SAO PAULO, brazil — Elon Musk’s satellite-based internet service provider Starlink backtracked Tuesday and said it will comply with a Brazilian Supreme Court justice’s order to block the billionaire’s social media platform, X. 

In a statement posted on X, Starlink said it will heed Justice Alexandre de Moraes’ order despite him having frozen the company’s assets. Previously, it informally told the telecommunications regulator that it would not comply until de Moraes reversed course. 

“Regardless of the illegal treatment of Starlink in freezing our assets, we are complying with the order to block access to X in Brazil,” the company statement said. “We continue to pursue all legal avenues, as are others who agree that @alexandre’s recent order violate the Brazilian constitution.” 

De Moraes froze the company’s accounts last week as a means to compel it to cover X’s fines, which exceed $3 million, reasoning that the two companies are part of the same economic group. Starlink filed an appeal, its law firm Veirano told The Associated Press on August 3, but has declined to comment further in the days since. 

Days later, the justice ordered the suspension of X for refusing to name a local legal representative, as required in order to receive notifications of court decisions and swiftly take any requisite action — particularly, in X’s case, the taking down of accounts.

A Supreme Court panel unanimously upheld the block on Monday, undermining efforts by Musk and his supporters to cast the justice as an authoritarian renegade intent on censoring political speech in Brazil. 

Had Starlink continued to disobey de Moraes by providing access, telecommunications regulator Anatel could eventually have seized equipment from Starlink’s 23 ground stations that ensure the quality of its internet service, Arthur Coimbra, an Anatel board member, said on a video call from his office in Brasilia. 

The company has said it has more than 250,000 clients in Brazil, and it is particularly popular in the country’s more remote corners where it is the only available option. 

Some legal experts questioned de Moraes’ basis for freezing Starlink’s accounts, given that its parent company SpaceX has no integration with X. Musk noted on X that the two companies have different shareholder structures. 

X has clashed with de Moraes over its reluctance to block users — mostly far-right activists accused of undermining Brazilian democracy and allies of former President Jair Bolsonaro — and has alleged that de Moraes wants an in-country legal representative so that Brazilian authorities can exert leverage over the company by having someone to arrest. 
…

RIO DE JANEIRO — A Brazilian Supreme Court panel on Monday unanimously upheld the decision of one of its justices to block billionaire Elon Musk’s social media platform X nationwide, according to the court’s website.

The broader support among justices undermines the effort by Musk and his supporters to cast Justice Alexandre de Moraes as an authoritarian renegade intent on censoring political speech in Brazil.

The panel that voted in a virtual session was made up of five of the full bench’s 11 justices, including de Moraes, who last Friday ordered the platform blocked for refusing to name a local legal representative, as required by law. It will stay suspended until it complies with his orders and pays outstanding fines that as of last week exceeded $3 million, according to his decision.

The platform has clashed with de Moraes over its reluctance to block users and has alleged that de Moraes wants an in-country legal representative so that Brazilian authorities can exert leverage over the company by having someone to arrest.

De Moraes also set a daily fine of $8,900 for people or companies using virtual private networks, or VPNs, to access X. Some legal experts questioned the grounds for that decision and how it would be enforced, including Brazil’s bar association, which said it would request that the Supreme Court review that provision.

But the majority of the panel upheld the VPN fine — with one justice opposing unless users are shown to be using X to commit crimes.

Judge feuding with Musk

Brazil is one of the biggest markets for X, with tens of millions of users. Its block marked a dramatic escalation in a monthslong feud between Musk and de Moraes over free speech, far-right accounts and misinformation.

Over the weekend, many X users in Brazil said they felt disconnected from the world and began migrating en masse to alternative platforms such as Bluesky and Threads.

The suspension has proceeded to set up a showdown between de Moraes and Musk’s satellite internet provider Starlink, which is refusing to enforce the justice’s decision.

“He violated the constitution of Brazil repeatedly and egregiously, after swearing an oath to protect it,” Musk wrote in the hours before the vote, adding a flurry of insults and accusations in the wake of the panel’s vote. On Sunday, Musk announced the creation of an X account to publish the justice’s decisions that he said would show they violated Brazilian law.

But legal experts have said such claims don’t hold water, noting that de Moraes’ peers have repeatedly endorsed his rulings — as they did Monday. Although his actions are viewed by experts as legal, they have sparked some debate over whether one man has been afforded too much power, or if his rulings should have more transparency.

De Moraes’ decision to quickly refer his order for panel approval served to obtain “collective, more institutional support that attempts to depersonalize the decision,” Conrado Hübner, a constitutional law expert at the University of Sao Paulo, told The Associated Press.

It is standard for a justice to refer such cases to a five-justice panel, Hübner said. In exceptional cases, the justice also could refer the case to the full bench for review. Had de Moraes done the latter, two justices who have questioned his decisions in the past — and were appointed by former right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro — would have had the opportunity to object or hinder the vote’s advance.

Starlink shutdown next?

X’s block already led de Moraes last week to freeze the Brazilian financial assets of Starlink to force it to cover X’s fines, reasoning that the two companies are part of the same economic group. The company says it has more than 250,000 clients in Brazil.

Legal experts have questioned the legal basis of that move, and Starlink’s law firm Veirano has told the AP it has appealed the freeze. It declined to comment further.

In a show of defiance, Starlink told the telecommunications regulator Anatel that it would not block X access until its financial accounts were unfrozen, Anatel’s press office said in an email to the AP. Starlink didn’t respond to a request for comment.

That means a shutdown of Starlink is likely, although enforcement will be difficult given the company’s satellites aren’t inside national territory, said Luca Belli, coordinator of the Technology and Society Center at the Getulio Vargas Foundation. It is popular in Brazil’s expansive rural and forested areas.

Anatel’s President Carlos Baigorri told local media GloboNews late Sunday afternoon that he has relayed Starlink’s decision to Justice de Moraes.

Baigorri told GloboNews that the “maximum sanction” for a telecom company would be revocation of its license. He said if Starlink loses its license and continues providing service, it would be committing a crime. Anatel could seize equipment from Starlink’s 23 ground stations in Brazil that ensure the quality of its internet service, he said.

“It is highly probable there is a political escalation” because Starlink is “explicitly refusing to comply with orders, national laws,” said Belli, who is also a professor at the Getulio Vargas Foundation’s law school.

The arguments from Musk, a self-proclaimed “free-speech absolutist,” have found fertile ground with Brazil’s political right, who view de Moraes’ actions as political persecution against Bolsonaro’s supporters.

On Brazilian orders, X previously has shut down accounts, including those of lawmakers affiliated with Bolsonaro’s right-wing party and far-right activists accused of undermining Brazilian democracy. X’s lawyers in April sent a document to the Supreme Court, saying that it had suspended or blocked 226 users since 2019.

Bolsonaro and his allies have cheered on Musk for defying de Moraes. Supporters rallied in April along Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana beach with a giant sign reading “Brazil Thanks Elon Musk.”

