Federal government

U.S. officials imposed the “first of its kind” ban arguing that Kaspersky threatens U.S. national security because of its links to Russia.

US bans sale of Kaspersky software citing security risk from Russia 

CISA said the latest theft of government email — blamed on Russian government hackers — presents “a grave and unacceptable risk” to U.S. federal agencies.

US says Russian hackers stole federal government emails during Microsoft cyberattack

U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) has warned in a letter to the Justice Department that unidentified governments are spying on Apple and Google phone users through their push notifications. The…

US senator warns governments are spying on Apple and Google users via push notifications

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A government watchdog spent $15,000 to crack a federal agency’s passwords in minutes

A government watchdog has published a scathing rebuke of the Department of the Interior’s cybersecurity posture, finding it was able to crack thousands of employee user accounts because the department’s security policies allow easily guessable passwords like ‘Password1234’. The report by the Office of the Inspector General for the Department…

A government watchdog spent $15,000 to crack a federal agency’s passwords in minutes

Enterprise startups are increasingly turning their attention to landing the federal government as a customer — and VCs are all-in.

Startups and VCs are increasingly embracing the federal government. Here’s why

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What we learned when Twitter whistleblower Mudge testified to Congress

A ticking bomb of security vulnerabilities. Covering up security failures. Duping regulators and misleading lawmakers. These are just some of the allegations when Twitter’s ex-security lead turned whistleblower, Peiter Zatko, testified to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, less than a month after the release of his explosive whistleblower complaint…

What we learned when Twitter whistleblower Mudge testified to Congress

What do I and my founding team at our early-stage startup need to be aware of so we can be on track for the next H-1B lottery for the STEM…

Dear Sophie: What should we know about the H-1B lottery before we hire STEM OPTs?

The Department of Justice is preparing a second major antitrust suit against Google, according to new reporting by Bloomberg. The DOJ could sue Google “as soon as next month,” according…

The DOJ is reportedly prepping an antitrust suit against Google over its ad business

Intel’s choice to build a $20 billion chip fabrication facility in Columbus, Ohio, along with the passage of the CHIPS Act, could set the stage for a startup ecosystem boost.

The passage of the CHIPS Act could launch another US startup renaissance

Stablecoins, CFTC oversight are among the first issues the U.S. Senate hopes to tackle in a bipartisan crypto bill.

Regulators should address crypto ‘garbage’ first, former SEC Chairman Clayton says

In the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, some Facebook and Instagram users planning to help distribute legal abortion pills are finding themselves censored. According…

Facebook and Instagram are removing posts offering to mail abortion pills

Despite the gloom, doom and scramble for yield, one sector is often overlooked, where backing technology will produce returns no matter the state of the economy: government spending in tech.

As markets go down, government tech spending stays steady: How can investors tap in?

The Biden administration is hoping that the change will remove at least one roadblock to greater wind and solar development on federal land.

Biden admin policy change could tip solar and wind projects into profitability

A federal judge in California dismissed Donald Trump’s lawsuit against Twitter Friday, dimming at least one avenue the former president and prolific tweeter might have used to get back to…

Judge tosses Trump’s lawsuit over his lifetime Twitter ban

The U.S. General Services Administration, which procures and investigates tech for things like government websites and online services, is making a two-pronged push for accessibility in its recently released Equity…

GSA looks into facial recognition bias and improving accessibility in federal web services

Microsoft is working to warm lawmakers up to its plans to bring a collection of the world’s most popular video games under its wing. The company announced its intention to…

Microsoft says it will open up the Xbox store in light of the Activision Blizzard deal

The IRS announced plans Monday to back away from a third-party facial recognition system that collects biometric data from U.S. taxpayers who want to log in to the agency’s online…

The IRS won’t make you verify your identity with facial recognition after all

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has assembled a review board that will be tasked with investigating major national cybersecurity incidents in an effort to “meaningfully improve” the nation’s cyber resilience.…

Homeland Security establishes the Cyber Safety Review Board to learn the mistakes from past cyber incidents

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US government agencies bought Chinese surveillance tech despite federal ban

This story was reported in partnership with video surveillance news site IPVM. At least three U.S. federal agencies, including the military, have purchased China-made video surveillance equipment banned from use in the federal government. Purchasing records seen by TechCrunch and video surveillance news site IPVM show the agencies collectively spent…

US government agencies bought Chinese surveillance tech despite federal ban

A former upstart Instagram rival is suing Meta, formerly known as Facebook, over allegations that the company violated antitrust laws by cloning a competing product and ultimately killing its business.…

New antitrust suit from Phhhoto alleges Facebook copied and killed the competition

The revitalization of the childcare sector would benefit from an ambitious and galvanizing “moonshot” goal, like providing universal, free childcare for all Americans.

It’s time for the VC community to stop overlooking the childcare industry

Suing your way to the stars

Hello friends, and welcome back to Week in Review! I’m back from a very fun and rehabilitative couple weeks away from my phone, my Twitter account and the news cycle.…

Suing your way to the stars

The General Services Administration has denied a senator’s request to review documents Zoom submitted to have its software approved for use in the federal government. The denial was in response…

GSA blocks senator from reviewing documents used to approve Zoom for government use

As regulations around ESG change, private players might not have to comply, but they should adapt to position themselves to effectively operate in a new regulatory environment.

What the growing federal focus on ESG means for private markets

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Biden’s sweeping executive order takes on Big Tech’s ‘bad mergers,’ ISPs and more

The Biden administration just introduced a sweeping, ambitious plan to forcibly inject competition into some consolidated sectors of the American economy — the tech sector prominent among them — through executive action. “Today President Biden is taking decisive action to reduce the trend of corporate consolidation, increase competition, and deliver…

Biden’s sweeping executive order takes on Big Tech’s ‘bad mergers,’ ISPs and more

Trump’s spicy trio of lawsuits against the social media platforms that he believes wrongfully banned him have succeeded in showering the former president with a flurry of media attention, but…

Trump’s new lawsuits against social media companies are going nowhere fast

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Opioid addiction treatment apps found sharing sensitive data with third parties

Several widely used opioid treatment recovery apps are accessing and sharing sensitive user data with third parties, a new investigation has found. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and efforts to reduce transmission in the U.S, telehealth services and apps offering opioid addiction treatment have surged in popularity. This…

Opioid addiction treatment apps found sharing sensitive data with third parties

Security compliance is precisely three things: incredibly boring, time consuming, and entirely necessary to run a business in the modern age. Compliance isn’t going away, but startups like Drata are…

Drata raises $25M Series A to expand its security compliance platform

Maryland and Montana have become the first U.S. states to pass laws that make it tougher for law enforcement to access DNA databases. The new laws, which aim to safeguard…

Maryland and Montana are restricting police access to DNA databases

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has launched a vulnerability disclosure program allowing ethical hackers to report security flaws to federal agencies. The platform, launched with the help of cybersecurity…

CISA launches platform to let hackers report security bugs to US federal agencies