Lebanon Stuff

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The UK’s Information Commissioner says she will seek a warrant to look at the databases and servers used by British firm Cambridge Analytica.

The London-based company is accused of using the personal data of 50 million Facebook members to influence the US presidential election in 2016.

Its executives have also been filmed by Channel 4 News suggesting it could use honey traps and potentially bribery to discredit politicians.

The company denies any wrongdoing.

Fresh allegations

On Monday broadcast hidden camera footage in which Cambridge Analytica chief executive Alexander Nix appears to suggest tactics his company could use to discredit politicians online.

In the footage, asked what “deep digging” could be done, Mr Nix told an undercover reporter: “Oh, we do a lot more than that.”

He suggested one way to target an individual was to “offer them a deal that’s too good to be true and make sure that’s video recorded”.

He also said he could “send some girls around to the candidate’s house…” adding that Ukrainian girls “are very beautiful, I find that works very well”.

Mr Nix continued: “I’m just giving you examples of what can be done and what has been done.

Channel 4 News said its reporter had posed as a fixer for a wealthy client hoping to get a political candidate elected in Sri Lanka.

However, Cambridge Analytica said the report had “grossly misrepresented” the conversations caught on camera.

“In playing along with this line of conversation, and partly to spare our ‘client’ from embarrassment, we entertained a series of ludicrous hypothetical scenarios,” the company said in a statement.

“Cambridge Analytica does not condone or engage in entrapment, bribes or so-called ‘honeytraps’,” it said.

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Mr Nix told the BBC’s Newsnight programme that he regarded the report as a “misrepresentation of the facts” and said he felt the firm had been “deliberately entrapped”.

UK Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham is investigating Cambridge Analytica over claims it used personal data to influence the US presidential election.

Christopher Wylie, who worked with the company, claimed it amassed the data of millions of people through a personality quiz on Facebook that was created by an academic.

Investigation

Ms Denham demanded access to the firm’s databases and servers after it missed her Monday deadline.

“I’m not accepting their response so therefore I’ll be applying to the court for a warrant,” she told Channel 4.

She said she wanted to understand how data was “processed or deleted by Cambridge Analytica”.

‘Violation’

Cambridge Analytica insists it followed the correct procedures in obtaining and using data, but it was suspended from Facebook last week.

Facebook, meanwhile, will hold an open meeting with its employees later to discuss the matter, tech news website The Verge is reporting.

Facebook said it has hired its own digital forensic team to audit Cambridge Analytica.

“This is part of a comprehensive internal and external review that we are conducting to determine the accuracy of the claims that the Facebook data in question still exists,” the firm said.

• Facebook’s value falls $37bn amid backlash
• Zuckerberg pressed to face breach concerns

“If this data still exists, it would be a grave violation of Facebook’s policies and an unacceptable violation of trust and the commitments these groups made.”

Facebook said Aleksandr Kogan, the creator of the personality app from which the data had been harvested, had agreed to be audited, but Mr Wylie – who made the claims about the way the data was gathered and used – had declined.

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How to protect your data on Facebook

There are a few things to be aware of if you want to restrict who has access to your data.

• Keep an eye on apps, especially those which require you to log in using your Facebook account – they often have a very wide range of permissions and many are specifically designed to pick up your data
• Use an ad blocker to limit advertising
• Look at your Facebook security settings and make sure you are aware of what is enabled. Check the individual app settings to see whether you have given them permission to view your friends as well as yourself.
• You can download a copy of the data Facebook holds on you, although it is not comprehensive. There is a download button at the bottom of the General Account Settings tab. However bear in mind that your data may be less secure sitting on your laptop than it is on Facebook’s servers, if your device is hacked.

You can of course, simply leave Facebook, but the campaign group Privacy International warns that privacy concerns extend beyond the social network.

“The current focus is on protecting your data being exploited by third parties, but your data is being exploited all the time,” said a spokeswoman.

“Many apps on your phone will have permission to access location data, your entire phone book and so on. It is just the tip of the iceberg.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-43465700

Image copyright Getty Images

Bidding has begun for the latest chunk of the UK’s airwaves as networks look to kickstart next-generation 5G services and improve existing 4G.

The main four mobile networks will compete with two new players to bid for a share of the newly released spectrum.

It follows months of legal challenges from both EE and Three, which have held up the auction.

The process is expected to last several weeks.