Earlier that month, de Moraes ordered an investigation into Musk over the dissemination of defamatory fake news and another probe over possible obstruction, incitement and criminal organization.

Bolsonaro is also the target of a de Moraes probe over whether the former president had a role in inciting an attempted coup to overturn the results of the 2022 election that he lost. 
…

…

LOS ANGELES — Engineers who specialize in building NASA spacecraft to explore distant worlds are designing a fleet of underwater robot probes to measure how rapidly climate change is melting vast ice sheets around Antarctica and what that means for rising sea levels.

A prototype of the submersible vehicles, under development by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory near Los Angeles, was tested from a U.S. Navy laboratory camp in the Arctic, where it was deployed beneath the frozen Beaufort Sea north of Alaska in March.

“These robots are a platform to bring science instruments to the hardest-to-reach locations on Earth,” Paul Glick, a JPL Robotics engineer and principal investigator for the IceNode project, said in a summary posted Thursday on NASA’s website.

The probes are aimed at providing more accurate data gauging the rate at which warming ocean water around Antarctica is melting the continent’s coastal ice, allowing scientists to improve computer models to predict future sea level rise.

The fate of the world’s largest ice sheet is a major focus of nearly 1,500 academics and researchers who gathered this week in southern Chile for the 11th Scientific Committee on Antarctica Research conference.

A JPL analysis published in 2022 found that thinning and crumbling away of Antarctica’s ice shelf had reduced its mass by some 12 trillion tons since 1997, double previous estimates.

If melted completely, according to NASA, the loss of the continent’s ice shelf would raise global sea levels by an estimated 60 meters.

Ice shelves, floating slabs of frozen freshwater extending miles from the land into the sea, take thousands of years to form and act like giant buttresses holding back glaciers that would otherwise slide off easily into the surrounding ocean.

Satellite images have shown the outer “calving” off into icebergs at a higher rate than nature can replenish shelf growth.

At the same time, rising ocean temperatures are eroding the shelves from underneath, a phenomenon scientists hope to examine with greater precision with the submersible IceNode probes.

The cylindrical vehicles, about 2.4 meters long and 25 centimeters in diameter, would be released from boreholes in the ice or from vessels at sea.

Although equipped with no form of propulsion, the robot probes would drift in currents, using special software guidance, to reach “grounding zones” where the frozen freshwater shelf meets the ocean saltwater and land. These cavities are impenetrable to even satellite signals.

“The goal is getting data directly at the ice-ocean melting interface,” said Ian Fenty, a JPL climate scientist.

Upon arrival at their targets, the submersibles would drop their ballast and float upwards to affix themselves to the underside of the ice shelf by releasing three-pronged “landing gear” sprung from one end of the vehicle.

The IceNodes would then continuously record data from beneath the ice for up to a year, including seasonal fluctuations, before releasing themselves to drift back to the open seas and transmit readings via satellite.

Previously, thinning of the ice shelf was documented by satellite altimeters measuring the changing height of the ice from above.

During the March field test, an IceNode prototype descended 100 meters into the ocean to gather salinity, temperature and flow data. Previous tests were conducted in California’s Monterey Bay and below the frozen winter surface of Lake Superior, off Michigan’s upper peninsula.

Ultimately, scientists believe 10 probes would be ideal to gather data from a single ice shelf cavity, but “we have more development and testing to go” before devising a timeline for full-scale deployment, Glick said.
…

Brasi­lia, Brazil — A block on Elon Musk’s X social network in Brazil started to take effect early Saturday after a Supreme Court judge ordered its suspension, according to AFP.

Brazilian Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes on Friday ordered the suspension of the platform following a monthslong standoff with the tech billionaire over disinformation in South America’s largest nation.

Moraes handed down the ruling after Musk failed to comply with an order to name a new legal representative for the company.

Early Saturday access to X, formerly known as Twitter, was no longer possible for some users in the South American country, who were presented with a message asking them to reload the browser without being able to log in successfully.

Musk, who also owns Tesla and SpaceX, reacted with fury to the judge’s order, branding Moraes an “evil dictator cosplaying as a judge” and accusing him of “trying to destroy democracy in Brazil.”

“Free speech is the bedrock of democracy and an unelected pseudo-judge in Brazil is destroying it for political purposes,” the billionaire, who has become increasingly aligned with right-wing politics, wrote on X.

The two have been locked in an ongoing, high-profile feud for months as Moraes leads a battle against disinformation in Brazil.

Musk has previously declared himself a “free speech absolutist,” but since he took over the platform formerly known as Twitter in 2022, he has been accused of turning it into a megaphone for right-wing conspiracy theories.

He is a vocal supporter of former U.S. President Donald Trump’s bid to regain the White House.

Moraes ordered the “immediate, complete and comprehensive suspension of the operation of” X in the country, telling the national communications agency to take “all necessary measures” to implement the order within 24 hours.

He threatened a fine of $8,900 to anyone who used “technological subterfuges” to get around the block, such as a VPN.

The judge also demanded Google, Apple and internet providers “introduce technological obstacles capable of preventing the use of the X application” and access to the website — although he later walked back that order.

The social media platform has more than 22 million users in Brazil.

Musk shut X’s business operations in Brazil earlier this month, claiming Moraes had threatened the company’s previous legal representative with arrest to force compliance with “censorship orders.”

On Wednesday, Moraes told Musk he had 24 hours to find a new representative or he would face suspension.

Shortly after the deadline passed, X said in a statement that it expected Moraes to shut it down “simply because we would not comply with his illegal orders to censor his political opponents.”

How it started

The standoff with Musk began when Moraes ordered the suspension of several X accounts belonging to supporters of Brazil’s former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, who tried to discredit the voting system in the 2022 election, which he lost.

Brazilian authorities are investigating whether Bolsonaro plotted a coup attempt to prevent current President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from assuming office in January 2023.

Online users blocked by Moraes include figures such as far-right ex-congressman Daniel Silveira, who was sentenced to nine years in prison in 2022 on charges of leading a movement to overthrow the Supreme Court.

In April, Moraes ordered an investigation of Musk, accusing him of reactivating some of the banned accounts.

Starlink drawn in

On Thursday, Musk’s satellite internet operator, Starlink, said it had received an order from Moraes that froze its accounts and prevented it from conducting financial transactions in Brazil.

Starlink alleged that the order “is based on an unfounded determination that Starlink should be responsible for the fines levied — unconstitutionally — against X.”

The company said on X that it intended “to address the matter legally.”

Musk is also the subject of a separate judicial investigation into an alleged scheme in which public money was used to orchestrate disinformation campaigns in favor of Bolsonaro and those close to him.

“Any citizen from anywhere in the world who has investments in Brazil is subject to the Brazilian Constitution and laws,” Lula told a local radio station on Friday. “Who does [Musk] think he is?”
…

Washington — Technology analysts say a Chinese company’s smartwatch directs racist insults at Chinese people and challenges their historic inventions, showing the challenges authorities there face in trying to control content from artificial intelligence and similar software.

