THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A United Nations watchdog has been selected to lead an external probe into allegations of sexual misconduct against the top prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, The Associated Press learned Tuesday. The move will likely generate conflict of interest concerns owing to the prosecutor’s wife’s past work for the oversight […]

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union announced on Thursday that it is taking Hungary’s right-wing government to court over laws that could allow the authorities to investigate and prosecute people accused of undermining the country’s sovereignty. The “ sovereignty protection act ″ took effect in December. It created a government authority with the power to […]

PARIS (AP) — French authorities handed preliminary charges to Telegram CEO Pavel Durov on Wednesday for allowing alleged criminal activity on his messaging app, and barred him from leaving France pending further investigation. Both free-speech advocates and authoritarian governments have spoken out in Durov’s defense since his weekend arrest. The case has also called attention to the […]

PARIS (AP) — French prosecutors on Wednesday freed Telegram CEO Pavel Durov from police custody after four days of questioning over allegations that the messaging app is being used for illegal activities. Durov was detained on Saturday at Le Bourget airport outside Paris as part of a judicial inquiry opened last month involving 12 alleged […]

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Over more than a decade, the founder and CEO of the messaging app Telegram has amassed various different citizenships, something that’s only added to the mystery surrounding his detention in France. Those passports provided Pavel Durov protection after he created and ran Telegram as a self-proclaimed free-speech absolutist. The […]

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Dutch data protection watchdog slapped a 290 million euro ($324 million) fine Monday on ride-hailing service Uber for allegedly transferring personal details of European drivers to the United States without adequate protection. Uber called the decision flawed and unjustified and said it would appeal. The Dutch Data Protection Authority […]

RIETI, Italy (AP) — Ella Anthony knew it was time to leave her native Nigeria when she escaped an abusive, forced marriage only to face angry relatives who threatened to turn her in to police because she was gay. Since Nigeria criminalizes same-sex relationships, Anthony fled a possible prison term and headed with her partner […]

LONDON (AP) — European Union regulators on Thursday ratcheted up scrutiny of big tech companies including Google, Facebook and TikTok with requests for information on how they’re dealing with risks from generative artificial intelligence, such as the viral spread of deepfakes.  The European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, has sent questionnaires about the ways that […]

LONDON (AP) — Microsoft said Thursday that it is upgrading its cloud computing service to let customers store all personal data within the European Union instead of having it flow to the U.S. where national privacy laws don’t exist. The changes apply to services including Azure, Microsoft 365, Power Platform, and Dynamics 365, the Seattle-based […]