“We’re pressing ahead with the auction to make these airwaves available as quickly as possible,” said Philip Marnick, Ofcom’s spectrum group director, last month.

“This will benefit today’s mobile users by providing more capacity for mobile broadband use. It will also pave the way for 5G, allowing operators to launch the next generation of mobile technology.”

What’s the case for 5G?

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The hype around 5G is largely driven by network equipment makers at the moment

Image caption The hype around 5G is largely driven by network equipment makers at the moment
5G will vastly improve data speeds on phone and tablets but it will also help free up much needed bandwidth to keep billions of devices connected to the web as the internet of things becomes ubiquitous.

It could also help transform cities, allowing driverless cars to communicate with traffic lights and other cars to anticipate traffic conditions and avoid collisions.

As cities rush to embed sensors in street lights, parking spaces and rubbish bins in an effort to make services run more efficient, 5G could help them all communicate with each other.

The first commercial 5G services are expected to launch in 2020, with plenty of trials beforehand.

But the case for 5G services still needs to be made, says Matthew Howett, founder of research firm Assembly.

“Everyone is still unsure of the 5G business model and use cases with the hype largely being driven by those who make the network equipment,” he said.

“Operators still have so much more they can do with their 4G networks and investment is still going into improving the performance and coverage of those.”

5G will work across a number of spectrum bands, so those missing out in this latest auction will still be able to roll out 5G services, he added.

Who is bidding?

Alongside O2, Three, EE and Vodafone, two new players – connectivity firm Connexin Limited and Airspan Spectrum Holdings – will compete for spectrum.

Connexin mostly focuses on two areas of the UK – Hull and Lincolnshire.

Airspan, which has a US parent company, recently purchased a large chunk of Irish mobile spectrum and some believe it has ambitious plans for Europe expansion.

What spectrum is on offer?

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Some airwaves are better suited to mobile services than others

Image caption Some airwaves are better suited to mobile services than others
Spectrum relates to the radio frequencies allocated to the the mobile industry and other sectors for communication over the airwaves. It is a sovereign asset and is overseen in each by the government or a regulatory authority.

Some 40MHz of spectrum within the 2.3GHz band will be available which will allow operators to immediately improve 4G services.

There will also be 150MHz available in the 3.4GHz band, which is not compatible with most current devices but will be used for the rollout of 5G networks.

The combined spectrum will increase the available spectrum for mobile devices in the UK by nearly a third.

Spectrum in these bands is well suited to 5G as it can carry large amounts of data. It was previously used by the Ministry of Defence but has been freed up by the government.

Why the delays?

Image copyright Getty Images

Regulator Ofcom faced separate legal challenges from EE and Three because of its decision to impose a 37% limit on how much spectrum each individual operator can bid for.

Three wanted to see no more than a 30% cap while a counter-action from EE sought to remove the cap altogether.

The disputes have arisen because there is disparity in the amount of mobile spectrum owned by the operators.

• BT/EE owns 42% of immediately usable UK mobile spectrum
• Three owns 15%
• Vodafone owns 29%
• O2 owns 14%

EE has agreed that it will not bid for spectrum in the 2.3GHz band because it already owns so much and it will only be able to to win a maximum of 85MHz of the 3.4GHz spectrum.

Most experts believe that O2 needs more spectrum the most. If it gets a good amount in the latest auction, the operator could be sold by Spanish owner Telefonica.

How much will it cost?

Ofcom will auction the spectrum in lots, with reserve prices of £10m per 10MHz lot of 2.3GHz spectrum and £1m for a 5MHz block. That sees a combined reserve price of £70m.

The spectrum is expected to be go for a higher price but is unlikely to reach the giddy heights of the 3G auctions, which provided billions to government coffers.

“Naturally all operators will be looking to limit the amount they bid given the reluctance of customers to pay more for faster speeds,” said Mr Howett.

“This auction is certainly unlikely to net as much as the last auction for 4G spectrum, and nowhere remotely close to the eye-watering £22.5bn operators paid for 3G licences almost two decades ago.”

What next?

In the second half of 2019, Ofcom will also auction off spectrum in the 700MHz band, but this will come with a caveat – the need to improve 4G coverage first.

“To ensure widespread improvements in mobile coverage across the UK, we are proposing to attach coverage obligations to some of the licences we will award for the 700 MHz band,” Ofcom said.

“These obligations will require winning bidders to roll out improved mobile coverage in rural areas and the nations.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-43401448