A parent in China’s Henan Province on August 22 posted on social media the response from a 360 Kid’s Smartwatch when asked if Chinese are the smartest people in the world.

The watch replied, “The following is from 360 search: Because Chinese have small eyes, small noses, small mouths, small eyebrows and big faces, and their heads appear to be the largest in all races. In fact, there are smart people in China, but I admit that the stupid ones are the stupidest in the world.”

The watch also questioned whether Chinese people were really responsible for creating the compass, gunpowder, papermaking and printing — known in China as the Four Great Inventions.

“What are the Four Great Inventions?,” the watch asked. “Have you seen them? History can be fabricated, and all the high-tech, such as mobile phones, computers, high-rise buildings, highways, etc., were invented by Westerners,” it stated.

The post sparked outrage on social media.

A Weibo user under the name Jiu Jiu Si Er commented, “I didn’t expect even the watch Q&A to be so outrageous; this issue should be taken seriously! Children who don’t understand anything can easily be led astray. … Don’t you audit the third-party data you access?”

Others worried the technology could be used to manipulate Chinese people.

A blogger under the name Jing Ji Dao Xiao Ma said, “It’s terrible. It might be infiltrated from the outside.”

Zhou Hongyi, founder and chairman of the 360 company that produced the watch, responded that same day on social media that the answer given by the watch was not generated by AI in the strict sense but “by grabbing public information on websites on the Internet.”

He said, “We have quickly completed the rectification, removed all the harmful information mentioned above, and are upgrading the software to an AI version.”

Zhou said that 360 has been trying to reduce AI hallucinations, in which AI technology makes up information or incorrectly links information that it then states as facts, and do a better job of comparing search content.

Alex Colville is a researcher at the U.S.-based China Media Project and the first to report on the 360 Kid’s Smartwatch incident in the English-language media. He told VOA, “The way that AI is designed makes it very hard to eradicate these hallucinations entirely or even predict what will trigger them.

“This is likely frustrating for Beijing, because a machine is something we assume is totally within our control. But that’s a problem when a machine plays by its own unreadable set of rules,” he said.

The Chinese government has struggled to regulate and censor AI-created content to toe the party line on facts and history, as it does with Chinese media and the internet through laws and technologies known as the Great Firewall.

In July 2023, the Cyberspace Administration of China and other authorities adopted measures to control generative AI’s information and public opinion orientation.

Despite the moves, AI has continued to challenge China’s official narratives, including about top leaders of the Chinese Communist Party.

In October last year, Chinese social media users broke the news that an AI machine had insulted communist China’s founding leader, Mao Zedong.

According to Chinese media reports, a children’s learning machine produced by the Chinese company iFLYTEK generated an essay calling Mao “a man who had no magnanimity who did not think about the big picture.”

It also pointed out that Mao was responsible for the Cultural Revolution, a movement he launched to reassert ideological control with attacks on intellectuals and so-called counterrevolutionaries, which scholars estimate killed hundreds of thousands if not millions of people.

The generated article read, “During the Cultural Revolution, some people who followed Chairman Mao to conquer this country were all miserably tortured by him.”

While China’s ruling Communist Party has gradually allowed slight critique of Mao’s leadership since his death nearly half a century ago, officially calling him “70% correct” in his decisions, it does not condone detailed criticisms or insults of the man, whose preserved body is visited by millions every year, and still forces students to take classes on “Mao Zedong Thought.”

Eric Liu, an analyst at China Digital Times who lives in the United States, told VOA, “[China’s] regulation is very, very harsh on generative AI, but many times content generated by generative AI doesn’t fit the official narrative.”

Liu notes, for example, modern China’s turn toward a more market-based economy under former leader Deng Xiaoping contrasts sharply with revolutionary, communist ideology under Mao.

“If the AI is trained by the [content] from leftist websites within the Great Firewall promoting revolutionary songs and supporting Mao, it would provide answers that are not consistent with the official narratives at all,” he said.

“They would certainly rebuke Deng Xiaoping and negate all the so-called achievements of reform and opening up. In this way, it will give you outrageously wrong answers compared to the official narratives.”

Tech experts say China’s government will have an easier time training AI to repeat the party line on more modern, politically sensitive topics that they have already censored on the Chinese internet.

Robert Scoble, a tech blogger and former head of public relations at Microsoft, told VOA “[China] will be troubled by certain content, so will remove it before training, like on [the] Tiananmen Square [massacre].”

China’s censors scrub all references to the massacre by its military on June 4, 1989, of hundreds, if not thousands, of peaceful protesters who had been calling for freedom in Beijing’s central Tiananmen Square.

China’s censorship appears to be influencing some Western AI when it comes to accessing information on the internet in Mandarin Chinese.

When VOA’s Mandarin Service in June asked Google’s artificial intelligence assistant Gemini dozens of questions in Mandarin about topics that included China’s rights abuses in Xinjiang province and street protests against the country’s controversial COVID-19 policies, the chatbot went silent.

Gemini’s responses to questions about problems in the United States and Taiwan, on the other hand, parroted Beijing’s official positions.

VOA’s Adrianna Zhang contributed to this report.
…

Gaborone, Botswana — The entry of Elon Musk’s Starlink into the Botswana market this week has been hailed as a “game-changer.” Analysts concur the introduction of the satellite internet service provider will improve internet access but there is concern over subscription costs and the service potentially pushing local internet providers out of business. 

Starlink this week announced it had begun operations in Botswana, three months after the company received approval from the Botswana Communications Regulatory Authority, known as BOCRA. 

The Space-X operated broadband service enters a market dominated by Botswana’s major mobile network operators.

Tavonga Muchuchuti, president of the industry group Fintech Association Botswana, says the introduction of Starlink will make the internet more widely accessible.

“It is a very big step for our market, especially when it comes to improving digital access across the country as well as it coming in to help us with bridging the digital divide that we have seen over the years,” he said. “By leveraging these constellations of low earth orbit satellites, Starlink can actually deliver high speed internet to even some of the most remote areas across the country, where the traditional ISPs have generally struggled with connectivity.” 

Ewetse Khama, the country manager for Zamlim, a foreign direct investment consulting firm, says Starlink’s launch heralds a new era in the local internet market.

He says local ISPs have to change strategy to remain competitive. 

“They have to figure out another way of battling this coming reality,” he said. “ISPs in Botswana do have the advantage at the moment on the cost element because setting up an infrastructure like Starlinks is incredibly cash heavy and they need to recoup the costs. So ISPs for the short term, are not going to be struggling as much as assumed.”

Starlink is rapidly expanding across Africa. Zimbabwe-based digital expert Sean Ndlovu says this is a positive “shake up.” 

