FTC Commissioner Noah Phillips plans to resign in the fall, he said in a statement Monday. He informed President Joe Biden of his decision in a letter. The Senate confirmed Phillips unanimously to a seven-year term in April 2018. “Serving the American people by working with my extraordinary fellow commissioners and the incredible career staff at the agency to protect American consumers has been the honor of my lifetime,” Phillips said. “I have learned so much from all my colleagues over the last four years and am inspired by the commitment that they bring to the incredible work of the FTC. Over the coming weeks, I look forward to working with my fellow commissioners and all FTC staff to further our mission of protecting competition and consumers.” Chair Lina Khan thanked Phillips for his “years of service to the Commission and to the American public. His deeply thoughtful and lively contributions continuously enrich our agency’s work, and I’ve greatly enjoyed working with him.” Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya tweeted he was “sad” to hear the news: “We may not always agree, but Noah is always thoughtful, careful, and unfailingly personally generous. A loss for the @FTC of a committed public servant.” Phillips has always been “committed to upholding the integrity of the FTC, protecting Americans, and ensuring small businesses can thrive and innovate,” House Commerce Committee ranking member Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., said in a statement. “His voice and perspective has been unparalleled and will be sorely missed.” Phillips worked as chief counsel to Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, 2011-18.

Nearly seven in 10 cybersecurity professionals cite an increasing number of cyberattacks since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February, reported VMware Monday. The company canvassed 125 “incident responders” in June, finding two out of three reporting “malicious deepfakes” used as part of an attack, a 13% increase from last year, “with email as the top delivery method,” it said. Deepfake attacks use AI to create realistic video and audio content to trick victims into disclosing sensitive information. VMware said “burnout” among cybersecurity professionals “remains a critical issue.” Slightly fewer than half of respondents reported having experienced burnout or extreme stress in the past 12 months, down slightly from 51% in a similar survey last year, it said: “Of this group, 69% (versus 65% in 2021) of respondents have considered leaving their job as a result.”

Government officials can’t circumvent the First Amendment by inducing, threatening or colluding with private companies to suppress protected speech, Louisiana and Missouri argued Tuesday in an amended complaint for their free speech lawsuit against the Biden administration (see 2207130051). The states sued the administration in May, claiming officials colluded with social media companies to censor and suppress truthful information on topics like COVID-19, the efficacy of masks and election integrity. Among the lawsuit's targets: Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, White House Chief Medical Adviser Anthony Fauci, the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention, Homeland Security Department Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jen Easterly and DHS Disinformation Governance Board Nina Jankowicz. The states claim government officials colluded with Big Tech platforms to label misinformation and disinformation. “Counterspeech, not censorship, is the proper response to supposed ‘misinformation,’” they wrote.

President Joe Biden will sign the Chips and Science Act into law Tuesday and speak in the Rose Garden, the White House said Wednesday (see 2207280060). “This bill will lower the cost of everyday goods, strengthen American manufacturing and innovation, create good-paying jobs, and bolster our economic and national security,” the White House said.

Meta has until Aug. 22 to list its personal social networking features on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger so the FTC can better define the relevant market in its antitrust lawsuit against the company, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ruled Monday in 1:20-cv-03590 before the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (see 2201110071). Meta asked the court to compel the FTC to “more fully answer” whether certain features or activities available to platform users are within the definition of personal social networking. Meta “understandably seeks a clearer definition of what the FTC maintains is the personal-social-networking-services market,” Boasberg wrote. The FTC argued it sufficiently answered the question and will know more during discovery. Boasberg said a “middle ground” is the “wisest approach.” Meta is in a “much better” position than the agency to list each feature and activity, Boasberg said, ordering the company to produce the list. Meta “seems reasonable in asking the FTC to define the relevant market, given that its investigation has long since commenced,” he wrote. After Meta provides the list by Aug. 22, the FTC has until Sep. 22 to “inform Meta whether each such feature or activity is or is not within that definition,” Boasberg wrote. If the FTC changes its position on any of the items in the future, it can issue a supplemental response, he said.

