Lawsuit Against Google Dismissed
A US judge dismissed a lawsuit against Google over facial recognition on Saturday. The suit, originally filed in 2016, said Google violated Illinois state law. Edmond Chang, the judge in question, cited a lack of “concrete injuries”. The plaintiffs claimed that Google collected and stored data from photos to use in facial recognition.
The judge said that the court lacked “subject matter jurisdiction because plaintiffs have not suffered concrete injuries.” Attorneys for both parties could not be reached for comments.
Netflix Steals Activision’s CFO
Streaming giant Netflix appointed Spencer Neumann, a media finance veteran from Activision Blizzard, as its chief financial officer. Neumann has served in a variety of finance roles, including Walt Disney Co. He replaces David Wells, who held the position for 14 years before retiring.
Meanwhile, Activision named Dennis Durkin as CFO on Wednesday as a replacement for Neumann, after terminating him for violating his legal obligations to the company. Because of this, Neumann will start his position at the end of the month.
Hackers Take Over Smart TV’s
In another attempt to support YouTube star PewDiePie, a group of hackers recently revealed they had hacked over 65,000 Chromecast devices. Currently, the hackers wish to remain anonymous, but stated that over 100,000 devices are vulnerable to similar attacks. They created a website to “live track” their attacks.
People experiencing the hacks took to social media to report them. The video message displayed hacked devices reads: “Your Chromecast/Smart TV is exposed to the public internet and is exposing sensitive information about you!” It then finishes up with, “you should also subscribe to PewDiePie”.
Facebook Releases More Data Than Admitted
Documents recovered from Facebook revealed that the company releases more user data than admitted. In addition, the papers revealed a list of 150 companies they shared the data with, including Amazon, Netflix, Spotify, and Microsoft. The news is one more blow to the falling public image of Facebook.
Cyber Attack Hits U.S. Newspapers
A cyber attack on Saturday caused major printing and delivery disruptions. Newspapers involved include the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune. The attack originated outside the United States, and no one has been arrested. The FBI weren’t available for immediate comments.
