Silicon Valley Tech News Roundup – May 28th

Microsoft announces China state-sponsored hackers attacked US cyberinfrastructure – 5/25

In a report published on Wednesday, Microsoft revealed that Chinese state-sponsored hackers compromised US cyberinfrastructure organizations to gather intelligence. Microsoft claims the hacking group Volt Typhoon is behind the attacks. It aims to disrupt “critical communications infrastructure between the United States and Asia.” Furthermore, the report claims immediate disruption is not the goal, but “the threat actor intends to perform espionage and maintain access without being detected for as long as possible.”

According to Microsoft, the attack is ongoing, and they advised affected customers to “close or change credentials for all compromised accounts.” The National Security Agency released a bulletin the same day with details on how the attack works and information on how cybersecurity should respond to it.

On Thursday, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs dismissed the claims as false. It claims the report is “filled with disinformation” and that the United States is “the champion of hacking.”

Twitter withdraws from EU’s Voluntary Code of Practice against disinformation – 5/27

Thierry Breton, the EU Internal Market Commissioner, tweeted the company withdrew from the European Union’s Code of Practice.
Breton tweeted: “Twitter leaves EU voluntary Code of Practice against disinformation. But obligations remain. You can run but you can’t hide. Beyond voluntary commitments, fighting disinformation will be legal obligation under #DSA as of August 25. Our teams will be ready for enforcement.”

The Code of Practice is a voluntary agreement to fight online disinformation. The code was voluntary so far. In June 2022, the EU announced that adhering to it would count towards Digital Service Act compliance. However, from August 25th, under the Act, all social media platforms and companies with more than 45 million monthly users are legally required to fight online disinformation and illegal content.

Digital Service Act enables the EU authorities to fine companies for potential infractions. The fines range from up to 10% of global annual turnover to up to 20% of global annual turnover in case of repeat offenses. It also allows the EU to block access to the services of repeat offenders.

Sam Altman (the CEO of OpenAI) decides against ceasing EU operations – 5/26

According to a report published by the Financial Times earlier this week, Sam Altman (the CEO of OpenAI) expressed concerns over the European Union’s plans to regulate AI. Altman went as far as to say he would pull the ChatGPT services from the EU.

Altman stated he has “many concerns” over the planned Artificial Intelligence Act and fears the EU would be “over-regulating.” In particular, he highlighted the plans announced earlier this month that the proposed regulation would include general-purpose AI technology like large language models GT-4. Altman said: “The details really matter… We will try to comply, but if we can’t comply we will cease operating.”

But less than 48 hours later, after extensive media coverage of his comments, Altman backtracked. He tweeted: “We are excited to continue to operate here and of course have no plans to leave.”

Foad Dabiri (the engineering lead at Twitter) quits a day after the DeSantis launch – 5/26

Foad Dabiri (the engineering lead at Twitter’s Growth) announced his resignation a day after Governor DeSantis’ attempt to launch his presidential campaign on Twitter experienced numerous technical problems.

DeSantis launched his presidential bid via a Twitter live stream. The live stream was 20 minutes late because of technical problems. According to Reuters, the event drew about 600,000 users at one point. By the end of the event, less than 300,000 listened in. DeSantis’ communication team tried to spin the technical problems into positives – they claimed the event raised over $1 million in an hour and that the announcement broke “the internet with so much excitement.”

Talking about his resignation, Dabiri tweeted: “After almost four incredible years at Twitter, I decided to leave the nest yesterday.” He did not specify his reasons for leaving and was not available for a request for comment. Musk cut more than 80% of Twitter’s workforce since taking over last year.