The wealth of the world’s billionaires grew by $2tn (£1.64tn) last year, three times faster than in 2023, amounting to $5.7bn (£4.7bn) a day, according to a report by Oxfam. The latest inequality report from the charity reveals that the world is now on track to have five trillionaires within a decade, a change from Read more about Inheritance, “cronyism and corruption” or monopoly power grows billionaire wealth in 2024 in second-largest annual increase since records began[…]

If you only remember two things about the government pressure campaign to influence Mark Zuckerberg’s content moderation decisions, make it these: Donald Trump directly threatened to throw Zuck in prison for the rest of his life, and just a couple months ago FCC Commissioner (soon to be FCC chair) Brendan Carr threatened Meta that if Read more about Why Has Zuckerberg stopped Meta Fact Checking? Trump lifetime prison threats and FCC section 230 removal threats?[…]

Google has told the EU it will not add fact checks to search results and YouTube videos or use them in ranking or removing content, despite the requirements of a new EU law, according to a copy of a letter obtained by Axios. The big picture: Google has never included fact-checking as part of its Read more about Google won’t add fact-checks despite new EU law[…]

Social media platform Meta has confirmed that its fact-checking feature on Facebook, Instagram and Threads will only be removed in the US for now, according to a Jan. 13 letter sent to Brazil’s government. “Meta has already clarified that, at this time, it is terminating its independent Fact-Checking Program only in the United States, where Read more about Meta says it isn’t ending fact-checks outside the US yet[…]

PayPal-owned browser extension Honey manipulates affiliate marketing systems and withholds discount information from users, according to an investigation by YouTube channel MegaLag. The extension — which rose in popularity after promising consumers it would find them the best online deals — replaces existing affiliate cookies with its own during checkout, diverting commission payments from content Read more about PayPal Honey extension to find deals instead hides discounts and reroutes commissions from promoters[…]

Hundreds of websites will be shut down on the day that Britain’s Online Safety Act comes into effect, in what are believed to be the first casualties of the new internet laws. Microcosm, a web forum hosting service that runs 300 sites including cycling forums and local community hubs, said that the sites would go Read more about Hundreds of websites to shut down under UK’s ‘chilling’ internet laws[…]

An international law enforcement operation has dismantled a pirate streaming service that served over 22 million users worldwide and made €250 million ($263M) per month. Italy’s Postal and Cybersecurity Police Service announced the action, codenamed “Taken Down,” stating they worked with Eurojust, Europol, and many other European countries, making this the largest takedown of its kind in Read more about Police bust pirate streaming service making €250 million per month: doesn’t this show the TV market is hugely broken?[…]