Techno-politics

The Obama administration on Saturday issued a veto on a proposed potential ban on a number of Apple products in the U.S., including some iPhones and iPad devices. “After extensive consultations with the agencies of the Trade Policy Staff Committee and the Trade Policy Review Group … I have decided to disapprove the USITC’s determination Continue Reading →

A UK court recently ruled that Microsoft’s SkyDrive name infringed on a trademark owned by British Sky Broadcasting Group (BSkyB), and the software maker has agreed to change the name of its cloud-based service worldwide as a result. In a settlement issued on Wednesday, BSkyB notes that Microsoft will not appeal the court ruling and Continue Reading →

As she said she would, Army Colonel Denise Lind has delivered her verdict in the Bradley Manning case, finding him not guilty on the most serious charge, aiding the enemy. Under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), aiding the enemy is a capital offense, though prosecutors said they would only ask for life in Continue Reading →

The tragicomedy that is Anthony Weiner’s life has made everyone a comedian. There is seemingly no end to the puns, double-entendres, and schoolyard humor that his recent behavior has inspired. At this very moment, I am doing everything I can to restrain myself. That said, there is something very important missing from the coverage of Continue Reading →

Politicians likely fall at the bottom of your list of must-follow personalities on Instagram, which perhaps explains why the Facebook-owned app for sharing photos and videos is looking to hire someone to assist these public figures with image-crafting techniques. The social network is hiring a “Political Outreach Manager” specifically to teach Washington D.C. officials about Continue Reading →

Cellphone users have a reasonable expectation of privacy of their cellphone location information, and police must obtain a search warrant before accessing that information, the Supreme Court of New Jersey ruled Thursday. “When people make disclosures to phone companies and other providers to use their services, they are not promoting the release of personal information Continue Reading →

They are far more servants to political power than adversarial watchdogs over it, and what provokes their rage most is not corruption on the part of those in power (they don’t care about that) but rather those who expose that corruption, especially when the ones bringing transparency are outside of, even hostile to, their incestuous Continue Reading →

A letter signed by some of the most prolific US-based technology companies such as Apple, Facebook and Google has been sent to the Obama administration and Congress today asking for greater transparency over national security-related data requests. The alliance, rumored yesterday to be readying the document, is now urging the US government to give them Continue Reading →

Microsoft has collaborated closely with US intelligence services to allow users’ communications to be intercepted, including helping the National Security Agency to circumvent the company’s own encryption, according to top-secret documents obtained by the Guardian. The files provided by Edward Snowden illustrate the scale of co-operation between Silicon Valley and the intelligence agencies over the Continue Reading →

As the fifth anniversary of the App Store approaches, Apple is commemorating the occasion with wall posters and app giveaways — and a bit of housecleaning in the litigation department. On Tuesday, Apple abandoned the lawsuit it brought against Amazon over the “App Store” trademark. Filed in March of 2011, that suit accused the retailer Continue Reading →