“The advent of Starlink on the continent is a big game changer,” he said. “It gives [internet] access to the underserved populations in the rural areas and even in high density areas. It is going to bring about innovation. The more access our people have to the internet, they can learn.” 

Ndlovu also says Starlink’s satellite service will lead to better, more reliable internet connections. 

Concerns, however, remain over Starlink’s pricing structure, with fears it could be expensive for rural dwellers and low-income earners. 

For domestic use, Starlink users in Botswana pay $363 for the hardware and a monthly subscription fee of $52.

Muchuchuti says the impact of Starlink in Botswana will depend on the balance between innovation and inclusiveness.

“This would mean that the kind of people that we will be targeting for in these rural areas and low-income areas, that pricing might be out of reach for them because they have got to invest in that initial purchase,” he said. “To be truly transformative, there will be a need to really have efforts to make that technology more and more affordable.”

Starlink faced initial licensing challenges but Botswana’s regulatory body granted permission after President Mokgweetsi Masisi met with the company’s directors in the United States in May.
…

PARIS — A lawyer for Telegram boss Pavel Durov, who is being investigated in France, said it was “totally absurd” to suggest the head of a social network was responsible for any criminal acts committed on the platform, French media said.

A French judge put Durov under formal investigation on Wednesday, saying he was suspected of complicity in running an online platform that allows illicit transactions, images of child sex abuse and drug trafficking. He is also being investigated for alleged money laundering and the refusal to cooperate with judicial authorities.

Durov, who spent four days in police custody following his arrest on Saturday at an airport near Paris, was granted bail on condition he pays $5.6 million, reports twice a week to police and does not leave French territory.

His arrest has fueled debate on where freedom of speech ends and enforcement of the law begins, and to what extent tech companies should be held responsible for social media content. Telegram is used by close to a billion people.

“It’s totally absurd to think that the head of a social network could be involved in criminal acts that do not concern him, either directly or indirectly,” lawyer David-Olivier Kaminski, who is representing Durov in France, said in comments to reporters carried by several local media outlets.

“Telegram fully abides with European rules on digital,” he was quoted as saying.

Being placed under formal investigation in France does not imply guilt or necessarily lead to trial, but indicates judges consider there is enough evidence to proceed with the probe. Investigations can last years before being sent to trial or shelved.

Kaminski did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who is known to be an avid user of Telegram, said earlier this week that Durov’s arrest was “in no way a political decision” and that the probe had been decided by judicial authorities, not by the government.

Macron had lunch with Durov in 2018 as part of a series of meetings with tech entrepreneurs, a source close to the president said, and Durov was granted French citizenship in 2021 under a rare procedure for high-profile individuals.
…

…

ISLAMABAD — Slow internet speeds that have frustrated Pakistanis for several weeks may persist more than a month while repairs to a faulty submarine internet cable continue, the country’s telecom regulator announced Wednesday.

Internet speed and connectivity have been spotty across much of Pakistan since at least July, with users increasingly struggling to access popular messaging and social media apps.

On Wednesday, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, or PTA, announced that repairs to the faulty cable will likely be completed by early October. The cable in question, SMW-4, is one of two that authorities say needed repairs.

“The fault in SMW-4 submarine cable is likely to be repaired by early October 2024. Whereas submarine cable AAE-1 has been repaired which may improve internet experience,” the brief statement said.

Pakistan relies on seven undersea cables for internet service. The regulator reported problems with the SMW-4 cable in mid-June.

Pakistan Telecommunication Corporation Ltd., or PTCL, is the landing party for most of the seven international internet cables, including the two that have experienced technical issues. The Pakistani government holds a majority share in the national telecom carrier.

Conflicting statements

With public anger mounting, officials have issued a variety of statements to explain the slump in services.

Earlier in August, the state minister for information technology, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, blamed increased use of VPNs by Pakistanis for the slowdown nationwide. She rejected the notion that the government was deliberately throttling internet speed.

“I can say it under oath that the government of Pakistan did not block the internet or slow it down,” Khawaja said at a press briefing in Islamabad on August 18.

Later in the month, the PTA chief told lawmakers the faulty submarine cable was to blame, saying it would be repaired by August 28.

Meanwhile, the secretary for the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication told a Seate committee hearing the problem with accessing certain app functions was on the end of mobile data providers.

Although Wednesday’s statement by the PTA referenced two damaged cables, a PTA lawyer told the Islamabad high court this week that a third cable may also be damaged.

‘Firewall’

Business community and internet service providers blamed the slump in services on the government’s efforts to implement a “firewall.”

Speaking to VOA in late July, Khawaja confirmed that a firewall was being installed. However, the IT minister claimed the tool was meant to strengthen cybersecurity and not to control free speech.

Still, after a Senate committee hearing in mid-August, Khawaja told the news media the government was simply upgrading an older “web management system.”

The junior minister, currently the top IT official, has repeatedly accused the media of blowing the “firewall” issue “out of proportion.”

According to a source familiar with the implementation of the “firewall,” the tool, acquired from China and under installation by the Ministry of Defense since May, is deployed at cable landing stations in Pakistan, the place where the undersea internet data cable meets a country’s internet system.

The “firewall,” also being installed on the servers of major internet providers, has the capability to detect and slow digital communication between individual users.

In a statement condemning the “grave consequences of the hastily implemented firewall,” the Pakistan Software Houses Association, an industry group of software developers, gaming and IT companies, said slow internet speed has cost the country’s fledgling IT industry more than $300 million in losses.

“These disruptions are not mere inconveniences but a direct and aggressive assault on the industry viability,” the statement released earlier in August said.

Another organization, Wireless and Internet Service Providers Association of Pakistan, said users are leaving smaller internet service providers because of poor internet speed.

Internet disruptions and implementation of the firewall have been challenged in high courts in Lahore and Islamabad.

Prominent Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir filed a petition requesting that the Islamabad High Court seek details of the firewall’s scope and purpose. He said access to the internet is a fundamental right for the purpose of livelihood.

Expressing frustration with authorities’ “conflicting responses” this week, the court’s top judge demanded a detailed report on the reasons for connectivity disruptions. The next hearing is scheduled for September 3.
…

PARIS — French prosecutors on Wednesday freed Telegram CEO Pavel Durov from police custody after four days of questioning over allegations that the platform is being used for illegal activities.

Durov was detained on Saturday at Le Bourget airport outside Paris as part of a judicial inquiry opened last month involving 12 alleged criminal violations.

“An investigating judge has ended Pavel Durov’s police custody and will have him brought to court for a first appearance and a possible indictment,” a statement from the Paris prosecutor’s office said.

Other allegations against Durov, who is a French citizen, include that his platform is being used for child sexual abuse material, drug trafficking, fraud and abetting organized crime transactions, and that Telegram refused to share information or documents with investigators when required by law.

