Technology

LIVE UPDATES: Parler CEO forced into hiding, court filing says

A new court filing on Friday from the Parler legal team revealed its CEO John Matze and his family were in hiding over death threats and security breaches they have faced.

Fast Facts

Parler, a social media app that has a large user base of Trump supporters, conspiracy theorists and far-right extremists, launched an antitrust lawsuit against Amazon after the tech giant discontinued its web services following last week’s riots on Capitol Hill
The filing from Parler’s lawyers obtained by Fox News acknowledges the disturbing claims made by Amazon but note that the Jeff Bezos-run company is not the one receiving threats.

Parler, a social media app that has a large user base of Trump supporters, conspiracy theorists and far-right extremists, launched an antitrust lawsuit against Amazon after the tech giant discontinued its web services following last week’s riots on Capitol Hill

The filing from Parler’s lawyers obtained by Fox News acknowledges the disturbing claims made by Amazon but note that the Jeff Bezos-run company is not the one receiving threats.

Parler, a social media app that has a large user base that includes Trump supporters, launched an antitrust lawsuit against Amazon after the tech giant discontinued its web services following the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. Amazon filed a response, claiming the lawsuit had “no legal basis” and alleged its employees have been faced with threats and harassment.

The filing from Parler’s lawyers obtained by Fox News acknowledges the disturbing claims made by Amazon but note that the Jeff Bezos-run company is not the one receiving threats.

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Ari Fleischer slams Twitter’s Dorsey for continuing to do ‘damage’ with account purges

Fox News contributor and former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer did not hold back Friday in his criticism of Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, who was caught on leaked audio saying the company’s enforcement actions will “be much bigger than just one account.”

The conservative group Project Veritas released the audio, which it obtained from a purported “insider whistleblower.” Fleischer reacted to the recording during an appearance on “America’s Newsroom” with co-host Sandra Smith.

ARI FLEISCHER: I literally went on this device, a phone, and I put in the hashtag on Twitter #killTrump, and lots of stuff came up. So how in the world can Twitter, with a straight face, say their policy is to stop speech that promotes violence while they allow #killTrump to be on their site. The hypocrisy of Twitter is profound. The damage they’re doing to a republic in which there should be freedom, there should be speech and as much as they are a private group with a right to do this, when you exercise your right in wrongful ways you divide America. Twitter is standing now for the division of America…

America is being turned into a college campus where if you don’t adhere to the proper political orthodoxy you can be banned and silenced. This is inherently divisive and it made our nation deal with political difficulties. The society breathes. We’re allowed to talk and air our differences without being shunned. We’re no longer that type of country, I’m afraid. That’s why these types of censorship actions are so dangerous…

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Why is there so much anti-Semitism on Twitter? Why is there so much threats of violence on Twitter? It is only conservative activists they target. I’m sorry, Jack, you’re not allowed to muse about the damage you are doing when you continue to do the damage.

Best of CES: Smart masks, LG rollable phone, flying Cadillac

The technology show CES 2021 had the usual high-tech parade of TVs, laptops, phones and robots, but masks made this year’s event different.

Here are some of the highlights of CES 2021, which ends on Thursday.

Smart masks:

– The AirPop Active+ comes with smart sensors that measure pollutant levels and can track things like your breathing rate. AirPop says its masks have the bacterial barrier protection of medical masks but the comfort of consumer masks. The AirPop Active+ mask with four filters that last for 40 hours each is priced at $149.99.

– Project Hazel is an N95 mask from Razer with a built-in mic and amplifier so your speech isn’t muffled. A detachable ventilator regulates airflow and a charging case is lined with a UV light interior to kill bacteria and viruses as the mask charges. No price or release date yet.

Rollable phones:

The LG Rollable has a display that expands from a smartphone to a tablet. While there are few details at this stage, it doesn’t fold with a hinge like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 but expands, or unfurls, into a bigger device. TCL was also showing off a 6.7-inch AMOLED rollable display aimed at smartphones. It can expand to 7.8-inches.

CADILLAC UNVEILS FLYING VEHICLE, AUTONOMOUS LUXURY VAN CONCEPTS

Caregiver robot:

CareClever’s Cutii is a companion robot for seniors. You can speak to Cutii naturally, it automatically moves to you when needed, and it avoids obstacles automatically. If you fall, Cutii will come if you call and dial for help.

Pocket translator:

The Pocketalk S translator can instantly translate another language and allows you to “converse” in 82 different languages. It also has a touchscreen for text translation. Its text-to-translate camera instantly recognizes and translates text, the written word and signs. The Pocketalk S is available now for $299.

