21/08/2025

THURSDAY | AUG 21, 2025

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Malaysian Paper

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Google settles YouTube children’s privacy lawsuit

Switzerland eyes ‘dirty money’ task force LONDON: Switzerland is considering joining a British-led international task force targeting kleptocrats and recovering stolen assets, it said on Tuesday, as it seeks to shake off its reputation as a haven for dirty money. British Foreign Minister David Lammy discussed the International Anti-Corruption Coordination Centre (IACCC) with the Swiss government during a visit earlier this month, according to a UK government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Switzerland’s Foreign Ministry said the country has observer status at the IACCC and had been invited by Britain to become a full member. “In this context, Switzerland is examining options for its future cooperation with the IACCC. No decision has yet been made,” it said in a statement. Joining the task force would allow Swiss authorities to share intelligence and work more closely with other countries on major investigations targeting dirty money. Lammy told Reuters earlier this week that Switzerland was “a key partner in the fight against illicit finance and corruption” and its participation in the IACCC would be “invaluable”. Switzerland, the world’s largest manager of offshore wealth, has tried to shed its image as a safe haven for illicit funds and has recently taken steps to improve transparency, including proposing stricter rules on beneficial ownership. The IACCC task force was launched in 2017 and is hosted by Britain’s National Crime Agency. It brings together enforcement bodies from countries including the United States, Australia, and Canada to share intelligence and coordinate investigations.– Reuters Spy case soldier to be detained two years PALMERSTON NORTH: A military court sentenced a New Zealand soldier yesterday to two years’ detention for attempting to spy for a foreign power. The soldier, whose name has been suppressed, admitted to attempted espionage, accessing a computer system for a dishonest purpose and knowingly possessing an objectionable publication. He was ordered into military detention at Burnham Military Camp near Christchurch and will be dismissed from the New Zealand Defence Force at the end of his sentence. His admission and its acceptance by the court marked the first spying conviction in New Zealand’s history. The soldier will be paid at half his previous rate until his dismissal at the end of his sentence, the defence force said According to information provided to the court, he previously earned NZ$2,000 (RM4,928) a fortnight. The court martial at Linton Military Camp near Palmerston North heard the soldier gave military base maps and photographs to an undercover officer posing as an agent for a foreign nation. The military court has permanently suppressed the identity of the foreign nation. Chief Judge Kevin Riordan said the soldier “intended to prejudice the security and defence of New Zealand”. A military panel agreed the worst of his offences was the sharing of passwords, an identity card, and access codes to Linton Military Camp and the air force’s Base Ohakea, the judge said. “You were actively searching for things to supply to someone you thought was a foreign agent,” Riordan said. Of the man’s video of the Christchurch killings, the judge said: “Keeping the message of a gross murderer is a harm to the world in itself.” – AFP

o Firm denies wrongdoing

Google has been in the European Commission’s crosshairs since early last year over whether it restricts app developers from informing users about offers outside its app store Google Play and whether it favours its vertical search services such as Google Flights. Regulators have said Alphabet technically prevents app developers from freely steering consumers to other channels for better offers. They said a service fee charged by the company for facilitating the initial acquisition of a new customer by an app developer via Google Play goes beyond what is justified. In a blog post, Google said that following discussions with the European Commission, developers, and other experts, Google is updating certain terms. “While we still have concerns that these changes could expose Android users to harmful content and make the app experience worse, we’re updating our External Offers Program for the EU with revised fees and more options for Android developers, following DMA discussions with the European Commission,” EMEA Senior Competition Counsel Clare Kelly said. The company, which has been fined more than €8 billion (RM39 billion) by the EU for various antitrust violations, risks fines of up to 10% of its global annual sales if found guilty of breaching the DMA. – Reuters

with cartoons, nursery rhymes and other content to help it collect personal information, even after the 2019 settlement. Van Keulen dismissed claims against the content providers – including Hasbro, Mattel, Cartoon Network and DreamWorks Animation – in January, citing a lack of evidence tying them to Google’s alleged data collection. Mediation began the next month, leading to the settlement. The proposed class covers US children under 13 who watched YouTube between July 1, 2013 and April 1, 2020. Lawyers for the plaintiffs said there could be 35 million to 45 million class members. They said if 1% to 2% submit claims, a rate comparable to similar earlier cases, claimants could receive US$30 to US$60 each, before deducting legal fees and costs. The lawyers plan to seek up to US$9 million from the settlement for legal fees. In Paris, Google said on Tuesday it will make it easier for app developers to steer customers to channels other than Google after the European Union competition watchdog charged it with breaching EU regulations. In March, Google was hit with two charges of breaching the EU’s landmark Digital Markets Act (DMA), which aims to rein in the power of Big Tech.

NEW YORK: Google will pay US$30 million (RM127 million) to settle a lawsuit claiming it violated the privacy of children using YouTube by collecting their personal information without parental consent, and using it to send targeted ads. A preliminary settlement of the proposed class action was filed on Monday night in San Jose, California, Federal Court, and requires approval by US Magistrate Judge Susan van Keulen. Google denied wrongdoing in agreeing to settle. The Alphabet unit agreed in 2019 to pay US$170 million in fines and change some practices to settle similar charges by the US Federal Trade Commission and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Some critics viewed that accord as too lenient. Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Tuesday. Lawyers for the plaintiffs did not immediately respond to similar requests. The parents or guardians of 34 children accused Google of violating dozens of state laws by letting content providers bait children

Karachi residents wading through a flooded street on Tuesday. – AFPPIC

Karachi hit by torrential rain, floods KARACHI: Pakistan declared a public holiday in Karachi yesterday as the financial capital braced for more rain, after the arrival of the annual monsoon season left at least seven people dead and caused widespread flooding. and offices to shut. “We are expecting more intense rains,” said Anjum Nazir, a spokesperson for the provincial meteorological department. Tuesday’s rain was recorded between 80mm and 178mm in different parts of the city, he said.

Rescue workers, police, volunteers and government civic agencies were helping relief efforts, Mayor Murtaza Wahab told local Geo News television. “We have all our resources at work,” he said. Wahab said the rain had overwhelmed the city’s infrastructure. There have also been heavy monsoon rains in Mumbai, India’s financial capital, with some parts of the city drenched with as much as 875.1mm of rain in the five days leading up to yesterday, the local weather department said. Many schools in the city were closed for a second straight day, while train services were disrupted. Authorities requested residents avoid venturing out. – Reuters

The monsoon has brought havoc across Pakistan in recent days with the death toll from flash floods that struck the mountainous northwest on Friday rising to 377. In Karachi, at least seven people have died since the rains began in the southern port city on Tuesday, said Abdul Wahid Halepoto, a provincial government spokesperson. Rainfall reached levels not seen in years in some parts of the city, Pakistan’s largest, with a population of more than 20 million. Authorities ordered educational institutions

Nazir said the area around the airport received 163.5mm of rain, the highest recorded there since 1979. Some 178mm of rain was recorded in the northeast of the city, the highest since the weather station there was set up five years ago. The rain also disrupted power, mobile phone services and flights, officials said. Local television footage showed cars and other vehicles floating down streets, with houses submerged in water.