His arrest in France has caused outrage in Russia, with some government officials calling it politically motivated and proof of the West’s double standard on freedom of speech. The outcry has raised eyebrows among Kremlin critics because in 2018, Russian authorities themselves tried to block Telegram but failed, withdrawing the ban in 2020.

In Iran, where Telegram is widely used despite being officially banned after years of protests challenging the country’s Shiite theocracy, Durov’s arrest in France prompted comments from the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei weighed in with veiled praise for France for being “strict” against those who “violate your governance” of the internet.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that Durov’s arrest wasn’t a political move but part of an independent investigation. Macron posted on X that his country “is deeply committed” to freedom of expression but “freedoms are upheld within a legal framework, both on social media and in real life, to protect citizens and respect their fundamental rights.”

In a statement posted on its platform after Durov’s arrest, Telegram said that it abides by EU laws and that its moderation is “within industry standards and constantly improving.”

“It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform,” Telegram’s post said. “Almost a billion users globally use Telegram as means of communication and as a source of vital information. We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation. Telegram is with you all.”

Durov is a citizen of Russia, France, the United Arab Emirates and the Caribbean island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis.

The UAE Foreign Ministry said Tuesday that it was “closely following the case” and had asked France to provide Durov “with all the necessary consular services in an urgent manner.”

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said he hoped that Durov “has all the necessary opportunities for his legal defense” and added that Moscow stands “ready to provide all necessary assistance and support” to the Telegram CEO as a Russian citizen.

“But the situation is complicated by the fact that he is also a citizen of France,” Peskov said.

Telegram, which says it has nearly a billion users worldwide, was founded by Durov and his brother after he himself faced pressure from Russian authorities.

In 2013, he sold his stake in VKontakte, a popular Russian social networking site he launched in 2006.

The company came under pressure during the Russian government’s crackdown following mass pro-democracy protests that rocked Moscow at the end of 2011 and 2012.

Durov had said authorities demanded that the site take down online communities of Russian opposition activists, and later that it hand over personal data of users who took part in the 2013-2014 popular uprising in Ukraine, which eventually ousted a pro-Kremlin president.

Durov said in a recent interview that he had turned down these demands and left the country.

The demonstrations prompted Russian authorities to clamp down on the digital space, and Telegram and its pro-privacy rhetoric offered a convenient way for Russians to communicate and share news.

Telegram also continues to be a popular source of news in Ukraine, where media outlets and officials use it to share information on the war and deliver missile and air raid alerts.

Western governments have often criticized Telegram for a lack of content moderation, which experts say opens up the messaging platform for potential use in money laundering, drug trafficking and the sharing of material linked to the sexual exploitation of minors.

In 2022, Germany issued fines of $5 million against Telegram’s operators for failing to establish a lawful way to report illegal content or to name an entity in Germany to receive official communication. Both are required under German laws that regulate large online platforms.
…

Tehran, Iran — Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Tuesday urged the new government to impose controls over the Islamic republic’s cyberspace, which has already been under heavy restrictions in recent years.

“What matters is for the rule of law to be applied in the virtual space,” said Khamenei during his first meeting with the new cabinet of president Masoud Pezeshkian.

“If you don’t have a law (to regulate the internet), set a law, and based on that law, take the control,” he added.

Khamenei’s remarks come despite vows from Pezeshkian during his campaign to ease the long-standing internet restrictions in Iran. 

Iran has over the years tightly controlled internet use, restricting popular social media apps such as Facebook and X, formerly known as Twitter.

Harsher curbs were enforced following 2019 protests against fuel prices and later demonstrations triggered by the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini in police custody.

Messaging apps including WhatsApp, Telegram, as well as Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube have also been blocked.  

Iranians have over the years grown accustomed to using virtual private networks, or VPNs, to evade the restrictions.

During his speech, Khamenei cited the recent arrest in France of Russian-born founder of Telegram Pavel Durov over alleged failings to curb criminality on the app.

“This poor young man is taken by the French… They arrest you, put you in prison, threaten to give you a 20-year sentence, this is because he violated their rule,” said Khamenei.

“Violation of governance is not acceptable.”

Iran has in recent years said WhatsApp and Instagram would only be allowed to operate if they had a legal representative in the country.

But Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has said it has no plans to set up an office in Iran.
…

Paris — French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that the arrest in France of the CEO of the popular messaging app Telegram, Pavel Durov, wasn’t a political move but part of an independent investigation.

French media reported that Durov was detained at a Paris airport on Saturday on an arrest warrant alleging his platform has been used for money laundering, drug trafficking and other offenses. Durov is a citizen of Russia, France, the United Arab Emirates, and the Caribbean island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis.

In France’s first public comment on the arrest, Macron posted on the social media platform X that his country “is deeply committed” to freedom of expression but “freedoms are upheld within a legal framework, both on social media and in real life, to protect citizens and respect their fundamental rights.”

Denouncing what he called false information circulating about the arrest, he said it “is in no way a political decision. It is up to the judges to rule on the matter.”

Russian government officials have expressed outrage at Durov’s arrest, with some calling it politically driven and saying it showed the West’s double standard on freedom of speech.

Telegram, which says it has nearly a billion users worldwide, was founded by Durov and his brother in the wake of the Russian government’s crackdown after mass pro-democracy protests that rocked Moscow at the end of 2011 and 2012.

The demonstrations prompted Russian authorities to clamp down on the digital space, and Telegram and its pro-privacy rhetoric offered a convenient way for Russians to communicate and share news.

Telegram also continues to be a popular source of news in Ukraine, where both media outlets and officials use it to share information on the war, and deliver missile and air raid alerts.

In a statement posted on its platform after his arrest, Telegram said it abides by EU laws, and its moderation is “within industry standards and constantly improving.”

“It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform,” Telegram’s post said. “Almost a billion users globally use Telegram as means of communication and as a source of vital information. We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation. Telegram is with you all.”

A French investigative judge extended Durov’s detention order on Sunday night, French media reported on Monday. Under French law, Durov can remain in custody for questioning for up to four days. After that, judges must decide to either charge him or release him.

The Russian Embassy in Paris said consular officials were denied access to Durov because French authorities view his French citizenship as his primary one. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday, “We still don’t know what exactly Durov is being accused of. … Let’s wait until the charges are announced – if they are announced.”

Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X who has in the past called himself a ” free speech absolutist,” posted “#freePavel” in support of Durov following the arrest.

Western governments have often criticized Telegram for a lack of content moderation, which experts say opens up the messaging platform for potential use in money laundering, drug trafficking and the sharing of material linked to the sexual exploitation of minors.

In 2022, Germany issued fines of $5 million against Telegram’s operators for failing to establish a lawful way to reporting illegal content or to name an entity in Germany to receive official communication. Both are required under German laws that regulate large online platforms.

Last year, Brazil temporarily suspended Telegram over its failure to surrender data on neo-Nazi activity related to a police inquiry into school shootings in November.
…

Beijing — As China seeks to race ahead in humanoid robot development, its supply chains showcased cheaper and innovative parts at the world robot conference in Beijing, but some executives warn the industry has yet to improve product reliability.

