Social platforms wrestle with what to do about the Taliban

With the hasty U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan underway after two decades occupying the country, social media platforms have a complex new set of policy decisions to make. The Taliban has been social-media-savvy for years, but those companies will face new questions as the notoriously brutal, repressive group seeks to present itself as Afghanistan’s legitimate […]

Apple’s CSAM detection tech is under fire — again

Apple has encountered monumental backlash to a new child sexual abuse material (CSAM) detection technology it announced earlier this month. The system, which Apple calls NeuralHash, has yet to be activated for its billion-plus users, but the technology is already facing heat from security researchers who say the algorithm is producing flawed results. NeuralHash is […]

Evervault’s ‘encryption as a service’ is now open access

Dublin-based Evervault, a developer-focused security startup which sells encryption vis API and is backed by a raft of big name investors including the likes of Sequoia, Kleiner Perkins and Index Ventures, is coming out of closed beta today — announcing open access to its encryption engine. The startup says some 3,000 developers are on its […]

Baffle lands $20M Series B to simplify data-centric encryption

California-based Baffle, a startup that aims to prevent data breaches by keeping data encrypted from production through processing, has raised $20 million in Series B funding. Baffle was founded in 2015 to help thwart the increasing threats to enterprise assets in public and private clouds. Unlike many solutions that only encrypt data in-transit and at-rest, Baffle’s […]

Facebook is bringing end-to-end encryption to Messenger calls and Instagram DMs

Facebook has extended the option of using end-to-end encryption for Messenger voice calls and video calls. End-to-end encryption (E2EE) — a security feature that prevents third-parties from eavesdropping on calls and chats — has been available for text conversations on Facebook’s flagship messaging service since 2016. Although the company has faced pressure from governments to […]

Facebook is bringing end-to-end encryption to Messenger calls and Instagram DMs

Facebook has extended the option of using end-to-end encryption for Messenger voice calls and video calls. End-to-end encryption (E2EE) — a security feature that prevents third-parties from eavesdropping on calls and chats — has been available for text conversations on Facebook’s flagship messaging service since 2016. Although the company has faced pressure from governments to […]

Apple says it will begin scanning iCloud Photos for child abuse images

Later this year, Apple will roll out a technology that will allow the company to detect and report known child sexual abuse material to law enforcement in a way it says will preserve user privacy. Apple told TechCrunch that the detection of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) is one of several new features aimed at […]