Ohio will lead a class-action lawsuit against Facebook claiming the platform “misled” users about how a “proprietary algorithm promoted offensive and dangerous content to users,” a federal judge decided Wednesday. "This case is about lies and losses -- Facebook's lies, and the losses incurred by our pension systems and others," said Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R), concerning the filing before the U.S. District Court in Northern California. "Ohio is happy and determined to lead in enforcing accountability against Facebook." Ohio will be joint lead plaintiff with PFA Pension of Denmark. Between April and October 2021, the company and senior executives “violated federal securities laws by purposely misleading the public about the negative effects its products have on the health and well-being of children,” Yost’s office said. “Those misrepresentations boosted the price of Facebook stock, harming investors.” Yost represents the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System. “Ohio PERS and PFA Pension are the presumptive lead plaintiff by virtue of having the largest financial interest,” Judge Jon Tigar wrote in his ruling. Yost claims that testimony from Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen caused the company’s stock to plummet, resulting in about $3 million losses for the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System. The company didn’t comment.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is attempting an “illegal acquisition” to expand his “virtual reality empire,” the FTC said Tuesday in a lawsuit seeking to block the company’s purchase of Within Unlimited and its virtual reality fitness app Supernatural. The commission recorded a 3-2 party line vote to authorize staff to seek a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Meta’s “virtual reality empire includes the top-selling device, a leading app store, seven of the most successful developers, and one of the best-selling apps of all time,” the FTC said. The agency alleges Meta is attempting to acquire a “dedicated fitness app that proves the value of virtual reality to users.” The company is trying to buy its way to the top instead of competing on the merits, said FTC Competition Bureau Deputy Director John Newman. The case is “based on ideology and speculation, not evidence,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement. “The idea that this acquisition would lead to anticompetitive outcomes in a dynamic space with as much entry and growth as online and connected fitness is simply not credible.” The commission’s party-line vote sends a “chilling message to anyone who wishes to innovate in VR. We are confident that our acquisition of Within will be good for people, developers and the VR space.” The FTC claims the deal violates Section 7 of the Clayton Act, which prohibits transactions that may “substantially” decrease competition, “or tend to create a monopoly,” or Section 5 of the FTC Act.

Connectivity accessories supplier Covid announced an 8K HDMI cable for integrators that supports 8K@60 Hz, Deep Color and x.v.Color, HDR10, enhanced Audio Return Channel for Dolby Atmos and DTS-X, lossless Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD surround sound. The 15-foot 48-Gbps cable also supports Consumer Electronics Control extension commands and functions and HDMI Ethernet channel, the company said Wednesday.

Google Global Head-Product Security Strategy Camille Stewart Gloster will be deputy national cyber director-technology and ecosystem security, the White House announced Monday. She will lead the Office of National Cyber Director’s efforts to “strengthen the security and development of our Nation’s cyber ecosystem -- across people, processes, and technology,” the White House said. Gloster previously worked for the Obama administration as a senior cybersecurity policy adviser at the Department of Homeland Security.

President Joe Biden, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and senior administration officials met with industry and labor representatives Monday to push for passage of chips legislation (see 2207200063). Biden, who spoke virtually due to his isolation for COVID-19, said the legislation will help U.S. semiconductor fabs stay on the “leading edge,” according to White House pool reports. DOD Deputy Secretary Kathleen Hicks, National Economic Council Director Brian Deese and Assistant to the President-National Security Affairs Jake Sullivan joined in person to discuss national security needs. Communications Workers of America President Christopher Shelton, Lockheed Martin CEO Jim Taiclet, Cummins CEO Tom Linebarger, Medtronic CEO Geoff Martha and Mack McManus, general president-United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry of the U.S. and Canada spoke virtually.