The Federal Trade Commission is looking into TikTok’s data and security procedures, two individuals told CNN on the condition of anonymity.

The investigation adds to the social media platform’s already difficult situation, which includes the possibility of a US ban or forced divestment from its Chinese parent firm.

According to reports, the FTC is investigating for allegedly violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule. This rule requires corporations to notify parents and acquire consent before collecting data from children under the age of 13.

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FTC Investigating TikTok Over Privacy And Security

According to the sources, the agency is also looking into whether they violated a provision of the FTC Act that forbids “unfair or deceptive” business practices by denying that user data may be accessible by individuals in China.

According to one of the sources, the FTC may file a lawsuit against TikTok or reach an agreement with the firm over the coming weeks. Politico reported on the investigation earlier.

When contacted about the probe, FTC Director of Public Affairs Douglas Farrar said, “No comment.”

TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The FTC investigation comes as they faces an existential threat in the US. A bipartisan coalition in the US House of Representatives voted earlier this month to adopt legislation mandating that ByteDance distribute TikTok or face a ban in US app stores.

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FTC Investigating TikTok Over Privacy And Security

The law is before the Senate, and President Joe Biden said he will sign it if it reaches his desk. On the other hand, Senate leaders have signaled that they are taking a cautious approach, which may result in delays or perhaps the failure of the House plan.

ByteDance, a Chinese corporation in control of the short-form video company, has denied claims that US citizens using its app pose a threat to national security. TikTok, which does not operate in China, claims that the Chinese government has never obtained US customer data.

According to cybersecurity experts, Chinese laws force ByteDance to assist with the country’s intelligence demands, which, given ByteDance’s ownership of TikTok, could theoretically jeopardize the privacy of US users. To address this risk, TikTok has kept its US user data on cloud servers operated by US tech giant Oracle, as well as implemented internal policies that prevent non-US staff access.

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FTC Investigating TikTok Over Privacy And Security

TikTok admitted to Congress in 2022 that staff headquartered in China could access US user data, following BuzzFeed News’ story that year that ByteDance employees had obtained that information on multiple instances. In his initial appearance before Congress last year, TikTok CEO Shou Chew admitted that many ByteDance workers were fired for spying on specific US journalists as part of a “misguided attempt” to find leakers within the company.

SOURCE – (AP)

A federal administrative law judge found that Amazon CEO Andy Jassy violated labor law by making anti-union remarks during media interviews two years ago.

The verdict, published Wednesday, comes after the National Labor Relations Board filed a complaint in 2022 accusing Jassy of breaching the line during sit-down interviews by saying that workers were better off without a union.

National Labor Relations Board Judge Brian D. Gee cited statements made by Amazon’s CEO on CNBC’s television show “Squawk Box,” as well as two summits arranged by Bloomberg News and the New York Times, in his decision.

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Amazon CEO Andy Jassy’s Comments About Unions Violated Federal Law, NLRB Judge Rules

Gee said Jassy’s projections regarding unionization altering the employee-employer relationship were legal. However, the judge ruled that other statements regarding how employees would be less empowered under a union, “find it harder to get things done quickly, and would be better off” without one violating federal labor law.

In a prepared statement, Amazon spokesperson Mary Kate Paradis stated that the business strongly disagrees that “any part of these comments” were inappropriate and plans to challenge the decision through the administrative law system.

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Amazon CEO Andy Jassy’s Comments About Unions Violated Federal Law, NLRB Judge Rules

“The decision reflects poorly on the state of free speech rights today, and we remain optimistic that we will be able to continue to engage in a reasonable discussion on these issues where all perspectives have an opportunity to be heard,” Paradis said.

Jassy’s statements come amid intensified unionization attempts at Amazon following the Amazon Labor Union’s historic victory in a union representation ballot at a New York City warehouse. The firm has disputed the union’s victory and refused to negotiate.

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Amazon CEO Andy Jassy’s Comments About Unions Violated Federal Law, NLRB Judge Rules

In his verdict, Gee advised the company to avoid “threatening its employees” with similar comments in the future and to post a notice in its facilities countrywide indicating the company’s compliance with the judge’s decision.

