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Russian authorities said Thursday they have imposed restrictions on Apple’s video calling service FaceTime, the latest step in an effort to tighten control over the internet and communications online. State internet regulator Roskomnadzor alleged in a statement that the service is being used to organize and conduct terrorist activities on the territory of the country, to recruit perpetrators (and) commit fraud and other crimes against our citizens. Apple did not respond to an emailed request for comment. The Russian regulator also announced that it has blocked Snapchat, a messaging app for sharing photos, videos and text messages, citing the same grounds it gave for restricting FaceTime. It said that it took the action Oct. 10, even though it only reported the move on Thursday. Under President Vladimir Putin, authorities have engaged in deliberate and multipronged efforts to rein in the internet. They have adopted restrictive laws and banned websites and platforms that don’t comply. Technology has also been perfected to monitor and manipulate online traffic. After Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the government blocked major social media like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Access to YouTube was disrupted last year in what experts called deliberate throttling of the widely popular site by the authorities. The Kremlin blamed YouTube owner Google for not properly maintaining its hardware in Russia. While its still possible to circumvent some of the restrictions by using virtual private network services, those are routinely blocked, too. Authorities further restricted internet access this summer with widespread shutdowns of cellphone internet connections. Officials have insisted the measure was needed to thwart Ukrainian drone attacks, but experts argued it was another step to tighten internet control. In dozens of regions, white lists of government-approved sites and services that are supposed to function despite a shutdown have been introduced. The government has also acted against popular messaging platforms. Encrypted messenger Signal and another popular app, Viber, were blocked in 2024. This year, the authorities banned calls via WhatsApp, the most popular messaging app in Russia, and Telegram, a close second. Roskomnadzor justified the measure by saying the two apps were being used for criminal activities. At the same time, authorities actively promoted a national messenger app called MAX, which critics see as a surveillance tool. The platform, touted by developers and officials as a one-stop shop for messaging, online government services, making payments, and more, openly declares it will share user data with authorities upon request. Experts also say it doesnt use end-to-end encryption. Earlier this week, the government also said it was blocking Roblox, a popular online game platform, saying the step aimed at protecting children from illicit content and pedophiles who meet minors directly in the games chats and then move on to real life. Stanislav Seleznev, cyber security expert and lawyer with the Net Freedom rights group, told The Associated Press that Russian law views any platform where users can message each other as organizers of dissemination of information. This label mandates that platforms have an account with Roskomnadzor so that it could communicate its demands, and give Russia’s security service, the FSB, access to accounts of their users for monitoring; those failing to comply are in violation and can get blocked, Seleznev said. He suggested that these regulations could have been applied to both Roblox and FaceTime. Roblox in October was the second most popular game platform in Russia, with nearly 8 million monthly users, according to media monitoring group Mediascope. Seleznev estimated that possibly tens of millions of Russians have been using FaceTime, especially after calls were banned on WhatsApp and Telegram. He called the restrictions against the service predictable and warned that other sites failing to cooperate with Roskomnadzor “will be blocked, thats obvious. Dasha Litvinova, Associated Press
Category:
E-Commerce
President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced a proposal to weaken vehicle mileage rules for the auto industry, loosening regulatory pressure on automakers to control pollution from gasoline-powered cars and trucks. The plan, if finalized next year, would significantly reduce fuel economy requirements, which set rules on how far new vehicles need to travel on a gallon of gasoline, through the 2031 model year. The administration and automakers say the rules will increase Americans access to the full range of gasoline vehicles they need and can afford. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration projects that the new standards would set the industry fleetwide average for light-duty vehicles at roughly 34.5 miles per gallon in the 2031 model year, down from a projected 50.4 miles per gallon in 2031 under the Biden-era rule. The move is the latest action by the Trump administration to reverse Biden-era policies that encouraged cleaner-running cars and trucks, including electric vehicles, and it sparked criticism from environmental groups. Burning gasoline for vehicles is a major contributor to planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions. “From day one Ive been taking action to make buying a car more affordable, Trump said at a White House event that included top executives from two of the largest U.S. automakers. The rule reverses a Biden-era policy that “forced automakers to build cars using expensive technologies that drove up costs, drove up prices and made the car much worse, Trump said. Automakers applaud and environmentalists decry rule change The action is expected to save consumers about $1,000 off the price of a new car, Trump said. New cars sold for an average of $49,766 on average in October, according to Kelley Blue Book. Automakers applauded the planned changes, which came amid industry complaints that the Biden-era rules were difficult to meet. Ford CEO Jim Farley said the planned rollback was a win for customers and common sense. As Americas largest auto producer, we appreciate President Trumps leadership in aligning fuel economy standards with market realities. We can make real progress on carbon emissions and energy efficiency while still giving customers choice and affordability, he said. Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa said the automaker appreciates the administrations actions to realign the mileage standards with real world market conditions. Since taking office in January, Trump has relaxed auto tailpipe emissions rules, repealed fines for automakers that do not meet federal mileage standards, and terminated consumer credits of up to $7,500 for EV purchases. Environmentalists decried the rollback. In one stroke Trump is worsening three of our nations most vexing problems: the thirst for oil, high gas pump costs, and global warming, said Dan Becker, director of the Safe Climate Transport Campaign for the Center for Biological Diversity. Gutting the (gas-mileage) program will make cars burn more gas and American families burn more cash,” said Katherine García, director of the Sierra Club’s Clean Transportation for All program. This rollback would move the auto industry backwards, keeping polluting cars on our roads for years to come and threatening the health of millions of Americans, particularly children and the elderly. ‘People want the gasoline car’ Trump has repeatedly pledged to end what he falsely calls an EV mandate, referring incorrectly to Democratic President Joe Bidens target that half of all new vehicle sales be electric by 2030. EVs accounted for about 8% of new vehicle sales in the United States in 2024, according to Cox Automotive. Trump called Democrats’ efforts to promote EVs insane, adding, People want the gasoline car. No federal policy has required auto companies to sell EVs, although California and other states have imposed rules requiring that all new passenger vehicles sold in the state be zero-emission by 2035. Trump and congressional Republicans blocked the California law earlier this year. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy urged his agency to reverse existing fuel economy requirements, known as Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or CAFE, soon after taking office. In June, he said that standards set under Biden were illegal because they included use of electric vehicles in their calculation. EVs do not run on gasoline. After the June rule revision, the traffic safety administration was empowered to update the requirements. The new rules are going to allow the automakers to make vehicles that Americans want to purchase, not vehicles that Joe Biden and (former Transportation Secretary Pete) Buttigieg want to build, Duffy said Wednesday. Under Biden, automakers were required to average about 50 miles (81 kilometers) per gallon of gas for passenger cars by 2031, compared with about 39 miles (63 kilometers) per gallon today. The Biden administration also increased fuel-economy requirements by 2% each year for light-duty vehicles in every model year from 2027 to 2031, and 2% per year for SUVs and other light trucks from 2029 to 2031. At the same time, it called for stringent tailpipe rules meant to encourage EV adoption. The 2024 standards would have saved 14 billion gallons of gasoline from being burned by 2050, according to the traffic safety administrations 2024 calculations. Abandoning them means that in 2035, cars could produce 22,111 more tons of carbon dioxide per year than under the Biden-era rules. It also means an extra 90 tons a year of deadly soot particles and 4,870 additional tons a year of smog components such as nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds going into the air in coming years. Mileage rules have been implemented since the 1970s energy crisis, and over time, automakers have gradually increased their vehicles average efficiency. Weakening fuel economy standards wont do much to make cars more affordable but is certain to make Americans buy a lot more gasoline,” said Albert Gore, executive director of the Zero Emission Transportation Association. The action also harms domestic manufacturers that have invested heavily in EV technologies and hired thousands of employees to build them, Gore said. GM CEO skips White House event Notaby absent Wednesday was General Motors CEO Mary Barra, who was attending a previously scheduled event in New York City, a company spokesperson said. A GM plant manager represented the automaker at the White House instead. Like Ford and Stellantis, GM has poured billions of dollars into electrification of its fleet. In a statement, the company said it supports the goals of the proposed rule. “We remain committed to offering the best and broadest portfolio of electric and gas-powered vehicles on the market, GM said. Matthew Daly and Alexa St. John, Associated Press Associated Press writers Darlene Superville and Seth Borenstein contributed to this report. The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.
