Neowin News Feed for: Law

Utah's new law is about to make life very difficult for VPN users

Paul Hill — Fri, 01 May 2026 04:42:01 +0000

A looming legal shift in Utah could force websites to block VPNs or mandate universal age checks. Here is how this landmark bill threatens the digital privacy of every resident. Read more...

These TV-makers are allegedly taking screenshots of what people watch, without consent

Usama Jawad — Wed, 17 Dec 2025 07:32:01 +0000

Lawmakers in Texas have sued five major TV manufacturers for capturing user data such as screenshots of what they are watching without their explicit consent. Read more...

EFF sounds the alarm on Chat Control, a regulation allowing scanning of private messages

Usama Jawad — Mon, 29 Sep 2025 20:16:01 +0000

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has criticized Europe's Chat Control regulation, which potentially allows governments to spy on phones. Read more...

Google joins Apple in criticizing Europe's DMA

Usama Jawad — Fri, 26 Sep 2025 07:52:02 +0000

Google has joined Apple's call for a 'reset' of the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA), saying that it actually hurts consumers. Read more...

Harvard unknowingly paid just over $27 for a real "Magna Carta" from centuries ago

Sayan Sen — Mon, 19 May 2025 22:16:01 +0000

Harvard Law School has revealed how it determined that the Magna Carta, which it had paid under $28 for, was the real deal. Read more...

TikTok is on the brink of U.S. shutdown as Sunday deadline approaches

Karthik Mudaliar — Thu, 16 Jan 2025 09:12:01 +0000

TikTok could be a thing of the past, at least in the United States, as the Sunday deadline approaches for its possible shutdown. Read more...

Elon Musk is silently training his Grok AI on your X data, but you can stop him

Martin Hodás — Sat, 27 Jul 2024 09:46:01 +0000

X started training its AI chatbot Grok on the content published by users. The platform didn't inform the users and even surprised authorities in the EU where it might violate European laws. Read more...

The first international treaty on artificial intelligence adopted by the Council of Europe

Martin Hodás — Fri, 17 May 2024 16:04:01 +0000

The Council of Europe has adopted the first-ever international legally binding treaty on the use of AI. It aims to ensure respect for human rights, the rule of law, and democratic legal standards. Read more...

Google shares its concerns regarding tougher rules for political advertising in the EU

Usama Jawad — Thu, 23 Feb 2023 08:50:01 +0000

With the European Union (EU) working on tougher rules for political content and advertising on digital platforms, Google has shared five concerns that should be addressed for fairer laws. Read more...

Google shares concerns about India's antitrust law, claims it threatens user safety and more

Anushe Fawaz — Fri, 13 Jan 2023 18:36:01 +0000

Google shared a blog post commenting on the consequences the CCI's fine imposes on India's economy and the company. It argued that the order affects smartphone prices, costs to developers, and more. Read more...

Apple sued by two women alleging AirTags were used to stalk them

Justin Luna — Wed, 07 Dec 2022 04:32:01 +0000

Two women are suing Apple over their exes' use of AirTags to spy on them. Their lawsuit states that the company failed to implement effective safeguards to prevent people from using AirTags to stalk. Read more...

Class-action lawsuit filed against Microsoft's GitHub Copilot for software piracy

Usama Jawad — Fri, 04 Nov 2022 03:08:01 +0000

A programmer has filed a lawsuit against Microsoft, GitHub, and OpenAI for their GitHub Copilot tool, alleging that it basically allows Microsoft to profit off of the work of others, without consent. Read more...

UK proposes law to consider crypto assets as regular financial instruments

Karthik Mudaliar — Wed, 26 Oct 2022 05:58:01 +0000

UK policy makers have proposed an amendment to the Financial Services and Markets Bill to recognize cryptocurrencies as regulated financial instruments and products in the country. Read more...

EU votes in favor of law that requires consumer tech to feature USB Type-C by 2024

Karthik Mudaliar — Tue, 04 Oct 2022 12:30:01 +0000

The European Union has passed the law to use USB Type-C as the single charging solution for nearly all portable consumer tech devices after 2024 to avoid having a negative impact on the environment. Read more...