Samsung S21 Ultra:

Samsung’s latest and greatest smartphone. On Thursday, Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S21 Ultra. Samsung says it boasts a new “Contour Cut Camera” with a 108MP pro sensor and 6.8-inch display with a fast 120Hz refresh rate and a super high Quad HD+ resolution. Other S21 phones were also announced.

Superlight magnesium HP laptop:

The HP Elite Dragonfly G2 is a standard-sized 13.3-inch laptop but weighs only 2.2 pounds due to its lightweight magnesium chassis. That’s more than half a pound lighter than Apple’s MacBook Air. You can equip it with 5G mobile wireless. It comes with Intel’s latest 11th-gen processors.

CES: AUTONOMOUS INDYCAR UNVEILED WITH $1 MILLION PRIZE FOR RACE WINNER

iPad as a desktop computer:

The Kensington StudioDock: besides its eye-catching aesthetics, you can dock your iPad while charging your iPhone, AirPods and Apple Watch. Attach a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse and it looks a lot like an iMac.

8K TV goes mid-range:

TCL introduced its mid-range 6-Series 8K TVs at CES. TCL is known for offering affordable TVs so we may be getting the first taste of more down-to-earth pricing on 8K. To date, 8K TVs – with four times the number of pixels of 4K – have been priced only for consumers with lots of disposable income. Pricing has yet to be announced but the 6-Series has always been a mid-range line for TCL.

GM’s flying Cadillac

(Cadillac)

GM unveiled a vertical takeoff and landing drone concept branded as a Cadillac. It has single- passenger capacity and can fly from rooftop to rooftop hitting speeds up to 55 mph.

Programmer who could lose hundreds of millions in bitcoin shares ‘painful memory’

Stefan Thomas, the programmer who could lose $260 million worth of bitcoin because he can’t remember his password, said there’s “no chance” he’ll ever recoup his lost fortune, calling it a “painful memory.”

“It’s not like I barely don’t remember it,” Thomas told NBC’s “Today” show. “It’s there’s no chance of remembering something that complicated from 10 years ago.”

Thomas lost the password for his IronKey hard drive, which contains the keys to a digital wallet with 7,002 bitcoin. The hard drive gives users 10 guesses to remember their password before the content is lost forever. Thomas has used eight of those 10 attempts and come up empty every time.

WHAT CAN YOU BUY WITH BITCOINS?

The price of one bitcoin was $39,601 as of Thursday morning.

“I tried to pick a very secure one because I was very concerned about losing those coins,” Thomas added in the interview. “I’d just like lay in bed and come up with a new way to recover it and it wouldn’t work and I would try another way and it wouldn’t work either.”

Thomas, who is the co-creator of Interledger, which describes itself as “an open protocol for payments across payment networks,” has become something of an Internet celebrity with many trying to help him recover his lost fortune. However, he’s noted it’s a painful memory and hopes that others can learn from his mistake.

“A painful memory. I hope others can learn from my mistakes,” Thomas tweeted on Tuesday. “Test your backups regularly to make sure they are still working. An ounce of foresight could have prevented a decade of regret.”

Despite the lost fortune, Thomas appears to be having some fun with his newfound celebrity.

When asked if there was any “hope” of remembering the password, Thomas said clinging on to that is hard.

“In some ways, that hope makes it that more difficult,” Thomas said of the lost fortune. “It’d be easier if you can just let it be in the past and forget about it.”

Launched in 2009, bitcoin is the world’s largest cryptocurrency. Unlike typical currency, bitcoin “is created, distributed, traded and stored with the use of a decentralized ledger system known as a blockchain.” However, its anonymous nature makes it also an impediment for those who have lost or forgotten their password or key.

About 20% of the existing 18.5 million bitcoin are inaccessible because they’re either in “lost or stranded wallets,” according to the New York Times, which cites cryptocurrency data firm Chainalysis. As a result, roughly $140 billion in bitcoin has been lost or stranded.

Thomas’ bitcoin problems aren’t new, however. A similar tale emerged in 2017 and it’s estimated that scammers extracted at least $24 million worth of bitcoin in 2020.

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Fox News’ Brooke Crothers contributed to this story.

Live Updates: Snapchat to permanently terminate Trump’s account following Capitol riot

Following an indefinite suspension of President Trump’s account last week, Snapchat announced Wednesday that its decision is permanent.

“In the interest of public safety, and based on his attempts to spread misinformation, hate speech, and incite violence, which are clear violations of our guidelines, we have made the decision to permanently terminate his account,” a Snapchat spokesperson told FOX News.

The social media platform said it had assessed “what long term action is in the best interest of our Snapchat community” following the riot at the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters on Jan. 6.

FAST FACTS

The decision for a permanent ban comes after similar moves by Facebook and Twitter last week.
YouTube said on Tuesday that it would temporarily suspend Trump’s channel from uploading new content for at least the next week.

