Latest news with #TCN
Axios
13-06-2025
- Business
- Axios
Scoop: Tucker Carlson buys out investors in his media company
Tucker Carlson and his business partner, Neil Patel, recently bought out investors in their media company, Tucker Carlson Network (TCN), a source familiar with the deal tells Axios. Why it matters: The deal gives the pair complete independence and total control of the company they co-founded in 2023. "It's hard to claim you're independent when other people own your company, so we decided not to take investments or loans of any kind," Carlson told Axios in a statement, confirming the deal. "Our business is owned by the people who work there. You can disagree with our opinions but you can't say we're paid to have them, and we're proud of that." Catch up quick: Carlson and Patel raised roughly $15 million for TCN from a group of investors in late 2023 after Carlson parted ways with Fox News. The pair have a long history, having co-founded the Daily Caller together in 2010. Patel currently serves as co-founder and CEO of TCN. The bulk of the cash raised for TCN came from 1789 Capital, which was founded by banker Omeed Malik to invest in "anti-ESG" companies. State of play: 1789 Capital's investment is structured as a SAFE (simple agreement for future equity), Axios reported. The SAFE structure allowed Carlson to convert his investors' cash into equity if he later chose to raise more money at a set valuation. Yes, but: When TCN became profitable more quickly than expected, they became less inclined to raise another round. And with no plans to sell the company, a buyout offered liquidity for existing investors. Because of TCN's profitability, investors saw a positive return on their investment, according to one source familiar with the transaction. Between the lines: The success of product investments outside of TCN also gave Carlson and Patel the confidence to buy back their company. Carlson and Patel launched a nicotine pouch product called ALP last year as a joint venture with Turning Point Brands, a publicly traded smoking accessories company. TPB's share price has skyrocketed by nearly 30% since ALP's launch announcement in November, reaching an all-time high last month. Before launching ALP, Carlson was a supporter of ZYN nicotine pouches, produced by tobacco giant Philip Morris International. He created a rival product after criticizing PMI over political donations made by the company's employees. What they're saying:"We have had a great start at TCN. We have also started other ventures, including our ALP nicotine pouch brand which has really taken off," Patel said in a statement to Axios. "This strong start gave us no need for outside capital and gave us the ability to buy out all of our investors and achieve absolute independence. We are grateful to our investors for backing us at our start and happy to have provided them a strong return on their investments." What's next: TCN's business is primarily driven by consumer subscriptions, as well as some advertising.
The Star
07-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
US lawmakers criticise UK backdoor order to Apple, warn of cybercriminal risks
An Apple logo is seen at the entrance of an Apple Store in downtown Brussels, Belgium March 10, 2016. REUTERS/Yves Herman BRUSSELS (Reuters) -U.S. House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan and Foreign Affairs Chair Brian Mast warned Britain on Wednesday that its order to Apple to create a backdoor to its encrypted user data could be exploited by cybercriminals and authoritarian regimes. Apple, which has said it would never build a so-called back door into its encrypted services or devices, has challenged the order at the UK's Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT). The iPhone maker withdrew its Advanced Data Protection feature for UK users in February following the UK order. Users of Apple's iPhones, Macs and other devices can enable the feature to ensure that only they — and not even Apple — can unlock data stored on its cloud. "Creating a backdoor into end-to-end encrypted systems, as the TCN does, introduces systemic vulnerabilities that can be exploited by malicious actors, including cybercriminals and authoritarian regimes," Jordan and Mast wrote in a joint letter to Britain's Home Secretary Yvette Cooper. TCN (Technical Capability Notice) refers to the UK order. "These vulnerabilities would not only affect UK users but also American citizens and others worldwide, given the global nature of Apple's services," they said. They urged Cooper to allow Apple to disclose the existence of the order to the U.S. Department of Justice so it can evaluate whether it complies with the U.S.-UK agreement made under the CLOUD Act which prohibits orders requiring companies to decrypt data. Under UK laws, American companies would commit a criminal offence if they disclose or confirm such an order, even to their home government. "We urge the Home Office to reconsider the issuance of TCNs that require the weakening of encryption, as such measures conflict with international human rights standards, including the European Court of Human Rights' ruling that undermining encryption violates privacy rights," the lawmakers said. Britain's Home Office has said a warrant would be needed for any individual's data to be accessed. (Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Richard Chang)
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US lawmakers criticise UK backdoor order to Apple, warn of cybercriminal risks
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways By Foo Yun Chee BRUSSELS (Reuters) -U.S. House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan and Foreign Affairs Chair Brian Mast warned Britain on Wednesday that its order to Apple to create a backdoor to its encrypted user data could be exploited by cybercriminals and authoritarian regimes. Apple, which has said it would never build a so-called back door into its encrypted services or devices, has challenged the order at the UK's Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT). The iPhone maker withdrew its Advanced Data Protection feature for UK users in February following the UK order. Users of Apple's iPhones, Macs and other devices can enable the feature to ensure that only they — and not even Apple — can unlock data stored on its cloud. "Creating a backdoor into end-to-end encrypted systems, as the TCN does, introduces systemic vulnerabilities that can be exploited by malicious actors, including cybercriminals and authoritarian regimes," Jordan and Mast wrote in a joint letter to Britain's Home Secretary Yvette Cooper. TCN (Technical Capability Notice) refers to the UK order. "These vulnerabilities would not only affect UK users but also American citizens and others worldwide, given the global nature of Apple's services," they said. They urged Cooper to allow Apple to disclose the existence of the order to the U.S. Department of Justice so it can evaluate whether it complies with the U.S.-UK agreement made under the CLOUD Act which prohibits orders requiring companies to decrypt data. Under UK laws, American companies would commit a criminal offence if they disclose or confirm such an order, even to their home government. "We urge the Home Office to reconsider the issuance of TCNs that require the weakening of encryption, as such measures conflict with international human rights standards, including the European Court of Human Rights' ruling that undermining encryption violates privacy rights," the lawmakers said. Britain's Home Office has said a warrant would be needed for any individual's data to be accessed. (Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Richard Chang)