The EU is making it easier to sue for damages when it comes to AI systems

Usama Jawad — Tue, 27 Sep 2022 22:58:01 +0000

The European Union is set to announce the AI Liability Directive that will make it easier for individuals to sue the manufacturer of an AI product or its user through "presumption of causality". Read more...

Former Apple car engineer pleads guilty to allegations of trade secret theft

Usama Jawad — Tue, 23 Aug 2022 12:58:01 +0000

One of the two Apple engineers accused of stealing trade secrets related to the firm's self-driving car project has pleaded guilty. The stolen material included plans for a circuit board. Read more...

Tired of being ghosted? A Philippine politician wants to make ghosting a criminal offense

Usama Jawad — Thu, 28 Jul 2022 11:58:02 +0000

A Filipino lawmaker has presented a bill that declares ghosting a criminal offense that could be punishable by community service. The ludicrous document has little chance of being passed as law. Read more...

Microsoft is removing non-compete clauses in the U.S. and increasing pay transparency

Usama Jawad — Thu, 09 Jun 2022 06:38:01 +0000

Microsoft has announced four U.S.-centric initiatives to foster a healthy culture at its workplace. These include removing non-compete clauses for almost all employee and increasing pay transparency. Read more...

USB-C to become charging standard for most electronics in EU by 2024

Usama Jawad — Tue, 07 Jun 2022 13:37:44 +0000

The European Union has agreed to make USB-C the charging standard for a wide range of electronics, including phones and tablets, by 2024. The legislation will also apply to laptops around 2026. Read more...

UK government tells game firms to stop offering loot boxes to kids or it will legislate

Paul Hill — Sun, 03 Apr 2022 20:28:02 +0000

The UK government has told the gaming industry to stop giving kids access to loot boxes over fears that it leads to gambling addiction. It wants them to self-regulate but is open to legislating. Read more...

Intel wins major battle as court overturns $1.2 billion fine for anticompetitive practices

Usama Jawad — Thu, 27 Jan 2022 07:12:01 +0000

Intel has seen a major victory in court as a 2009 European Commission ruling and a $1.2 billion fine against it for anticompetitive behavior and practices to stifle AMD has been overturned. Read more...

Most devices, including iPhones, could soon be forced to use USB-C charging

Usama Jawad — Thu, 23 Sep 2021 13:46:01 +0000

Today, the European Parliament will be voting on a new legislation by the European Commission to standardize USB-C charging across most devices. If it becomes law, OEMs will have two years to comply. Read more...

Tripwire CEO steps down following controversial remarks on Texas anti-abortion law

Usama Jawad — Tue, 07 Sep 2021 06:48:02 +0000

Following massive backlash to Tripwire CEO John Gibson's controversial statement in favor of Texas' anti-abortion law, the studio has announced that the executive will be stepping down from his role. Read more...

BlueMail's antitrust lawsuit against Apple is thrown out of the court for the third time

Usama Jawad — Tue, 13 Jul 2021 05:54:01 +0000

BlueMail developer Blix has frequently alleged that Apple unfairly suppresses the competition and has stolen its patented IP. However, its antitrust lawsuit has been thrown out of court yet again. Read more...

UK politicians face legal challenge over self-destructing messages

Paul Hill — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 20:16:02 +0000

The law firm Foxglove is making a legal challenge against the British government because it's concerned that MPs are side-stepping archiving laws using self-destructing messages on chat apps. Read more...

Chicago lawmaker proposes bill to ban all violent video games due to rise in carjackings

Usama Jawad — Wed, 24 Feb 2021 07:03:55 +0000

A Democrat lawmaker in Chicago has proposed a new bill to ban the sale of violent video games in Illinois. Similarities between carjackings in real-life and those done in video games were observed. Read more...

