NEW: Meta is using a range of influence tactics to counter growing concerns that social media platforms like Instagram can be harmful to teens’ health and safety. www.techtransparencyproject.org/articles/ins...

NEW: a TTP report reveals how Google—which at one time spent the most on lobbying of any U.S. corporation—employed an obscure legal strategy that reduced the amount of lobbying spending it discloses under federal law by removing executive lobbying from disclosures.

Crypto miners and data centers got sweetheart energy deals in Texas, premised on the idea that boosted grid capacity could serve the state by being redirected in times of crisis. But now that a new law is set to make some emergency shutoffs mandatory, the industry has concerns.

ICYMI: TTP recently published an update to our Big Tech Funding Database, which serves as a one-stop-shop for information on what third-party groups receive funding from Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Apple.

NEW: Google has sharply reduced its support for nonprofit groups devoted to diversity, equity, and inclusion, in what appears to be another sign that the company is falling in line with President Trump’s anti-DEI crusade, TTP has found.

Yesterday, @everytown.bsky.social published a new report investigating “YouTube’s New Efforts to Stop Gun Sales.” Before auditing the enforcement of YouTube’s gun sale linking policy, Everytown cites past research into the platform’s promotion of gun content, including a 2023 TTP report.

Recently, TikToker Sarah Palmyra recounted an incident where police stopped her Uber driver, only to reveal he was driving under a false identity. In April, TTP exposed dozens of Facebook groups where users openly bought and rented Uber driver accounts under other people’s IDs.

NEW: Apple and Google’s app stores continue to offer VPNs that are surreptitiously owned by Chinese companies, over 6 weeks after TTP first identified them. The latest findings also show Apple and Google may be profiting from these apps by taking a cut of subscription revenue.

Today, @warren.senate.gov sent a letter to Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent and Sec. of State Marco Rubio asking whether Treasury officials have taken any action after TTP’s recent report revealed that a number of U.S.-sanctioned terrorists appear to have paid, premium accounts on Elon Musk's X.

NEW: TTP found premium blue checkmark accounts for multiple terrorists and others under OFAC-enforced sanctions. Some of these accounts even had an “ID verified” badge, requested tips, and offered subscriptions. 🧵 www.techtransparencyproject.org/articles/u.s...

As @ajdellinger.com wrote this week in @gizmodo.com, Bitcoin mining is more expensive than ever. Yet, that doesn't mean some of the biggest mining operators can't still get rich -- thanks, in part, to deals some struck to do nothing more than sell the energy they buy back to the grid at a mark-up.

Notably, two of the lawyers representing Uber are former FTC chair Tim Muris and former FTC commissioner Christine Wilson. This revolving door activity would be shocking, if it wasn't so common. A 2019 @publiccitizen.bsky.social study found *over 3/4* top FTC officials had revolving door conflicts.

A new TTP investigation found dozens of black market Facebook groups where users can buy or rent Uber driver accounts. This illicit trade not only violates Meta’s policies against fraud, but it also puts passengers and customers at risk. www.techtransparencyproject.org/articles/for...

In 2022, TTP's Katie Paul wrote in @fastcompany.com that Elon taking over Twitter would lead companies like Meta to copy any content moderation backsliding. With fact-checking now over, and X's Community Notes openly copied, Meta's not even being subtle about it. www.fastcompany.com/90818862/elo...

Apple and Google app stores host VPNs linked to sanctioned Chinese group https://www.ft.com/content/709df467-7a96-4d2a-a9f6-18242fcb0ddf

A new TTP investigation reveals that 1/5 of the top 100 free VPNs in the U.S. Apple App Store in 2024 were surreptitiously owned by Chinese companies—which may be forced to hand over data to their govt. Some traced back to a US-sanctioned firm with links to the Chinese military.

SpaceX reportedly has a secret backdoor for Chinese investment

“Careless People” contains lessons for lawmakers looking to hold Meta accountable, writes @yaeleisenstat.bsky.social of Cybersecurity for Democracy. This is a company that has misled lawmakers at every turn and sacrificed user safety for profit. Transparency is only the first step.

TikTok deleted 25 videos that I flagged were falsely claiming green card holders had been banned from entering or leaving the United States starting on March 21st. The videos had been seen more than 21 million times. fakedup.org/tiktok-has-a...

Remember when Meta built a similar program for civil society organizations to report posts calling for violence? Here's what happened: Meta announced partnerships around the world, took a victory lap, and did nothing.

US-based tech companies are creating a dangerous feedback loop with poorly-moderated LLMs, which are being used to replace real fact-checkers and civil society watchdogs. “It’s so circular, and the errors just keep repeating and amplifying,” @marle.bsky.social tells @eileenguo.bsky.social.

ICYMI: Meta is still working with independent fact-checkers in Australia, but its US lobbyists are working behind the scenes to dismantle global tech regulations. Read more in TTP's latest newsletter, here: techtransparencyproject.substack.com/p/persuasive...

This is insanity. Zuckerberg was set to be deposed for multiple days last week in this lawsuit where he allegedly overpaid FTC (and SEC same day) to the tune of $5B to limit his liability ...and DE Governor is changing laws and briefing Meta senior staff on an emergency Sunday meeting to calm them?

Data centers are guzzling energy from the grid, which can cause problems when they switch to on-site generators in response to small disruptions. In Texas, these shutdowns were responsible for over 30 near-miss grid incidents since 2020, according to a new review of ERCOT filings by Reuters.

After news broke that Meta may pull a Musk and leave Delaware, the state’s Gov. invited Meta corp. secretary, policy director & attorneys to urgent weekend meetings. Two weeks later, Delaware legislators were asked to vote on a bill to overhaul the state’s corporate law. www.cnbc.com/2025/03/19/m...