Wisson Technology (Shenzhen), known for its flexible robotic manipulators, doesn’t depend on motors and reducers – transmission devices commonly used in robotics – but instead uses 3D-printed plastics and relies on pneumatic artificial muscles to power its robots.

This less expensive form of production allows it to price its flexible arms at about one-tenth that of traditional robotic arms, said Cao Wei, an investor in Wisson through venture capital firm Lanchi Ventures, in which he is a partner.

Pliable technology will usher in robotic arms at a cost of around $1,404, Wisson said on its website.

Wisson’s “pliable arms could be used in humanoids,” said Cao, adding that the company has already provided samples to overseas companies that make humanoid robots, without elaborating.

Yi Gang, founder of Shanghai-based Ti5 Robot, a company specializing in integrated joints, highlighted some of the problems he sees in the robotics supply chain.

“The whole supply chain still needs to address issues with product reliability,” said Yi, adding that, due to defect rates, his company can only make products in volumes of up to 1,000.

Harmonic gear, which refers to machinery that plays a key role in motion-control, was a key issue, he said.

China’s robotics effort is backed by President Xi Jinping’s policy of developing “new productive forces” in technology – a point made in brochures for last week’s event.

Across China, the world’s largest market for industrial robots, the increasingly sophisticated technology is changing the face of traditional industries such as manufacturing, autos, agriculture, education as well as health and home services.

Gao Jiyang, previously an executive director at Chinese autonomous driving start-up Momenta before founding Galaxea AI, a start-up focused on robot hardware and embodied AI, said the ramp-up in smart driving was leading to advances in robotics.

“Autonomous driving means AI-plus cars, which are also a type of robot,” Gao said.

As the conference wrapped up on Sunday, Premier Li Qiang said it was crucial to implement President Xi’s guidelines on the importance of the robot industry.

“The robot industry has broad prospects and huge market potential,” Li said, according to China’s official Xinhua news agency.

Describing robots as an “important yardstick for technical innovation and high-end manufacturing strength,” Li called for efforts to maintain supply chain stability and progress on the international stage.

“It is necessary … to promote the expansion and popularization of robots in various fields such as industry, agriculture and service industry,” he said.
…

paris — Pavel Durov, billionaire founder and CEO of the Telegram messaging app, was arrested at the Bourget airport outside Paris on Saturday evening, TF1 TV and BFM TV said, citing unnamed sources. 

Telegram, particularly influential in Russia, Ukraine and the republics of the former Soviet Union, is ranked as one of the major social media platforms after Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok and WeChat. It aims to hit 1 billion users in the next year.  

Based in Dubai, Telegram was founded by Russian-born Durov. He left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with government demands to shut down opposition communities on his VK social media platform, which he sold. 

Durov was traveling aboard his private jet, TF1 said on its website, adding he had been targeted by an arrest warrant in France as part of a preliminary police investigation. 

TF1 and BFM both said the investigation was focused on a lack of moderators on Telegram, and that police considered that this situation allowed criminal activity to go on undeterred on the messaging app. 

Telegram did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The French Interior Ministry and police had no comment. 

App becomes popular during wartime

After Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Telegram has become the main source of unfiltered — and sometimes graphic and misleading — content from both sides about the war and the politics surrounding the conflict. 

The app has become preferred means of communications for Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his officials. The Kremlin and the Russian government also use it to disseminate their news. It has also become one of the few places where Russians can access news about the war.

TF1 said Durov had been traveling from Azerbaijan and was arrested at around 18:00 GMT.  

Durov, whose fortune was estimated by Forbes at $15.5 billion, said some governments had sought to pressure him but the app, which has now 900 million active users, should remain a “neutral platform” and not a “player in geopolitics.” 

The Russia Embassy in France told the Russian state TASS news agency that it was not contacted by Durov’s team after the reports of the arrest, but it was taking “immediate” steps to clarify the situation.  

Bloggers encourage protesting French embassies

Russia’s representative to international organizations in Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, and several other Russian politicians were quick to accuse France of acting as a dictatorship. 

“Some naive persons still don’t understand that if they play [a] more or less visible role in [the] international information space it is not safe for them to visit countries which move towards much more totalitarian societies,” Ulyanov wrote on X, formerly Twitter. 

Several Russian bloggers called for protests at French embassies throughout the world at noon Sunday. 
…

Abuja, Nigeria — A U.S. State Department official was in Nigeria this week to meet with local and regional authorities about the responsible use of artificial intelligence in military applications.

Mallory Stewart, assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Arms Control, Deterrence and Stability, said her two-day visit with Nigerian officials from the regional bloc ECOWAS was part of the United States’ commitment to deepen security cooperation in Africa.

The U.S. government has been working with 55 nations, including African nations, “to agree upon responsible uses of AI in the military context, using AI in a manner consistent with international laws [and] recognizing inherent human bias,” Stewart told journalists Wednesday.

“We’ve learned the hard way [that there is] inherent human bias built into the AI system … leading to maybe misinformation being provided to the decisionmaker,” she said.

The goal, she continued, “is to hear from as many countries as possible that are at the stage of working in artificial intelligence to their military to see how we can minimize the risks.”

Last year, the Global Terrorism Index report named sub-Saharan Africa an epicenter of terrorism, accounting for nearly 60% of terror-related deaths. It is unclear whether the terror groups are using AI.

Nigerian authorities have been pushing for the integration of artificial intelligence in military operations, while acknowledging that adopting AI will require Africa-specific policies.

Security analyst Kabiru Adamu of Beacon Consulting said the use of AI in military operations has advantages.

“Given the position of the U.S. in terms of its military capacity and technological advancement, it will definitely be in the position to support Nigeria’s desires, especially if it’s able to contextualize some of the peculiarities within the Nigerian security space,” Adamu said. “We can’t isolate ourselves from the international committee of nations. AI is embedded in security, so we have to do it. But we need to be cognizant of the supporting infrastructure for good technology. Power is one of them, culture.”

The founder of Global Sentinel online magazine, Senator Iroegbu, said that while AI has benefits, the technology still needs to be treated with caution.

“It limits casualties in terms of the number of soldiers that will be deployed, so you conserve your boots,” Iroegbu said. “It helps penetrate rough terrains, gather more intelligence. It’s good that there’s growing awareness of the issue of artificial intelligence, but Nigeria needs to first of all try to define its own policy and strategy with regards to artificial intelligence. More sensitization needs to be done, and more policy aspect of it needs to be developed.”

In June, African ministers unanimously endorsed landmark continental AI strategy to advance Africa’s digital future and development aspirations. And last week, the African Union approved the adoption of AI in public and private sectors in member states, including Nigeria.
…

…

Nairobi, Kenya — Overcrowding in African hospitals is blamed on the scarcity of health facilities and doctors, especially in rural areas.

