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Tag: President Trump

  • U.S. Senator Wants Ban On Intel Sharing With Countries Using Huawei

    U.S. Senator Wants Ban On Intel Sharing With Countries Using Huawei

    In an escalation of the U.S. campaign to convince allies not to use Huawei, U.S. Senator Tom Cotton is calling for a ban on intelligence sharing with countries that use the company’s 5G equipment, according to Reuters.

    Huawei has been accused of being a conduit for Chinese spying on foreign countries. While all Chinese corporations are required to cooperate with the Chinese government and intelligence, Huawei is seen as having closer ties to Beijing than most. Huawei has denied the claims, but it has not stopped many carriers from looking elsewhere as they roll out their 5G networks.

    Cotton introduced a provision in the 2020 defense spending bill, which was signed into law by President Trump in December, that “directs intelligence agencies to consider the use of telecoms and cybersecurity infrastructure ‘provided by adversaries of the United States, particularly China and Russia,’ when entering intelligence-sharing agreements with foreign countries.”

    According to Reuters, Cotton is taking it a step further, drafting a new bill that would place much tighter restrictions on intelligence sharing agreements with countries that use Huawei for their 5G networks. The bill could be introduced as early as this month.

    This news comes as the UK debates what role Huawei will have in its own 5G rollout.

    “I’m profoundly concerned about the possibility that close allies, including the UK, might permit the Chinese Communist Party effectively to build their highly sensitive 5G infrastructure,” Cotton told Reuters.

  • New Law Will Limit Cable TV Fees, Address Local Blackouts

    New Law Will Limit Cable TV Fees, Address Local Blackouts

    According to Consumer Reports, the House and Senate have passed a bill that would limit how cable companies charge hidden fees and phantom rentals to jack up bills.

    Customers have chafed for years at hidden fees and add-ons that take their low-priced, promotional cable bill and double or triple it. Cable companies will advertise a low-priced package, or tout the fact they have not raised prices in so many months, and then use hidden fees to circumvent the advertised price.

    As a result, Consumer Reports has been lobbying for laws that would limit how the cable companies operate and the fees they can charge.

    “People across the country are fed up with all of the extra fees they pay each month that keep growing more costly year after year,” said Jonathan Schwantes, Consumer Reports’ senior policy counsel. “Cable companies shouldn’t be allowed to disguise the true cost of service by charging a long list of add-on fees that aren’t clearly disclosed when customers sign up for service. These reforms will bring fairness and clarity to pay-TV billing, so we can find a plan that fits our budget without having to worry about getting stuck paying hidden fees.”

    The newly passed bill—which merely needs President Trump’s signature to become law—will force cable companies to provide an itemized list of fees and charges, and give customers a 24-hour window to cancel without penalty. The bill will also ban pay-TV companies from charging customers for equipment they don’t use. For example, many companies who bundle TV and internet service will charge customers rental fees for an internet router even if they’re using their own and never use the company’s.

    On the downside, the bill only applies to pay-TV companies, as well as companies and plans that bundle pay-TV with internet service. It does not yet apply to strictly broadband companies with no pay-TV option, who are just as guilty of these practices.

    Another provision of the bill would also help alleviate local station blackouts that often occur “when broadcasters and TV service providers can’t agree on terms for carrying local or cable channels. The law will mandate good-faith negotiations between the parties during these so-called retransmission consent negotiations.” The bill will also allow satellite TV providers to offer network programming in markets that do not have local broadcasts.

    The legislation is a step in the right direction for reigning in what has become predatory practices by the cable TV industry. Here’s to hoping the legislation catches up with the broadband industry as well.

  • Microsoft Acquires Pentagon Certification, Closes Gap With Amazon

    Microsoft Acquires Pentagon Certification, Closes Gap With Amazon

    According to the Washington Post, Microsoft has achieved Impact Level 6, the Pentagon’s highest IT security certification.

    Prior to December 12, Amazon was the only company to have achieved Impact Level 6. The certification allows a company to store classified data in the cloud. Under normal circumstances, “defense and intelligence agencies typically use air-gapped, local computer networks to store sensitive data rather than the cloud-based systems that most companies now use to harness far-off data centers.”

    As the Washington Post points out, the security clearance helps justify Microsoft beating Amazon for a lucrative Pentagon contract. Amazon, as well as many experts, thought the company was all but guaranteed to win the contract, in part because it was the only company to have Impact Level 6. In addition, the company has previously worked with the CIA, giving it valuable experience with sensitive or classified data. In spite of that, Microsoft managed to secure the contract, worth some $10 billion.