Snapchat first took action against President Trump in June when it stopped promoting the president’s account on its Discover platform, limiting its reach to subscribers and those who searched for him.

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Live Updates: Elon Musk responds to Big Tech censorship of Trump

Tesla CEO Elon Musk weighed in Monday on Big Tech’s recent move to censor President Trump in response to the Capitol riot by pro-Trump supporters last week.

“A lot of people are going to be super unhappy with West Coast high tech as the de facto arbiter of free speech,” Musk replied to a tweet of a satirical article entitled “Evil Fascist Dictator Censored and Voted Out Of Office.”

Musk previously railed against Big Tech censorship in June after he called out Amazon for reportedly censoring the publication of a book about the coronavirus.

FAST FACTS

Facebook’s announced that it would indefinitely block Trump’s account on the platform and on Instagram.
Twitter immediately followed suit, announcing its own permanent ban against Trump on Friday.

His latest comment comes just days after Musk slammed Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg for the violence that ensued at the U.S. Capitol.

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Ari Fleischer warns Big Tech wrong to believe censorship works: ‘It creates a dangerous underground’

Twitter and other tech giants miscalculated when they decided to restrict President Trump and the social media platform Parler, former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer told “Bill Hemmer Reports” Monday, warning that history proves such actions simply radicalize those targeted.

“This is a slippery slope that leads all of us into a worse place,” Fleischer told host Bill Hemmer. “Censorship never works. Censorship doesn’t get rid of the ideas. It creates a dangerous underground. That’s what we’re seeing. It won’t end well.”

Hemmer noted that synidcated radio host Rush Limbaugh had told his audience Monday that “we” — meaning conservatives and the conservative movement — are “being censored out of existence.”

“This ends in a terrible place,” Fleischer commented. “This ends in even more anger and recrimination. If you have one side that this is being done to, if you realize the only way you can communicate is to lash out, you will lash out.”

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Fleischer further noted that Vice President-elect Kamala Harris herself called last year for Twitter to bar Trump from the platform.

“The president has put himself in this position,” Fleischer emphasized. “But still, Twitter erred. This is what Kamala Harris called for when she ran for the presidency, isn’t it? She urged Twitter to ban the president. Now [that] the Biden-Harris administration is coming in, Twitter acts in accordance with their wishes. This doesn’t look good and it ends worse.”

Joe Concha: Big Tech’s suspensions of Parler create ‘a very dangerous place’

Fox News contributor Joe Concha slammmed Big Tech for actions taken against Parler by Amazon, Apple, and Google that caused the social media platform to shut down Monday.

Concha, a media and politics columnist for The Hill, told Julie Banderas on “Outnumbered Overtime” the suspensions create “a very dangerous place” and limit the free exchange of ideas. The backlash against Parler came after a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol in a deadly riot last week.

PARLER SUES AMAZON FOR SUSPENDING APP FROM CLOUD SERVICE, CLAIMS ANTITRUST VIOLATION AND BREACH OF CONTRACT

JOE CONCHA: The responsibility partly lies with the President of the United States holding a rally, Julie, and then his supporters, the most extreme ones, certainly not all, but enough, storming the Capitol. That was part of it, and it’s been a powder keg that’s been building for quite some time since the election. To pick out one particular social media platform like Parler, and say, ‘You’re responsible,’ and that’s what Google’s saying, Apple’s saying, and Amazon’s saying, without that triad, you don’t get to have a social media platform anymore.

It’s completely arbitrary. And this whole thing, by the way, that Twitter is somehow sunshine, lollipops, and rainbows in terms of what’s posted on there? Or go to any political publication and read their comments section. It’s as vile and as hateful as anything you’ll see. So to pick out Parler, and not talk about anybody else in terms of moderation, is quite the rub…

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This creates a very dangerous place now, in terms of the free exchange of ideas...

We should have platforms where there’s a free exchange of ideas between the left and the right and everybody in between. Instead, we’re going to create these silos now, or echo chambers, of people who agree with each other just talking at each other, and on the other side, same thing, and that’s the world we’re going to live in at this point, and that’s not what we are.

What to know about Signal, the secure messaging app that’s surging in popularity

In the wake of last week’s riot at the U.S. Capitol that left several people dead and has prompted outrage across the nation, the messaging app Signal has surged in popularity as users look for alternatives to social networks.

Built by Swedish-based developer Signal Messenger LLC, Signal has surged to the top of the Apple App Store and near the top of the Google Play Store, but it is unlike Twitter or Facebook. Instead, it is a secure messaging app, similar to WhatsApp or Apple’s iMessage.

