The woman who live-tweets inquests – BBC News
‘George Julian is crowdfunding to attend coroners’ courts and live-tweet the inquests of people with learning disabilities and autism.’
BBC News, 10th February 2021
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Category: internet
Romance fraud on rise in coronavirus lockdown – BBC News
‘Romance fraud – scamming someone out of money by pretending to want a relationship – has been on the rise during lockdown.’
BBC News, 10th February 2021
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Rise in child abuse online threatens to overwhelm UK police, officers warn – The Guardian
‘The vast, and growing, volume of child abuse material being created and shared online is threatening to overwhelm police efforts to tackle it, senior officers have told the Guardian. And the situation is likely to worsen, National Crime Agency (NCA) child abuse lead Rob Jones warned, if social media sites such as Facebook press ahead with further encryption of messaging services.’
The Guardian, 9th February 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
FCA warning over ‘risky’ TikTok trading tips – BBC News
‘TikTok creators have been offering “risky” trading tips in the wake of the GameStop shares frenzy, a UK regulator has warned. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said people should be wary of users “promising high-return investments”.’
BBC News, 7th February 2021
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Influencers told not to use ‘misleading’ beauty filters – BBC News
‘Filters should not be applied to social media adverts if they exaggerate the effect of the product, the Advertising Standards Authority has ruled.’
BBC News, 3rd February 2021
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
UK gambling firms ordered to slow down online slot machines – The Guardian
‘Online casinos will be forced to overhaul slot machine games to slow them down and remove features that cause players to lose track of how much they are spending.’
The Guardian, 2nd February 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
UK opens formal investigation of Facebook’s Giphy takeover – The Independent
‘The U.K. s competition watchdog launched a formal investigation on Thursday into Facebook s purchase of Giphy over concerns it will stifle competition for animated images.’
The Independent, 28th January 2021
Source: www.independent.co.uk
UK regulator to write to WhatsApp over Facebook data sharing – The Guardian
‘The UK’s data regulator is writing to WhatsApp to demand that the chat app does not hand user data to Facebook, as millions worldwide continue to sign up for alternatives such as Signal and Telegram to avoid forthcoming changes to its terms of service.’
The Guardian, 26th January 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
The Court of Appeal considers Domestic Abuse – Part 2 – Transparency Project
‘This post summarises the individual issues in the four appeals. Part 3 will cover the wider issues of principle and some of the themes that emerged in the course of the hearing, and will provide some materials for further reading.’
Transparency Project, 24th January 2021
Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk
The Court of Appeal considers Domestic Abuse – Part 1 – Transparency Project
‘This week three judges in the Court of Appeal held a 3 day long appeal hearing all about domestic abuse cases. This series of posts provide a summary of what the hearing was about and how it went. The decision is expected in a few weeks’ time.’
Transparency Project, 23rd January 2021
Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk
Priti Patel publishes new strategy to protect children from sexual abuse – Home Office
‘The Home Secretary has today published a first-of-its-kind national strategy to protect children from all forms of child sexual abuse. The Tackling Child Sexual Abuse Strategy sets out how the Government will use new legislation and enhanced technology to stop offenders in their tracks.’
Home Office, 22nd January 2021
Source: www.gov.uk
High Court grants girl anonymity in TikTok representative action – Litigation Futures
‘A High Court judge has granted anonymity to a 12-year-old girl, allowing the Children’s Commissioner, as her litigation friend, to bring a breach of privacy action against social media platform TikTok.’
Litigation Futures, 7th January 2021
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
‘Deepfake porn images still give me nightmares’ – BBC News
‘A woman who has been the victim of deepfake pornography is calling for a change in the law.’
BBC News, 6th January 2021
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Gambling Act review expected to spur reform – OUT-LAW.com
‘The UK government must be careful not to drive British consumers to unregulated gambling markets by imposing overly strict constraints on regulated providers of online gambling services, experts in gambling licensing and regulation have said.’
OUT-LAW.com, 18th December 2020
Source: www.pinsentmasons.com
Online harms bill: firms may face multibillion-pound fines for illegal content – The Guardian
‘Social media companies will need to remove and limit the spread of harmful content or face fines of billions of pounds, the UK government has announced, as it finally reveals the details of its proposed internet regulation. The online harms bill, first proposed by Theresa May’s government in April 2019, sets out strict new guidelines governing removal of illegal content such as child sexual abuse, terrorist material and media that promotes suicide, which sites must obey or face being blocked in the UK.’
The Guardian, 15th December 2020
Source: www.theguardian.com
Encrypted messaging putting children at risk of abuse, says watchdog – The Guardian
‘The children’s commissioner for England has warned that end-to-end encryption is putting children at risk of abuse, as a survey finds that most eight-year-olds are using messaging apps supposedly restricted to those aged 13 or older.’
The Guardian, 8th December 2020
Source: www.theguardian.com
Keira Bell lawyer warns on internet coverage of transgender issues – The Guardian
‘The promotion of transgender issues on social media should be subject to safeguarding measures, according to the lawyer for a woman who brought last week’s landmark case against England’s only NHS gender identity development service (GIDS).’
The Guardian, 6th December 2020
Source: www.theguardian.com
Beyond regulation: controlling app-based private hire operators – 11 KBW
‘In former times, if you wanted to build a business empire, you needed bricks, mortar and time. It took twenty years for Marks and Spencer to move from their first covered market in Leeds to their first shop. No more. You can run the world’s largest holiday lettings company without owning a hotel, or the largest book retailer in the world without a bookshop, and you can revolutionise the global taxi industry without owning a car. And it all happens at a dizzying pace. The question arises whether these commercial leviathans can be regulated and if so how.’
11 KBW, November 2020
Source: www.11kbw.com
New UK tech regulator to limit power of Google and Facebook – The Guardian
‘A new tech regulator will work to limit the power of Google, Facebook and other tech platforms, the government has announced, in an effort to ensure a level playing field for smaller competitors and a fair market for consumers.’
The Guardian, 27th November 2020
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Antiquated process’: data regulator on obtaining Cambridge Analytica warrant – The Guardian
‘The information commissioner has criticised the “antiquated process” that led to Facebook getting hold of Cambridge Analytica’s servers before the UK regulator itself, and renewed calls for an international approach to data privacy to tackle the emerging threat of data havens.’
The Guardian, 24th November 2020
Source: www.theguardian.com