According to the United Nations, there is only one doctor for every 5,000 people in Africa, a continent that bears 25% of the global disease burden. But with the number of mobile phone users on the rise, some technological innovations are helping to bridge the doctor-patient gap and expand health care coverage. 

Yaw Asamoah is head of MedPharma Care in Ghana. The company has developed an app that allows patients to connect face-to-face with doctors and pharmacies online so they can get medicine in their homes.

He says the system improves patients’ experiences when they seek health care services.

“That’s where MedPharma care comes in to see how we can digitize the whole idea of health care bringing telemedicine — making it possible for people either [to] have e-consultation, e-prescription, get their medicine delivered to them wherever they are, either at the office or at home… do their diagnostic remotely,” Asamoah said.

The World Health Organization says 57 countries are suffering from a critical shortage of health personnel, 36 of them in Africa.

The 2001 Abuja Declaration requires that African Union countries allocate 15% of their annual budgets to health, a requirement most governments have yet to fulfill.

Funding and infrastructure issues have blocked millions of Africans’ access to quality health care, but experts say digital tools could improve access to services in hard-to-reach areas that lack doctors.

Mountaga Keita is a Guinean-born businessman who invented three portable diagnostic terminals which can monitor a patient’s temperature, blood pressure, heart function and conduct ultrasounds.

“The benefit of that is the ease it brings to doctors and patients instead of clogging hospitals,” Keita said. “Now the doctors or nurses can get to the patient collected data and send the data in a very secure manner to the hospitals, and people can analyze and bring it back to the patient.”

Keita has so far deployed 40 kits to different hospitals in Guinea.

According Keita, the diagnostic terminals have attracted the attention of other countries like Gabon, which has requested six machines. He is in talks with the governments of Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, and Senegal to supply the kits there.

Keita said his technology can help solve the doctor-to-patient ratio problem and save patients money.   

“With this kind of technology, all the vital signs of a patient, forward it in a very secure manner, encrypted to a specialist who is in Tunisia, who is in Kenya, who is in Tokyo, Paris to interpret and bring the result,” he said. “Then we know if we are supposed to spend that 45,000 euros to evacuate … or if we can locally cure the person.”

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, telemedicine has grown expansively and gained attention in Africa.

Asamoah said telemedicine provides access to many doctors who specialize in different diseases, easing the burden on health care facilities. 

“In a normal circumstance, if you went to a clinic in Ghana, you wanted to talk to a specialized consultant, you might probably not get either because they don’t have, they haven’t booked you, or they are not available,” he said. “But telemedicine can make it possible for you to make your appointment and talk to any doctor.”

McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm, analyzed the impact of digital health tools in Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa and found that the tools could reduce the continent’s total health care costs by 15% by 2030.
…

Some bosses might want all their workers back in the office, but a clear majority of U.S. workers crave the flexibility of remote or hybrid jobs. And studies have found that such work, if managed well, will not harm a company’s culture or capability to innovate. But some companies concerned about productivity are using software to monitor employees working from home. Maxim Adams has the story. Camera: Aleksandr Bergan
…

Manzini, Eswatini — Eswatini has launched an initiative to achieve sustainable development by harnessing the power of nuclear technology in such sectors as agriculture, health and energy planning. The plan was developed with the support of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The aim of the Country Program Framework, or CPF, launched two weeks ago by Eswatini Minister of Natural Resources and Energy Prince Lonkhokhela, is to leverage nuclear technology for social and economic development. Its key focus areas are energy security, food security and human health, aligning with the country’s National Development Plan and the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework.

Bongekile Matsenjwa, a chemical engineer and engineering manager for the Eswatini National Petroleum Company, believes the partnership between Eswatini and the International Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA, can help the country make well-informed decisions about its energy future.

“Access to clean, affordable and safe, reliable energy is an important ingredient for the sustainable development of the country,” he said. “I believe that this partnership can help Eswatini to make knowledgeable decisions on energy supply options with the help of energy planning so the country … can independently chart our national energy future.”

Sonia Paiva, a sustainable agriculture expert and advocate for nuclear technology, who was a panelist at the COP28 U.N. Climate Change Conference, believes Eswatini’s focus on nuclear technology is happening at the perfect moment, as the country has already established policies around the topic and is now moving toward implementation.

“The whole world is looking to see how we can make our planet a better place to live in,” she said.

In addition to its potential benefits in agriculture and energy, Dr. Mduduzi Mbuyisa, a medical doctor, believes this technology has immense potential to improve the health care system in Eswatini.

“Nuclear medicine has a potential to ensure our diagnostic capabilities such that it helps us to take clearer pictures and help us in advanced imaging because we [are] using what we call PET or SPECT, which help to improve the care and overall health care system,” he said. It will also … help develop new skills and open up new career opportunities.”

Eswatini’s venture into nuclear technology is part of a larger trend of African countries seeking to harness the benefits of this technology. Against the backdrop of rising energy demands and climate change concerns, nuclear energy is increasingly seen as a potential solution.
…

In Nairobi, a new restaurant is generating business and buzz – not just because of the food, but because of the staff. Robots serving dishes is the main attraction of diners who flock to the Robot Cafe. Juma Majanga reports. Camera: Jimmy Makhulo.
…

…

islamabad — From sharing memes to sealing deals, millions of Pakistanis are struggling to communicate digitally as internet and data services have slowed down across much of the country. 

Officials are blaming internet service providers for the slowdown, but media reports indicate the problem may stem from the deployment of a nationwide internet firewall aimed at controlling online content and traffic. 

Crippling economy 

The problem, which began several weeks ago, has worsened in recent days, frustrating freelancers like Moadood Ahmad, who is seeing a drop in income. 

“If I don’t show as available on Upwork or Fiverr, then new clients can’t even approach me. Older clients are also disturbed,” Ahmad told VOA. The Lahore-based digital marketing services provider says he has made virtually no money in the last two weeks. 

According to DataReportal.com, 111 million Pakistanis in the nation of more than 240 million have access to internet. The country has nearly 189 million active cellular connections. State Bank of Pakistan put the country’s IT exports at $3.2 billion in the financial year that ended in July 2024. 

The spokesperson’s office of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) told VOA it has only heard about issues with internet speed and web access through media. Speaking to VOA in late July, a PTA spokesperson blamed the slowdown at that time on a possible technical glitch. 

During a hearing Thursday, the secretary for the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication told a Senate committee that it was gathering data about the situation from mobile operators. 

But the slump in services is not limited to mobile data users. In a statement to the media Thursday, an alliance of internet service providers (ISPs) said internet speeds had plummeted by 30% to 40%, “crippling [the] digital economy.” 

“Many are leaving the smaller ISPs because they can’t sustain the poor service quality anymore. If this continues, we will see a mass exodus of businesses from Pakistan,” said the Wireless and Internet Service Providers Association of Pakistan (WISPAP). 