    Amazon has maintained the bidding process was compromised by comments President Trump made and is challenging the results in court. In the meantime, having Impact Level 6 will only help Microsoft as it continues to challenge Amazon for government work.

  • It’s Official: Space Force Becomes the Military’s Sixth Branch

    It’s Official: Space Force Becomes the Military’s Sixth Branch

    Space.com is reporting that President Trump has officially signed the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, creating the U.S. Space Force (USSF) as the military’s sixth branch.

    As we reported a week ago, the House and Senate passed the National Defense Authorization Act, setting aside funds to create the USSF and thereby consolidating the various elements related to space defense under a single branch of the military. The USSF will be part of the Department of the Air Force, just as the Marines are part of the Department of the Navy.

    In signing the bill, President Trump appointed General Jay Raymond as the first Chief of Space Operations. General Raymond will also represent the USSF on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The USSF “will be stood up over the next 18 months, military officials said.”

    “It was nearly half a century from Kitty Hawk to the creation of the Air Force. And now it’s 50 years after Apollo 11 that we create the Space Force,” President Trump said at the signing at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. “It’s a big moment. That’s a big moment, and we’re all here for it. Space … going to be a lot of things happening in space. Because space is the world’s newest warfighting domain. Amid grave threats to our national security, American superiority in space is absolutely vital. And we’re leading, but we’re not leading by enough. But very shortly, we’ll be leading by a lot. The Space Force will help us deter aggression and control the ultimate high ground.”

  • Senate Signs Bill to Help Curb Illegal Robocalls

    Senate Signs Bill to Help Curb Illegal Robocalls

    Robocalls have become a plague for the American consumer, with some 54 billion being placed last year alone. Now, according to the International Business Times (IBT), the Senate has unanimously approved House-passed legislation aimed at combatting robocalls.

    The Pallone-Thune Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act is named for its sponsors, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., and Sen. John Thune, R-S.D. In passing the bill, lawmakers cited the nuisance to consumers, while also highlighting the life-threatening impact robocalls can have on hospitals.

    “There are numerous stories of hospital telephone lines being flooded with robocalls, disrupting critical lines of communication for hours,” Thune said. “That can’t be allowed to go on.”

    According to IBT, “the measure requires AT&T, Verizon and other phone companies to block robocalls for free and ensure calls are coming from real numbers. It also gives regulators more time to find and penalize scammers without having to issue warnings first.

    “The Federal Communications Commission will be required to let Congress know about action being taken against robocalling operations and oversee companies tracking such calls. It also requires the Justice Department to prosecute more often.

    “The FCC voted during the summer to allow carriers to block suspicious calls by default.

    “The bill’s requirements are expected to take months to implement and do nothing to reduce calls from credit card companies, student lenders and other businesses who depend on such calls to generate business.”

    While the bill’s backers say the its impact may not be noticeable immediately, as time goes on users will experience less calls.

    The bill will now go to President Trump. According to The Hill, “Rep. Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) told reporters Thursday that the bill is likely to be ‘signed into law the next week or so.’”

  • Amazon Cries Foul Over Microsoft’s $10 Billion Pentagon Contract

    Amazon Cries Foul Over Microsoft’s $10 Billion Pentagon Contract

    Microsoft made headlines several weeks ago when it beat out Amazon for a lucrative Pentagon contract worth some $10 billion. Now, according to ABC News, Amazon is protesting the decision, saying there was “unmistakable bias” in the selection process.

    Oracle and IBM were both eliminated during an earlier phase of the process, leaving only Microsoft and Amazon. Amazon was widely considered to be the front-runner to receive the Pentagon contract, in large part because of how far ahead it is in the overall cloud market. After President Trump, as well as its rivals, criticized Amazon, Microsoft won the bid.

    In response, Amazon has filed a protest with the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, citing what it described as “clear deficiencies, errors, and unmistakable bias.” By filing with the Court of Federal Claims, Amazon will have access to government documents in an effort to make its case.

    Whether Amazon will be able to change the outcome of the decision remains to be seen, although experts are not optimistic. While Amazon has nothing to lose by challenging the results, and President Trumps comments have been labeled “inappropriate and improvident,” experts believe it will be difficult to make a case that the White House applied enough pressure to sway the final outcome.