Category:
E-Commerce
The bill that brought the government back online last month ended the shutdown with an unexpected catch that could crush an entire industry. A hidden provision slipped into the bill just before it passed has nothing to do with the federal shutdown and everything to do with hempthe version of cannabis thats grown as a food, a fiber, and, in recent years, as the active ingredient in an array of sodas, gummies, and snacks crafted to give people an alcohol-free buzz. Hemp is legally defined as a variety of the plant Cannabis sativa L. that contains less than .3 percent of the most common form of THC, the psychoactive compound from marijuana that gets people high. In 2018, a multiyear agricultural law known as a farm bill created that distinction, removing hempthe very low-THC version of cannabisfrom being lumped in with the controlled substance marijuana. That small shift gave birth to a booming industry of hemp-based THC drinks and snacks, which quickly hit store shelves even where recreational cannabis is illegal. Now, a provision in the federal spending bill will limit the amount of THC in a beverage or edible to .4 milligramswell below the 10 milligrams promised by some of the hemp-based drinks found on gas station shelves. While hemp contains much less THC than the high concentrations present in marijuana plants, hemp-based THC can still give people a dose-dependent buzz when ingested. Businesses interested in the THC loophole also began converting CBD, a nonintoxicating compound in hemp, into other forms of THC that were not subject to the same restrictions and bottling it up for customers. The combination of THCs recreational appeal and the ease with which businesses could now sell and ship hemp-based THC products inspired a lot of entrepreneurs to jump into the recreational side of the hemp industry. Now that part of the industry is poised to be regulated out of existence over worries that weed by another name was suddenly everywhere. Whether a looming ban on hemp-derived THC drinks is common sense or a terrible misstep depends on your perspectiveand your business interests. Beyond booze With drinking on the decline as the health impacts of alcohol come to light, a wave of new companies view THC drinks as a future proof, zero-proof alternative to booze. That includes breweries large and small, which began experimenting with THC brews to offset their losses as the craft beer boom fizzles. Xander Shepherd, who cofounded Artet, a company that sells THC-infused spritzes and aperitifs, says that he and his cousin went into business to bring THC to our familys Thanksgiving dinners. On a deeper level, we were motivated by the belief that THC has an important role to play in the progression of cocktail culture, Shepherd told Fast Company. Our stated mission is to prove to the world that infused drinks belong on the bar cart, or the dining room table, or anywhere else you might find a great bottle of wine or a fine spirit. Because the farm bills hemp rules appeared to be settled law at the federal level, the regulatory environment looked safe enough for a huge variety of companies to start producing and selling THC-based candies, canned drinks, vape oils, and other products. In the face of an uncertain future, Shepherd says Artet hopes to continue to open peoples minds and palates about its trendy THC sippables. The THC trends detractors paint a different picture. Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell quietly pushed through the regulatory change to purposefully undo a loophole he helped create. McConnell emphasized that the change wouldnt affect the industrial hemp industry, which grows the plant for products like biofuels, fiber, and paper, and was designed to rein in the rise of intoxicating and synthetic THC products. I am proud to have championed this language that keeps these products out of the hands of children, secures the future of regulated hemp businesses, and keeps our promise to American farmers and law enforcement by clarifying the intention in the 2018 Farm Bill, McConnell said of the bill. An uncertain future States are also wrestling with the issue, weighing their worries against the success of a young industry thats creating jobs and pulling in substantial tax revenue. Prior to the bills passage, a group of attorneys general from almost 40 states wrote Congress with their concerns about the proliferation of widely available THC products, cautioning that convenience stores and gas stations are stocked to the brim with psychoactive THC products. For Artet, the game plan is to continue being a good steward in an industry thats increasingly attracting scrutiny. We feel that providing a good example for consumers and legislators is one way we can help undo this potentially looming prohibition, Shepherd said, noting that many brands in the space work hard to keep their THC products safe. Artets bottles come with a special child-resistant cap and a shot glass for pouring precise servings, two measures it takes to keep customers safe and sipping as intended. Ultimately, those bad actors are wildly outnumbered by business owners and brands who are trying to do things the right way, even when it makes the job harder, Shepherd said. We do these things because we believe theyre the right thing to do, and were not alone in our efforts.
Category:
E-Commerce
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