Australia Grills Apple, Meta, Microsoft on Plans to Tackle Child Abuse | Tech News

Australia Grills Apple, Meta, Microsoft on Plans to Tackle Child Abuse

Australia has demanded that US technology giants including Apple Inc., Meta Platforms Inc. and Microsoft Corp. provide details on how they’re cracking down on child abuse material.

By:BLOOMBERG
| Updated on: Sep 04 2022, 14:00 IST
What to expect from iPhone 14 Plus/Max after Apple killed off iPhone 14 mini
Apple iPhone 13 Pro
1/6 Leave alone the iPhone mini, the new iPhone 14 Plus/Max is expected to have a larger display than even the standard iPhone 14. It is rumoured to have the same 6.7-inch screen size as the iPhone 14 Pro Max, albeit without the features that make it “Pro”. Apple is restarting the trend of assigning “Plus” tag with its larger devices, last seen in the iPhone 8 Plus. (Representational image) (Amritanshu Mukherjee / HT Tech)
image caption
2/6 According to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the iPhone 14 and the iPhone 14 Plus/Max will be powered by Apple’s A15 Bionic processor. Only the Pro models will receive the new A16 Bionic chipset. Although, the A15 chip in the iPhone 14 is expected to be an improved version of the A15 Bionic currently powering the iPhone 13 series. (Representational image) (Amritanshu / HT Tech)
image caption
3/6 ShrimpApplePro has revealed in a recent tweet that the iPhone 14 Plus/Max will have 6GB of RAM. In fact, all the variants of the iPhone 14 series are expected to have the same amount of RAM, unlike last year where the standard iPhone 13 models had 4GB of RAM and the iPhone 13 Pro variants had 6GB of RAM. (Representational image) (Amritanshu / HT Tech)
image caption
4/6 Apple expert and top analyst Jeff Pu has revealed that the iPhone 14 Plus/Max as well as the other 3 models will feature Apple’s ProMotion displays with a high refresh rate of 120Hz. At this moment, only the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max offer the ProMotion displays. (Representational image) (HT Tech)
image caption
5/6 According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman and Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the iPhone 14 Plus/Max will be priced at $899, a $100 price increase from the standard iPhone 14. The standard iPhone 14 models are not expected to receive the $100 price hike, as reported by various reports. Only the Pro variants will be priced $100 higher than their iPhone 13 Pro counterparts. (Representational image) (Amritanshu Mukherjee / HT Tech)
Apple iPhone 13 Pro
6/6 iPhone 14 Plus/Max along with all the other iPhones and the Apple Watch 8, is expected to be launched at Apple’s “Far Out” event scheduled for September 7 at the Steve Jobs Theater. However, all the information released by leaks and rumours should be taken with a pinch of salt as these are still unconfirmed reports. So, we can only wait until Apple officially confirms the details, which could be at launch of the iPhone 14 series itself. (REUTERS)
Apple iPhone 13 Pro
icon View all Images
Apple, Meta and Microsoft have 28 days to report back on what they’re doing to prevent the spread of child exploitation images. (REUTERS)

Australia has demanded that US technology giants including Apple Inc., Meta Platforms Inc. and Microsoft Corp. provide details on how they're cracking down on child abuse material.

The government's eSafety Commissioner issued legal notices on Tuesday to a group of tech companies that operate online platforms in Australia. It's the first such requests under new legislation introduced last year, according to a statement Tuesday.

You may be interested in

MobilesTablets Laptops
4% OFF
Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max 1TB
  • Black Titanium
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 1 TB Storage
5% OFF
Apple iPhone 15 Pro
  • Black Titanium
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 128 GB Storage
9% OFF
Apple iPhone 15 512GB
  • Black
  • 6 GB RAM
  • 512 GB Storage
10% OFF
Apple iPhone 15 Plus 256GB
  • Black
  • 6 GB RAM
  • 256 GB Storage

The firms have 28 days to report back on what they're doing to prevent the spread of child exploitation images. Any delay could lead to fines of as much as A$555,000 ($383,000) a day.

Also read
Looking for a smartphone? To check mobile finder click here.

“We've received these notices and are currently reviewing them,” a spokesperson for Meta, the parent of Facebook and Instagram, said in an emailed statement. “The safety of our users is a top priority and we continue to proactively engage with the eSafety Commissioner on these important issues.”

A spokeswoman for Microsoft said the firm would respond to the notice. Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

The responses would help inform government decisions about “what needs to be done to protect Australians online,” Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland said in the government statement. She urged the industry to comply with the commissioner's requests.

Australia's Online Safety Bill passed in June 2021 and placed the onus on internet-service companies, rather than government officials, to curb toxic behavior on their online platforms. The act also increased the penalty for online abuse and harassment to as much as five years in prison.

The new legislation is just the latest in a series of clashes between Australia and US tech giants. In February 2021, Facebook put a blackout on all news content on its Australian site after Canberra passed laws requiring social media platforms to pay local publishers for using their content.

Eventually Facebook backed down and agreed to pay some local news organizations to access their stories.

Catch all the Latest Tech News, Mobile News, Laptop News, Gaming news, Wearables News , How To News, also keep up with us on Whatsapp channel,Twitter, Facebook, Google News, and Instagram. For our latest videos, subscribe to our YouTube channel.

First Published Date: 04 Sep, 14:00 IST
NEXT ARTICLE BEGINS