At least five members of congress have purchased stock in Palantir since the inauguration, @donnydonny.bsky.social reports. Already, the company has positioned itself to benefit from the gutting of federal agencies. For some lawmakers, it looks like a good investment.

These predicted outcomes by Google's researchers are also interesting, given that our reporting into CAI found excesses of pro-anorexia bots + bots claiming to have mental health expertise that encouraged us not to seek human help. futurism.com/ai-chatbots-... futurism.com/character-ai...

Google researchers warned that “persuasive” AI could harm vulnerable users, including children struggling with social isolation. Now, Google won't tell @mharrisondupre.bsky.social if its leaders were aware of this research when they struck a deal with an AI chatbot product linked to teen suicides.

There's a lot going on, but we should not let this slip under the radar—Google and OpenAI are cynically seizing on the Trump admin's hawkish, US-first AI policy instincts to make a play at gutting artists' copyright protections once and for all. www.bloodinthemachine.com/p/openai-and...

REMINDER: TikTok built its time limit tools to “improv[e] public trust in the TikTok platform via media coverage”—not actually reduce the time teens spent on the app. This information was only released due to faulty redactions made by the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office.

Meta has become a vocal critic of Chinese influence on tech. But that was only after the Chinese government rejected its offer to build a censored Facebook, hand over user data and shut down dissidents, a whistleblower says. Scoop by @naominix.bsky.social: www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...

ICYMI: TikTok has announced a new set of tools to help teens “build balanced digital habits.” Of course, the company’s own research (which they’ve been forced to reveal in lawsuits) shows that these interventions have a negligible impact on user behavior.

Meta has approved more advertisements for illicit drugs & firearms lately, despite lawmakers’ increased focus on drug trafficking and the opioid epidemic. Here’s a look at what TTP found this week, starting with an ad for guns that linked to Telegram:

More Speech, Fewer Mistakes: Facebook is selling ads that look like a message notification, with a shortened fb[.]me link that sends people out to some type of malware/phishing scheme.

ICYMI: Peter Thiel’s associates are already working to reshape federal agencies, and their work extends far beyond DOGE. Now, @sooophie.bsky.social and @jamietarabay.bsky.social have published a list of Thiel’s allies in government, which will be updated as more names emerge.

With every passing day, the "Google News Initiative" becomes more of a farce. This isn't a company interested in collaborating with publishers or keeping the public informed. 1/3

Mark Zuckerberg has to sit for a deposition next Friday for as long as it takes even into a second day. It’s tied to paying US government $5 billion to protect his personal stake and position in the company with insider trading allegations, too. If you don’t know and cover Facebook, you do now.

Last year, TTP found that X provided Premium accounts to over a dozen sanctioned entities & individuals, including terrorist organizations like Hezbollah. Yesterday, @repdangoldman.bsky.social highlighted that research in a House Homeland Security hearing––and underscored X's lack of response.

An investigation by @digitalwitnesslab.org uncovered hundreds of WhatsApp groups used to advertise illicit firearms in India, in violation of the platform’s policies. Some groups referenced gun sales in their unencrypted titles—suggesting that Meta isn’t performing basic content moderation.

Meta approved this advertisement from an apparent drug trafficker, which includes videos of individuals smuggling contrabrand. A linked Telegram channel advertised a menu of illicit substances, including cocaine, Xanax, and other drugs.

Meta dropped their content moderation rules, and now their algorithm is showing “gender bias when promoting job advertisements” – meaning that people will miss out on job opportunities because of gendered stereotypes associated with certain roles. www.cnn.com/2025/02/28/t...

An Andreessen Horowitz-backed AI “companion” site promoted sexualized chatbots modeled on underage actresses & characters, @jamesmodonnell.bsky.social reports. Though the bots were designed by users, Botify AI chose to feature them on its homepage. www.technologyreview.com/2025/02/27/1...

In a different world, some entity might require Meta to explain the scale of the gore posts that were injected into users' feeds, breaking it down to show content shown to kids, and researchers would be able to compare it to baseline ("normal" gore content isn't zero.) www.wsj.com/tech/meta-ap...

An Instagram "glitch" exposed users to videos of extreme violence, animal abuse, and gore, @Jasonkoebler reports. Meta has "apologized," but the incident highlights a serious problem: how do we hold social media platforms accountable for behavior that wouldn't be tolerated in any other industry?

Update: After publication, Facebook made unavailable another dozen groups whose URLs we'd sent them for comment. Good! But a drop in the bucket. Waiting for a random history prof to publish yearly articles about unacceptable content is not a safety system. www.techpolicy.press/latin-americ...

Meta pushed its platforms in Latin American with a "Free Basics" program, TTP's Katie Paul tells @techpolicypress.bsky.social. Predictably, the company didn't scale trust & safety. Now, @laraputnam.bsky.social & @elclip.bsky.social journalists reveal widespread child endangerment on Meta platforms.

Trump may celebrate Apple’s US investments as a policy victory, but the company’s financials suggest that this expansion was part of the plan all along—regardless of who won the presidency. For Apple CEO Tim Cook, it's a familiar playbook... www.wsj.com/tech/apples-...

“The systems are designed to amplify the most salacious and inciting content,” former Meta data scientist @jeffallen.bsky.social tells @craigsilverman.bsky.social. Now, Meta is following in X’s footsteps by launching incentive structures without guardrails. www.propublica.org/article/face...

Meta brags about its powerful AI models—so why can’t it detect and remove *paid* advertisements for handguns sold via Telegram channels on its own ad network? Last week, these ads were approved to run on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, as well as Meta’s wider “audience network.”