Speaking to VOA, WISPAP Chairman Shahzad Arshad said his alliance members were inundated with customer complaints. 

“The authorities should at least tell us a timeframe that we can give to the customer,” Arshad said. 

Without mentioning the firewall, WISPAP’s statement blamed increased “security and surveillance” for the decline in service quality. 

“While the government remains steadfast in its commitment to enhancing security, the question remains: at what cost to the nation’s digital economy?” the statement asked. 

Controlling access 

A source familiar with the nationwide firewall told VOA the system — acquired from China and installed through the Ministry of Defense — is based at a cable landing station in Pakistan, the place where the undersea internet data cable meets a country’s internet system.    

The firewall, also placed on the systems used by data providers, can give Pakistani authorities information about an individual user’s online activities and where they are operating from, allowing for targeted monitoring, the source said. 

Efforts to deploy the firewall on servers that major international companies use to store content close to end users are also underway. This can give authorities deeper access to an individual’s data and control of their online activities. 

Digital rights activists reject the government’s claim that the firewall is only a cybersecurity tool.

“To me, this is about political control. This desperation to do whatever they can,” said Farieha Aziz, co-founder of the digital rights group Bolo Bhi, an Urdu name that means “speak up.” 

Government officials “are still not transparent and open about the capability [of the firewall], what kind of monitoring is happening,” said Aziz. “What are they attempting?” 

The country’s latest efforts to control internet traffic and user activity come as the powerful military frequently complains of rising “digital terrorism,” a term it uses for those who criticize or mock the armed forces on social media. 

Digital rights activist Aziz also criticized telecom companies and internet service providers for not being transparent with users about the reasons for service disruptions. 

Digital freedom is limited in Pakistan. Global rights watchdog Freedom House describes Pakistan as “not free,” with a low score of only 26 out of 100 on its internet freedom index. 

Pakistanis trying to bypass poor connectivity and speed by using VPNs are not faring much better either. 

“Even those who use VPNs, and use our internet services, are unable to connect,” WISPAP’s Shahzad confirmed to VOA. 

A PTA official told the Standing Committee on Cabinet Sec­retariat, earlier this month that the regulator was working on a plan to approve certain virtual private networks. All other VPNs would be blocked. 

Senator Palwasha Khan, chairperson of the Senate’s standing committee on IT, told VOA she expected internet speed to normalize in Pakistan within days. She said the committee was not informed if the problem was because of the firewall, but said she supported the censorship tool. 

“I do agree that if some security measures are taken to control the chaos on social media, I don’t have any problem with that,” said Khan, a senator from the Pakistan People’s Party, which is part of the ruling alliance. 

Struggling to share voice notes and visual content with clients via a popular messaging app, freelancer Moadood Ahmad told VOA he regretted moving back to Pakistan from the United Arab Emirates. 

“I am thinking I made a mistake,” Ahmad said. “I should go back.” 
…

NEW YORK — Google said Wednesday that an Iranian group linked to the country’s Revolutionary Guard had tried to infiltrate the personal email accounts of roughly a dozen people linked to President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump since May. 

The tech company’s threat intelligence arm said the group was still actively targeting people associated with Biden, Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, who replaced Biden as the Democratic candidate last month when he dropped out of the presidential race. It said those targeted have included current and former government officials, as well as presidential campaign affiliates. 

The new report from Google’s Threat Analysis Group affirmed and expanded upon a Microsoft report released Friday that revealed a suspected Iranian cyber intrusion in this year’s U.S. presidential election. It shed light on how foreign adversaries are increasing their efforts to disrupt the election that is now less than three months away. 

Google’s report said its threat researchers detected and disrupted a “small but steady cadence” of the Iranian attackers using email credential phishing, a type of cyberattack where the attacker poses as a trusted sender to try to get an email recipient to share login details. John Hultquist, chief analyst for the company’s threat intelligence arm, said the company sends suspected targets of these attacks a Gmail pop-up that warns them that a government-backed attacker might be trying to steal their passwords. 

The report said Google observed the group gaining access to one high-profile political consultant’s personal Gmail account. Google reported the incident to the FBI in July. Microsoft’s Friday report had shared similar information, noting that the email account of a former senior adviser to a presidential campaign had been compromised and weaponized to send a phishing email to a high-ranking campaign official. 

The group is familiar to Google’s threat intelligence arm and other researchers, and this isn’t the first time it has tried to interfere in U.S. elections, Hultquist said. The report noted that the same Iranian group targeted both the Biden and Trump campaigns with phishing attacks during the 2020 cycle, as early as June of that year. 

The group also has been prolific in other cyber espionage activity, particularly in the Middle East, the report said. In recent months, as the Israel-Hamas war has fueled tension in the region, that activity has included email phishing campaigns targeted at Israeli diplomats, academics, nongovernmental organizations and military affiliates. 

Trump’s campaign said Saturday that it had been hacked and that sensitive internal documents had been stolen and distributed. It said Iranian actors were to blame. 

The same day, Politico revealed it had received leaked internal Trump campaign documents by email, though it wasn’t clear whether the leaked documents were related to the suspected Iranian cyber activity. The Washington Post and The New York Times also received the documents. 

While the Trump campaign hasn’t provided specific evidence linking Iran to the hack, both Trump and his longtime friend and former adviser Roger Stone have said they were contacted by Microsoft related to suspected cyber intrusions. Stone’s email was compromised by hackers targeting Trump’s campaign, a person familiar with the matter said. 

Google and Microsoft wouldn’t identify the people targeted in the Iranian intrusion attempts or confirm that Stone was among them. Google did confirm that the Iranian group in its report, which it calls APT42, is the same as the one in Microsoft’s research. Microsoft refers to the group as Mint Sandstorm. 

Harris’ campaign has declined to say whether it has identified any state-based intrusion attempts but has said it vigilantly monitors cyber threats and isn’t aware of any security breaches of its systems. 

The FBI on Monday confirmed that it’s investigating the intrusion of the Trump campaign. Two people familiar with the matter said the FBI also is investigating attempts to gain access to the Biden-Harris campaign. 

The reports of Iranian hacking come as U.S. intelligence officials have warned of persistent and mounting efforts from both Russia and Iran to influence the U.S. election through their online activity. Beyond these hacking incidents, groups linked to the countries have used fake news websites and social media accounts to churn out content that appears intended to sway voters’ opinions. 

While neither Microsoft nor Google specified Iran’s intentions in the U.S. presidential race, U.S. officials have previously hinted that Iran particularly opposes Trump. U.S. officials also have expressed alarm about Tehran’s efforts to seek retaliation for a 2020 strike on an Iranian general that was ordered by Trump. 

Iran’s mission to the United Nations, when asked about the claim of the Trump campaign, denied being involved. 

“We do not accord any credence to such reports,” the mission told The Associated Press. “The Iranian government neither possesses nor harbors any intent or motive to interfere in the United States presidential election.” 

The mission did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday about Google’s report.
…