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A federal judge in New Mexico has ordered Meta to pay $25bn after ruling that it deliberately misled the public about its handling of Facebook user data. Judge Francis Mathew said communications between senior executives were designed to mislead the public. "Facebook's wrongdoing - over the course of years and systematically broadcast to the public - goes to the heart of Facebook's core business practices," Mathew wrote. He found that a penalty of more than $219bn was warranted based on state law, ​but he reduced the figure to $25bn. The penalty would be among the largest payouts in U.S. legal history if it stands. New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said the money must be spent on building schools. “We may have in fact paid for the construction of schools for the next several hundred years,” Torrez said. “I don’t actually know because the amounts that we’re dealing with are so huge.”

 

Bloomberg

Reuters

The identification of two critical vulnerabilities in PHP, a programming language which underpins around 70% of the world’s websites, has led to government agencies and businesses worldwide taking their websites offline. In the U.S., Utah-based HR software company BambooHR took its platform offline, Human Resources Director reports. The flaws could allow hackers to take control of web servers without a password. The organization behind the language issued a patch on Wednesday after researchers testing cyberdefenses discovered the flaws. Prof Alan Woodward, a cybersecurity expert at Surrey University in the U.K., said: “The big thing is for everyone using [the patch] to get that in to make sure their systems are safe. The troubling part is there is going to be a long tail of websites who may not be maintained as well and they are going to remain vulnerable, which means we may see weeks and months of ongoing attacks.”

 

Bloomberg

Human Resources Director

NBC News

BBC News

Instacart has agreed to pay up to $5m to settle U.S. federal allegations that it discriminated against American-born job applicants in favor of foreign workers holding temporary visas. The settlement includes a compensation fund of up to $4m for affected applicants and $1m in civil penalties. The grocery technology company must also change its recruitment practices, including publicly advertising jobs linked to the PERM program, the mandatory first step for employers sponsoring foreign workers for an employment-based green card, and accepting electronic applications. Instacart maintains that its hiring practices complied with U.S. law but agreed to settle to focus on its business operations.

 

Bloomberg Law

San Joaquin Valley Sun

Fox News

Reuters

Chinese online retailer Temu has agreed to settle data privacy claims raised by Texas and will ​restrict how it handles personal data from shoppers in the state. The settlement mandates that personal information belonging to Texas shoppers be held on US servers that are owned and controlled by American entities. The data in the retailer's shopping apps is to be submitted to annual security testing by a third-party. Similar privacy suits in Missouri, Arizona and several other states are pending.

 

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

Yahoo Finance

CNN is escalating its conflict with President Trump, threatening legal action against the Department of Justice (DOJ) if the White House continues to block the network's access to essential press areas. In a letter, CNN's attorney Ted Boutrous said “these efforts to retaliate and discriminate against CNN based on the content of its news coverage are mistaken, counterproductive, and unlawful.” Boutrous said that the spaces in question belong to all Americans, not just the current administration. The dispute follows a federal judge's order restoring CNN's access after Trump attempted to ban the network from the White House. The ongoing tensions underscore the president's long-standing feud with CNN, which he has accused of spreading “fake news.”

 

The Hill

United Airlines chief executive Scott Kirby has faced criticism from conservative politicians and commentators after advocating for a national wealth tax and significantly higher inheritance taxes to address growing economic inequality. In an interview with the New York Times, Kirby described wealth inequality as a danger to society and suggested inheritance taxes approaching 100% above certain wealth thresholds, saying he would personally pay them. His remarks prompted boycott calls against United Airlines, while Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry questioned his position given his reported $32m compensation in 2025. The controversy comes ahead of a California vote on a proposed 5% tax on billionaires.

 

Fortune

The Guardian

The U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA) has corrected nearly 15% of active Social Security number records in what it describes as the most comprehensive database cleanup in its 91-year history. The initiative, part of the Trump administration's efforts to combat fraud and waste in federal benefits programs, involved adding 17m missing dates of death and updating approximately 25 million records with previously missing citizenship information. The citizenship updates used data from the Department of Homeland Security's Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) service. The SSA, which maintains nearly 390 million records, is also working to correct another 8.5m records containing inaccurate citizenship information. Commissioner Frank Bisignano emphasized that accurate records are essential for preventing fraud, safeguarding federal programs, and ensuring benefits are administered correctly. The agency provides Social Security benefits to tens of millions of older Americans and people with disabilities.

 

Reuters

eBay has announced plans to cut approximately 9% of its workforce, affecting around 1,000 employees, in its second round of redundancies this year following a 6.5% reduction in February. The company said the restructuring will allow it to prioritize strategic investments and improve operational efficiency, while continuing to recruit in selected areas aligned with its growth plans. The announcement comes despite improving financial performance, with revenue and gross merchandise volume increasing in recent quarters, prompting eBay to raise its full-year outlook in August. The company has also expanded its presence in second-hand fashion through its acquisition of Depop from Etsy, while rejecting an unsolicited takeover proposal worth approximately $56bn from GameStop chief executive Ryan Cohen.

 

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

Amazon has announced plans to invest more than €16bn ($17.94bn) in Germany next year, including €4.8bn to expand its cloud and data center infrastructure amid growing demand for artificial intelligence (AI) services. The investment will also support the expansion of its Amazon Leo satellite internet network, logistics operations and Prime Video content production. The company has outlined plans to open a second robotics and AI research laboratory in Berlin, alongside upgrades to several fulfilment centers through 2028. The commitment builds on more than €100bn invested in Germany since 2010 and forms part of Amazon's broader European expansion strategy, which includes a separate €33.7bn investment in Spanish cloud and data center infrastructure through 2035.

 

Wall Street Journal

Video-game publisher Electronic Arts is to cut around 400 jobs, or about 3% of its total staff, as part of a plan to save up to $700m. The cuts include roughly 50 at BioWare, the development studio behind games such as Dragon Age and Mass Effect. Earlier this year, the company told investors it had a plan to save up to $700m, in part by paring back research and development costs.

 

Bloomberg

Pakistan’s garment industry is facing growing concerns over dangerous working conditions as climate change intensifies extreme heat in factories supplying international brands, including Zara and Mango. Workers in Karachi have reported fainting, dehydration, respiratory problems, and lost wages due to inadequate ventilation, limited breaks, and insufficient cooling measures. An Associated Press investigation found that factories frequently lacked temperature monitoring and effective heat protection protocols, despite corporate commitments to worker safety. Inditex, Zara’s parent company, has pledged stronger supplier audits and training, while Mango has updated its supplier code to address extreme temperatures. However, labor rights advocates have criticized weak enforcement, and heat safety protocols under the International Accord for Health and Safety remain under review. Experts have urged manufacturers to introduce improved ventilation, reliable drinking water, and regular rest breaks to protect workers as temperatures continue to rise.

 

US News and World Report

According to a report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the George W. Bush Institute, around 12,000 North Korean workers at a Russian drone factory in Tatarstan are being subjected to severe human rights abuses and trafficking. The report looks at how Russia, North Korea, China and Iran are involved in expanding unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) production at the Yelabuga facility, and what each country stands to gain. It highlights that North Korea retains up to 90% of the workers' wages, effectively enslaving its citizens for profit. Song Young-Chae, a human rights activist, said: "Life in North Korea is not easy, but these people are being sent to Russia as slaves." The report calls for international action to address the abuses and disrupt trafficking networks.

 

Deutsche Welle (EN)