SOURCE – (AP)

Los Angeles — Dan Schneider, a former Nickelodeon producer and writer, sued the makers of “Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV” on Wednesday, claiming the documentary series falsely claimed that he sexually abused the child actors with whom he worked.

Schneider filed a defamation lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court against Warner Bros. Discovery and the other corporations involved in the series.

Schneider, a former teen actress, was a key figure in Nickelodeon’s dominance of youth culture in the 1990s and 2000s. She worked on sketch series “All That,” “The Amanda Show,” and “Kenan & Kel,” as well as as an executive producer on shows such as “Zoey 101,” “iCarly,” and “Victorious.”

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Ex-Nickelodeon Producer Schneider Sues ‘Quiet On Set’ Makers For Defamation And Sex Abuse Implications

He is also a prominent figure in “Quiet on Set,” which premiered on true crime cable channel ID in March. It has since been streamed on Max, creating a big splash among Nickelodeon’s former stars and fans. It includes cast and crew interviews to expose the show’s sexualization of young teens, as well as a poisonous and abusive work climate that many blamed Schneider for. It also contains accounts of sexual assault of young performers, including “The Amanda Show” and “Drake & Josh” star Drake Bell, by crew members who were eventually convicted.

Schneider, who left Nickelodeon in 2018, claimed in the lawsuit that the “Quiet on Set” trailer and episodes of the show purposefully mixed and juxtaposed images and mentions of him with criminal sexual abusers to imply he was complicit.

“The portrayal of Schneider in ‘Quiet on Set’ is a hit job,” according to the lawsuit. “While it is indisputable that two bona fide child sexual abusers worked on Nickelodeon shows, it is likewise indisputable that Schneider had no knowledge of their abuse, was not complicit in the abuse, condemned the abuse once it was discovered and, critically, was not a child sexual abuser himself.”

The lawsuit names Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of ID and Max, as defendants as well as the show’s producing firms, Sony Pictures Television and Maxine Productions.

Emails requesting comments from representatives of the three companies were not immediately replied.

The four-part series implies that Schneider’s shows had a tendency to place young women in funny situations with sexual connotations, and it portrays him as an angry and emotionally abusive boss.

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Ex-Nickelodeon Producer Schneider Sues ‘Quiet On Set’ Makers For Defamation And Sex Abuse Implications

It includes direct charges of sexual harassment and gender discrimination from women who worked as writers for him on “All That.” They claimed he exhibited pornography on his computer in their presence in the writers’ room and asked for massages, joking that they would lead to the women’s sketches appearing on the show, which Schneider denies.

It also includes an interview with Bell, who claims “extensive” and “brutal” sexual assault at the hands of a dialogue coach when he was 15, as well as an interview with the mother of another girl who was sexually abused by one of the crew members.

The Associated Press normally does not identify persons who claim to have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly, as Bell has.

Following the show’s release, Schneider apologized in a YouTube video for “past behaviors, some of which are embarrassing and that I regret.”

However, the lawsuit claims that the show, particularly the trailer, unjustly implicates him in child sexual abuse by presenting photographs of him — including some with his arm around young actors — during discussions about an unsafe atmosphere for children.

The lawsuit seeks damages to be assessed at trial for “the destruction of Schneider’s reputation and legacy” caused by “false statements and implications.”

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Ex-Nickelodeon Producer Schneider Sues ‘Quiet On Set’ Makers For Defamation And Sex Abuse Implications

Nickelodeon, which is not involved in the lawsuit, stated in a statement about the series that it cannot “corroborate or negate” allegations made decades ago, but it investigates all formal complaints and has strict processes for working with minors.

“Our highest priorities are the well-being and best interests not just of our employees, casts and crew but of all children,” a spokesperson for the network said in a statement. We have adopted numerous safeguards over the years to help ensure we are living up to our own high standards and the expectations of our audience.”

SOURCE – (AP)