Signal allows users to send texts, videos, audio or picture messages with end-to-end encryption, just as they would via a normal text message. “Signal’s advanced privacy-preserving technology is always enabled, so you can focus on sharing the moments that matter with the people who matter to you,” the app writes in its description.

Signal app displayed on iPhone (Credit: Signal.org blog)

CAPITAL RIOTER CARRYING CONFEDERATE FLAG WANTED BY FBI: ‘SEEKING THE PUBLIC’S ASSISTANCE’

Effectively, the message is scrambled right after it is sent, so neither Signal nor anyone else can read the message. Only the recipient can see the unscrambled message.

In addition, Signal, which does not store user data, according to its website, also offers a host of other privacy features, including face-blurring, blank notification pop-ups and ephemeral messages. All message history is stored locally on the device, Signal added.

However, there is a limitation to using Signal to send encrypted messages. The end-to-end encryption may be limited if one of the parties is not using Signal, so broader adoption has been one of the app’s largest issues.

It has benefited in popularity after people like Edward Snowden tweeted about it in 2015, with Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk recently telling his followers to use the service, while simultaneously taking a shot at Facebook.

Musk also noted that he had previously donated money to Signal and would be donating more in the future.

Musk and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg have famously sparred about a number of topics over the years, including artificial intelligence. In 2018, Musk pulled SpaceX and Tesla’s Facebook pages following the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

On Sunday, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey tweeted a heart emoji that Signal had risen to the top of the App Store, which sparked criticism from Parler CEO John Matze.

“Yeah, we were number one until the fake news rage mob at Twitter and your anti-competitive friends went after us,” Matze wrote on his social network. Parler has since been pulled from both the App Store and Play Store and has lost a number of business partners, including Amazon Web Services, which hosted the app, its lawyers, among others.

POPE FRANCIS PRAYS FOR US CAPITOL VICTIMS, CALLS VIOLENCE ‘SELF-DESTRUCTIVE’

As Signal continues to surge in popularity, it has had some hiccups in verifying new users. Late last week, the messaging app tweeted that verification codes were delayed “because so many people are trying to join Signal right now.”

By Saturday, the problem had been fixed.

On Sunday, Signal tweeted that it was shattering traffic records, citing people disliking Facebook’s new terms.

Signal had been downloaded more than 32 million times as of June 2020, but the recent surge has no doubt propelled that number to new heights.

Fox News has reached out to Signal with a request for comment.

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After Capitol riot, Sen. Mark Warner urges Facebook to preserve ‘digital evidence’

In the wake of last week’s deadly riot at the Capitol, Sen. Mark Warner is urging Facebook and other social media giants to preserve “digital evidence” of the chaotic scenes that engulfed the building.

“After Wednesday’s insurrectionist attack on our nation’s Capitol, I’m calling on telecom and social media companies to preserve digital evidence of the Capitol riot,” the Virginia Democrat tweeted on Saturday.

In a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Warner states that “the United States Capitol is now a crime scene.”

CAPITOL PROTESTS: FBI MANHUNT FOR RIOT SUSPECTS GOES HIGH-TECH

“In case you have not already done so, I request that Facebook work to immediately preserve any and all posts, communications, videos and other media, meta-data, cloud backups, and subscriber information, whether currently on your platform or in any backup or archived state, across Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, that may be associated with Wednesday’s insurrectionist attack on the United States Capitol,” Warner, a Democrat from Virginia, wrote.

“We are continuing our ongoing, proactive outreach to law enforcement and have worked to quickly provide responses to valid legal requests,” a Facebook spokesperson told Fox News, via email Sunday. “We are removing content, disabling accounts, and working with law enforcement to protect against direct threats to public safety.”

Images of pro-Trump rioters storming the Capitol Building sent shockwaves around the world. The violence left five people dead, including a Capitol Police officer and sparked a high-tech FBI manhunt for suspects involved in the riot.

FACEBOOK BLOCKS TRUMP INDEFINITELY AFTER CAPITOL RIOT RESPONSE

Facebook is also in the spotlight over its decision to indefinitely block President Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts following his response to the Capitol riot.

In a Facebook post on Thursday, Zuckerberg wrote that “the shocking events of the last 24 hours clearly demonstrate that President Donald Trump intends to use his remaining time in office to undermine the peaceful and lawful transition of power to his elected successor, Joe Biden.”

“We believe the risks of allowing the President to continue to use our service during this period are simply too great,” he added. “Therefore, we are extending the block we have placed on his Facebook and Instagram accounts indefinitely and for at least the next two weeks until the peaceful transition of power is complete.”

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Fox News’ Stephanie Pagones and Brooke Singman contributed to this article.

Follow James Rogers on Twitter @jamesjrogers

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