ban on importation of Chinese EVs to the US if they pose a security threat.

Additionally, the clean energy bill introduced by the Biden administration will make it more challenging for EV makers to use batteries imported from China. As tensions between Beijing and Washington increase, concerns have extended to the Chinese software for autonomous vehicles.

Sensitive Data

The move by the U.S. government to initiate the Chinese software ban is due to rising concerns that EV vehicles collect sensitive data from American infrastructure and transmit it to the Chinese government.

The Biden administration plans to escalate the Chinese autonomous car software ban by disallowing Chinese manufactured vehicles that have advanced wireless communication systems.

With this proposal, EV makers and suppliers will be required to verify that no advanced driverless or connected vehicle software was designed in a foreign entity of concern such as China.

China’s Stand

But Beijing is opposed to generationalization of national security and discriminatory practices against Chinese manufactured EVs and connected cars by the U.S.

“China urges the US to respect market principles and provide an open, fair, transparent, and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese enterprises. “China will resolutely safeguard its legitimate rights and interests,” A spokesperson from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

A spokesperson in the U.S. Commerce Department said that connected technologies in autonomous vehicles have raised national security risks in government.

The post US Outlaws Chinese EV Software Over Security Concerns appeared first on Tech Research Online.

Filed in Texas State District Court, Harrison County in February 2022, Meta was accused of capturing and using biometric data from millions of Texas residents without complying with consent requirements.

The data included videos and photos uploaded on Facebook by users.

Historic Settlement

According to the Texas Attorney General office, the legal settlement with Meta demonstrates the State’s commitment to hold big tech accountable. The Meta data lawsuit settlement is the largest to be obtained following action by a single State. In the settlement, Meta will pay Texas a total of $1.4 billion over the next five years.

“This historic settlement demonstrates our commitment to standing up to the world’s biggest technology companies and holding them accountable for breaking the law and violating Texans’ privacy rights. Any abuse of Texans’ sensitive data will be met with the full force of the law,” Texas Attorney General, Ken Paxton said.

Commenting on the facial recognition data lawsuit settlement deal, Meta said it was pleased to resolve the matter.

“We are pleased to resolve this matter, and look forward to exploring future opportunities to deepen our business investments in Texas, including potentially developing data centers,” Meta’s spokesperson told CNBC.

New Facebook Feature

Facebook introduced a new feature dubbed ‘tag suggestions’ in 2011. According to the Attorney General’s office, the tech giant stored huge volumes of biometric identifiers without the consent of users after launching the feature.

“Unbeknownst to most Texans, for more than a decade Meta ran facial recognition software on virtually every face contained in the photographs uploaded to Facebook, capturing records of the facial geometry of the people depicted,” Paxton said.

The tech giant did this despite being aware of the Texas Capture or Use of Biometric Identifier Act. This Act bars entities from capturing biometric data of Texas residents without their prior information and consent.

Meta closed its face recognition system on Facebook in 2021. The company cited rising concerns over the use of this technology as the reason for its decision.

Other Cases

Although the Texas Attorney General’s office announced the settlement deal on 30th July, the deal was reached on the eve of the scheduled June trial, which was about two months ago. In 2021, Facebook was ordered to make a $650 million settlement over similar allegations in Illinois.

“This is by far the biggest state governmental privacy settlement in history,” Jay Edelson, Chicago-based Class Action Attorney said. Edelson’s firm had filed the lawsuit that led to the $650 million settlement with Meta.

The Meta facial recognition lawsuit isn’t the only case that the Texas Attorney General’s office has been pursuing. The office is currently pursuing a lawsuit against Google’s parent company, Alphabet.

In this lawsuit, Texas State has accused Alphabet of collecting biometric data from millions of Texas residents.

The post Meta to Pay $1.4B in Texas Lawsuit Settlement Deal appeared first on Tech Research Online.

According to TechCrunch, the ban was announced last month. The U.S Department of Commerce cited increased privacy and security risks that pose a threat to national security because Kaspersky’s headquarters are in Russia.

Closure After Two Decades

Kaspersky Lab plans to commence the shutdown process on July 20. The Kaspersky US operation shutdown ends close to two decades of operation in the country. Initially, the cybersecurity firm wanted to challenge the ban claiming that it does not engage in any activities that pose a threat to national security in the U.S.

“The company has carefully examined and evaluated the impact of the US legal requirements and made this sad and difficult decision as business opportunities in the country are no longer viable,” Kaspersky Lab said.

Potential Threats

Kaspersky has a wide user base across the globe. Over 400 million individuals and 240,000 companies use its antivirus software globally. However, it’s not clear how many users and businesses in the U.S will be affected by the Kaspersky US shutdown.

Officials from the U.S government claim that the Russian government could use the popular antivirus software to place Americans under surveillance by collecting data or hacking. Kaspersky denied these claims.

“Russia has shown it has the capacity, and even more than that, the intent to exploit Russian companies like Kaspersky to collect and weaponize the personal information of Americans,” Gina Raimondo, U.S. Commerce Secretary, said at the time of the ban.

Not the First Ban

A ban against the use of Kaspersky by U.S. Government agencies has been in place for a long time. However, the move by the Department of Commerce to ban the sale of software in the U.S was unprecedented.

When the ban takes effect, Kaspersky will not be allowed to sell antivirus products to U.S consumers either directly or through resellers. Some resellers have criticized the ban. Security updates on Kaspersky software will not be allowed after September 29 this year. The Department staggered the ban to enable U.S-based consumers time to find alternative antivirus software.

Previously, a Kaspersky government ban has been effected against the cybersecurity firm by the Trump administration as well as the Biden administration. The Trump administration banned Kaspersky throughout the federal government.

This happened after hackers in the Russian government stole classified documents from the home computer of an intelligence contractor.

The post Kaspersky Set to Exit US Market After Government Ban appeared first on Tech Research Online.