The Guardian
07-04-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
UK Home Office loses attempt to keep legal battle with Apple secret
The UK has lost an attempt to keep details of a legal battle with Apple away from the public. The investigatory powers tribunal, which investigates whether the domestic intelligence services have acted unlawfully, on Monday rejected a bid by the Home Office to withhold from the public the 'bare details' of the case. A judgment from Lord Justice Singh, president of the investigatory powers tribunal, and Mr Justice Johnson, on Monday confirmed some details of the case for the first time. They confirmed that the case relates to a legal challenge brought against the Home Office by Apple over the power to make technical capability notices under the Investigatory Powers Act. According to the judgment, the Home Office argued that revealing the existence of the claim, as well as the names of the parties involved, would be damaging to national security. 'We do not accept that the revelation of the bare details of the case would be damaging to the public interest or prejudicial to national security,' said the judges. The Guardian and other media organisations have reported that the Home Office has served Apple with a technical capability notice (TCN), in which the government demanded access to Apple's Advanced Data Protection service, which heavily encrypts personal data stored remotely in its servers. Apple has pulled ADP from the UK rather than comply with the notice, saying it would never build a 'backdoor' to its products or services. Singh and Johnson said that neither Apple or the Home Office had confirmed or denied the accuracy of reports around the TCN and its contents. 'This judgment should not be taken as an indication that the media reporting is or is not accurate,' the judges added. The details of the TCN remain unknown. Journalists were not allowed into a hearing last month related to the case. Multiple media organisations, including the Guardian, the Financial Times, the BBC and the PA news agency, asked the tribunal to confirm who was taking part in the hearing on 14 March and for it to sit in public. Neither journalists nor legal representatives on behalf of the media were allowed into the hearing, and the identities of the parties involved were not disclosed head of the hearing. The judges added that it could be possible for 'some or all future hearings to incorporate a public element, with or without reporting restrictions' but that could not be ruled on at this stage in the process. Recipients of a TCN cannot reveal the existence of an order unless they are given permission from the home secretary. The tribunal's website states that hearings should be closed to the public only when 'strictly necessary', but its rules declare there must be no disclosure of information that is 'prejudicial to national security'. Ross McKenzie, a data protection partner at the law firm Addleshaw Goddard, said despite the ruling it was 'highly unlikely' there would be any in-depth revelations of the Home Office's case for accessing Apple user data. 'We may get a skeletal decision similar to what has been shared so far, which summarises the rationale without any meaningful detail,' said McKenzie.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Human rights groups challenge Apple's privacy fight with the UK government
Two UK human rights groups have challenged the government's attempts to force tech titan Apple to weaken its security systems, saying the process lacks transparency. The UK government had attempted to force Apple to create a 'back door' in its implemented security systems. Liberty and Privacy International have filed a legal complaint against the tech company with the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), the Financial Times first reported. It called for Apple's appeal against the order to be heard publicly and claimed the demand violated users' free speech and privacy rights. Caroline Wilson Palow, legal director of Privacy International, argued: 'The UK's use of a secret order to undermine security for people worldwide is unacceptable and disproportionate.' The iPhone maker is also fighting the order issued under the Investigatory Powers Act (IPA). The firm withdrew its secure iCloud backup device from its UK market earlier this year after receiving a 'technical capability notice'(TCN) in January. The notice reportedly required the firm to give law enforcement access to encrypted iPhone backups. Yet, the tech giant was legally prohibited from discussing this publicly. 'We have never built a back door or master key to any of our products, and we never will', Apple had argued at the time. The two human rights groups have argued that the secrecy surrounding TCNs prevents accountability and transparency. Several publications have made submissions to the IPT, urging the tribunal to hold the case in open court. The dispute has drawn criticism from the US, where lawmakers have urged British authorities to be more transparent about the IPA. They have warned that the secrecy around UK government demands to leading US big techs has posed a threat to privacy and free speech. The news follows Apple's recent decision to remove its advanced data protection feature from the UK, following a dispute with the government over encryption and access to user data. It also comes as firms like Apple, Google and Meta, have been targeted by mammoth class action lawsuits in the UK in recent years. Security minister Dan Jarvis told MPs in February: 'The suggestion that privacy and security are at odds is not correct; we can and must have both'. The tribunal will hold a closed hearing on Apple's case on Friday. Sign in to access your portfolio
