Hillicon Valley — TikTok CEO to testify earlier than Home panel

TikTok’s CEO is scheduled to testify on the Home amid rising scrutiny, largely from Republicans, over potential safety dangers posed by the Chinese language-owned video sharing app.  

In the meantime, Ukraine is coming into uncharted territory in its request for the Worldwide Prison Courtroom (ICC) within the Hague to analyze whether or not sure Russian cyberattacks might represent conflict crimes. 

That is Hillicon Valley, detailing all you have to find out about tech and cyber information from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley. Ship tricks to The Hill’s Rebecca Klar and Ines Kagubare. 

TikTok within the sizzling seat

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will seem in March earlier than the Home Vitality and Commerce Committee as lawmakers push to look at the video-sharing app’s ties to China and its shopper knowledge privateness and safety practices.   

Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) mentioned calling the TikTok chief to testify is a part of the panel’s aim of “asking Large Tech CEOs — from Fb to Twitter to Google — to reply for his or her firms’ actions.”  

The social media app TikTok, which is owned by China-based father or mother firm ByteDance, “has knowingly allowed the power for the Chinese language Communist Celebration to entry American consumer knowledge,” Rodgers mentioned.   

• “People should know the way these actions influence their privateness and knowledge safety, in addition to what actions TikTok is taking to maintain our youngsters secure from on-line and offline harms,” she added. “It’s now time to proceed the committee’s efforts to carry Large Tech accountable by bringing TikTok earlier than the committee to offer full and sincere solutions for individuals.” 
• Chew is ready to testify earlier than the complete committee at a March 23 listening to in his first look earlier than Congress. He’ll discuss “TikTok’s shopper privateness and knowledge safety practices, the platforms’ influence on youngsters, and their relationship with the Chinese language Communist Celebration,” in response to the committee. 

Learn extra right here.  

Ukraine needs investigation of Russian cyberattacks  

Ukrainian officers are breaking new floor — and presumably reshaping the way forward for cyberwarfare — as they search to persuade the Worldwide Prison Courtroom (ICC) within the Hague to analyze whether or not sure Russian cyberattacks might represent conflict crimes. 

Cyberattacks have more and more turn into part of trendy warfare lately, and have been repeatedly utilized by Russian forces amid the nation’s conflict in Ukraine to focus on vital infrastructure. 

Such assaults, although, usually are not listed as a type of conflict crime underneath the Geneva Conventions. Authorized specialists and researchers have beforehand made the case for the ICC to prosecute Russian cyberattacks, however the reported push from Ukrainian officers marks the primary time a sovereign authorities has made such a request to the court docket — and may very well be a game-changer. 

“Information that Ukrainian officers are weighing cyberattacks as potential conflict crimes is reflective of how significantly governments are taking these rising and evolving threats,” mentioned Paul Martini, CEO and chief know-how officer at cybersecurity agency iboss. 

Learn extra right here.  

EVENT INVITE

On the Document Newsmaker occasion,Wednesday, Feb. 1 at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT

Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), chairwoman of the Home Schooling and the Workforce Committee, sits down with The Hill’s Bob Cusack for a stay newsmaker occasion to debate her priorities for the 118th Congress. RSVP and be a part of us stay.

FORMER TWITTER EMPLOYEES TO APPEAR ON CAPITOL HILL  

Former Twitter executives are set to testify subsequent month earlier than the Home Oversight and Accountability Committee in regards to the social media platform’s choices surrounding a 2020 information story on President Biden’s son Hunter Biden. 

Republicans have argued that Twitter suppressed circulation of a 2020 New York Submit article about Hunter Biden within the weeks earlier than the presidential election, by which now-President Biden was a candidate, for political causes.  

“Our first hearings shall be subsequent week. We’re going to speak to Twitter workers, as a result of I believe there’s lots of misconceptions in regards to the laptop computer. And we’re going to speak about that laptop computer,” Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) mentioned in remarks on the Nationwide Press Membership’s Headliners Newsmaker discuss on Monday.  

The newly GOP-controlled Oversight panel is planning to probe the Biden household on a lot of points, and Hunter Biden’s enterprise ties have lengthy been a Republican space of focus.   

Learn extra right here.  

PARENTS GRAPPLE WITH CHATGPT CONCERNS 

Dad and mom have a brand new platform to deal with within the battle to maintain up with the ever-growing technological advances of their kids’s lives: ChatGPT.  

The brand new AI know-how has turn into so widespread that some faculties have banned it because it makes its means into the lives of Okay-12 and school college students across the U.S. It has made headlines for its humanlike and distinctive responses to questions, which sparked concern amongst some educators round dishonest and a lack of vital considering expertise.

It isn’t unusual for kids and younger adults to be forward of the adults of their lives with sure technological advances. 

“I’d guess that 95 p.c of oldsters do not know, something about ChatGPT, haven’t thought of it, or don’t know something about it. I’m guessing that top college and school youngsters are beginning to determine this out actually shortly,” mentioned Matt Albert, former govt director on the Heart for Reflective Communities. 

Learn extra right here.  

BITS & PIECES

An op-ed to chew on: Quantum computing is coming — and there’s extra the Biden administration can do to organize 

Notable hyperlinks from across the net:  

‘Recession Resilient’ Local weather Begin-Ups Shine in Tech Downturn (The New York Instances / Erin Griffith) 

The place Silicon Valley Roasts Itself (Motherboard / Eddie Kim) 

Cybercrime teams supply six-figure salaries, bonuses, paid time without work to draw expertise on darkish net (CyberScoop / AJ Vicens) 

ONE MORE THING

Surgeon Normal points social media security warning

SurgeonGeneral Vivek Murthy on Sunday cautioned that, regardless of many app tips, 13-year-olds are too younger to hitch social media. 

“What’s the proper age for a kid to begin utilizing social media? I fear that proper now, in the event you have a look at the rules from the platforms, that age 13 is when youngsters are technically allowed to make use of social media. However there are two considerations I’ve about that. One is: I, personally, primarily based on the information I’ve seen, imagine that 13 is just too early,” Murthy mentioned on CNN’s “Newsroom.” 

Twitter, Fb, Instagram and different high social media platforms permit customers age 13 and older to hitch, create their very own profiles and share and eat content material. 

“It’s a time, you realize, early adolescence, the place youngsters are creating their id, their sense of self. It’s a time the place it’s actually vital for us to be considerate about what’s going into how they give thought to their very own self-worth and their relationships and the skewed and infrequently distorted setting of social media usually does a disservice to lots of these kids,” the surgeon basic argued. 

Learn extra right here. 

That’s it for at this time, thanks for studying. Try The Hill’s Know-how and Cybersecurity pages for the newest information and protection. We’ll see you tomorrow.