UK's Supreme Court says Uber drivers are employees

Paul Hill — Fri, 19 Feb 2021 11:20:02 +0000

Uber has lost its appeal at the UK's Supreme Court. It means that a group of 25 Uber drivers will now be considered employees of the firm meaning they're entitled to paid holidays and rest breaks. Read more...

Indian government to introduce a law banning bitcoin

Paul Hill — Sat, 30 Jan 2021 20:02:01 +0000

The Indian government is looking for parliament to debate a bill which would ban bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies inside the country and allow the reserve bank to create its own cryptocurrency. Read more...

Polish government eyeing free speech social media law

Paul Hill — Fri, 15 Jan 2021 22:52:01 +0000

The Polish government has proposed a new law which would see the establishment of a free speech council that could fine social media firms if they delete content that's not illegal in Poland. Read more...

YouTube agrees to comply with amended Internet Law in Turkey

Usama Jawad — Thu, 17 Dec 2020 07:28:01 +0000

Turkey's Internet Law requires social media companies to appoint a local point of contact for content takedown requests from the government. YouTube has stated that it will comply with this law. Read more...

Facebook slams FTC lawsuits, calls them 'revisionist history'

Usama Jawad — Thu, 10 Dec 2020 09:54:01 +0000

Facebook has responded to antitrust lawsuits filed by the FTC and the U.S. state attorneys, slamming them for being "revisionist history". The company looks forward to presenting evidence in court. Read more...

Facebook is taking legal action against ToS violators

Paul Hill — Thu, 27 Aug 2020 21:34:01 +0000

Facebook is suing two individuals for abusing its services. Fatih Haltas is being sued in the U.K.'s High Court of Justice while Nikolay Holper will go before the federal court of San Francisco. Read more...

Google criticizes Australia for new code about news media bargaining [Update]

Usama Jawad — Mon, 17 Aug 2020 05:44:01 +0000

In an open letter, Google has slammed Australia for its proposed News Media Bargaining Code, claiming that it hurts free services and that it also places the search data of users at risk. Read more...

UK decides to give up on age checks for online porn

Paul Hill — Wed, 16 Oct 2019 19:32:01 +0000

The UK government has shelved plans to introduce age checks for those wanting to view porn online. Instead, a regulator will ensure porn sites deliver a duty of care to improve online safety. Read more...

Report: 20 million manufacturing jobs to be automated by 2030

Paul Hill — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 02:48:01 +0000

A new report by Oxford Economics states that 20 million manufacturing jobs will be wiped out by 2030 worldwide. New jobs to fill those are likely to be created but could involve retraining. Read more...

UK delays introduction of on-by-default porn blocker, again

Paul Hill — Thu, 20 Jun 2019 14:52:01 +0000

The UK government has announced yet another delay on its mandatory age checks for pornography websites. It announced the delay was bureaucratic in nature as it failed to inform the EU. Read more...

Adult websites will soon have mandatory age checks in the UK [Update]

Usama Jawad — Wed, 17 Apr 2019 14:46:01 +0000

Authorities in the UK have announced a new law, making age checks mandatory for pornographic websites. Adult companies will be responsible for implementing these systems provided by AgeID. Read more...

European Parliament passes controversial copyright law

Paul Hill — Tue, 26 Mar 2019 15:24:01 +0000

MEPs have voted in favour of a controversial copyright package which could see the web hindered by content filters. The law was passed by 348 MEPs to 278, and will be implemented by 2021. Read more...

Tesla files lawsuit against former employee, alleging theft of company secrets

Paul Hill — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 20:44:01 +0000

Tesla has filed a lawsuit against a former employee who used to work on the Autopilot team. Tesla says that Guangzhi Cao stole 300,000 files that pertained to Autopilot code before leaving the firm. Read more...

Apple demanded $1 billion incentive payment from Qualcomm to supply iPhone modems

Faheemmuddeen Patel — Sun, 13 Jan 2019 15:06:01 +0000

At a federal courthouse in California, Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf has testified that Apple insisted on receiving a $1 billion incentive payment for the chance to supply the iPhone with modems. Read more...