Big Tech Must Be Held to Account for Sextortion Scams, Watchdog Says
Some of the world's largest social media platforms should 'fundamentally' be held responsible for their role in facilitating sextortion scams that target children, according to the head of a global dirty-money watchdog.
Elisa de Anda Madrazo, president of the Financial Action Task Force, said the group is focused on combating one of the world's fastest-growing crimes. In a new report, the Paris-based inter-governmental body said financial intelligence can be leveraged to disrupt online child sexual exploitation. The research also delved into the role apps such as Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook play in initially connecting perpetrators to victims.
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Axios
6 hours ago
- Axios
MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell liable for defamation, must pay $2.3M
A federal jury in Denver on Monday found MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell liable for defamation over statements he made about a former employee of Denver-based Dominion Voting Systems, according to local reports. Why it matters: Lindell is one of the nation's most prominent election conspiracy theorists, and the trial challenged him to present hard evidence about alleged 2020 election rigging, which he failed to do. By the numbers: The jury ordered Lindell to pay $2.3 million to former Dominion Voting Systems executive Eric Coomer, finding Lindell engaged in a civil conspiracy with the company to disseminate false information about election fraud, 9News reports. Lindell will personally owe Coomer $440,500 in damages, while his company, the online platform formerly called FrankSpeech, must pay $1.9 million in damages. State of play: Coomer worked as director of product strategy and security for Dominion and sought $62.7 million in damages, per CPR News. His lawsuit alleged the MyPillow CEO used his media platforms to amplify false claims, including calling Coomer a "traitor," per the AP. Zoom out: Lindell has been in court previously for pushing false claims about 2020 election fraud. Notably, Dominion Voting Systems filed a $1.3 billion lawsuit against Lindell in 2021. Last year, a federal judge ordered him to pay a man the $5 million reward he promised at a "Prove Mike Wrong Challenge" about the 2020 election. In 2022, a federal judge sanctioned him for what the judge called "frivolous" claims against Smartmatic Corp. What they're saying: Lindell's team contended that his statements were protected speech.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Minnesota lawmaker Melissa Hortman's beloved dog also shot during attack, euthanized
MINNEAPOLIS (WJW/AP) — The family dog that belonged to Melissa Hortman, the Democratic Minnesota lawmaker shot and killed at her home in what was described as an 'act of targeted political violence,' was also shot during the attack and reportedly euthanized. According to Helping Paws, Inc., Hortman fostered and trained dogs for the non-profit, including a golden retriever named Gilbert. 2 dogs, cat removed from Ohio home in deplorable condition 'They also helped raise and train Gilbert, a service dog in training who was eventually career changed and became a cherished member of their family,' a post on the organization's Facebook stated, along with a 2022 picture of Hortman and gilbert posing together. According to People and ABC News, Gilbert was also shot when Vance Boelter allegedly donned a disguise, including a mask and a police uniform, and fatally shot Hortman and her husband, Mark, in their home early Saturday morning. The Hortman's adult children then decided to euthanize the dog, ABC News reported, citing a post on X from Ken Martin, the chair of the Democratic National Committee. A friend of the Hortman family, Emily Hill, who is the wife of Minnesota State Rep. Josiah Hill told People in an interview over the weekend that the news of Gilbert's death 'just makes things worse.' Suspect in shooting of two Minnesota state lawmakers had planned to target two others 'It's just awful,' Hill said. '[Melissa] loved dogs and volunteered with dog rescues,' she told the publication. Boelter, who is also suspected of shooting Sen. John Hoffman, a Democrat, and his wife, Yvette, who lived just a few miles from the Hortmans, surrendered to police Sunday after they found him in the woods near his home following a massive manhunt that stretched over two days. Authorities say he also shot Sen. John Hoffman, a Democrat, and his wife, Yvette, who lived just a few miles away. Federal prosecutors announced Monday that they charged Boelter, 57, with federal murder and stalking offenses. He already faces state charges, including murder and attempted murder. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Politico
8 hours ago
- Politico
MyPillow founder Mike Lindell loses defamation case
DENVER — A federal jury in Colorado on Monday found that one of the nation's most prominent election conspiracy theorists, MyPillow founder Mike Lindell, defamed a former employee for a leading voting equipment company after the 2020 presidential election. The employee, Eric Coomer, was awarded $2.3 million in damages. He had sued after Lindell called him a traitor and accusations about him stealing the election were streamed on Lindell's online media platform. Coomer was the security and product strategy director at Denver-based Dominion Voting Systems, whose voting machines became the target of elaborate conspiracy theories among allies of President Donald Trump, who continues to falsely claim that his loss to Democrat Joe Biden in 2020 was due to widespread fraud. Dominion won a $787 million settlement in a defamation lawsuit it filed against Fox News over its airing of false claims against the company and has another lawsuit against the conservative network Newsmax. Newsmax apologized to Coomer in 2021 for airing false allegations against him. Coomer said during the two-week Lindell trial that his career and life were destroyed by the statements. His lawyers said Lindell either knew the statements were lies, or conveyed them recklessly without knowing if they were true. Lindell's lawyers denied the claims and said his online platform, formerly known as Frankspeech, is not liable for statements made by others. Lindell said he went to trial to draw attention to the need to get rid of electronic voting machines that have been targeted in a web of conspiracy theories. He said he used to be worth about $60 million before he started speaking out about the 2020 election and is now $10 million in debt. Reviews, recounts and audits in the battleground states where Trump contested his loss in 2020 all affirmed Democrat Joe Biden's victory. Trump's attorney general at the time said there was no evidence of widespread fraud, and Trump and his allies lost dozens of court cases seeking to overturn the result. Lindell stuck by his false claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen during the trial, but did not call any experts to present evidence of his claims. Lindell said his beliefs that the 2020 election was tainted by fraud were influenced by watching the 2020 HBO documentary 'Kill Chain' and by the views of Trump's former national security adviser, Michael Flynn. In an interview for a documentary Lindell made in 2021, Flynn said foreign interference was going to happen in U.S. elections, and Lindell said he had no reason to doubt the claim since Flynn had worked for both political parties in intelligence. Lindell distanced himself from an account by a Colorado podcaster who claimed to have heard a conference call from the anti-fascist group Antifa before the 2020 election. The podcast claimed that on the call someone named Eric from Dominion said he would make sure that Trump would not win, a story that was recounted on Frankspeech during a 2021 event. Lindell said he only learned about that during the trial. Lindell said he never accused Coomer of rigging the election, but he did say he was upset because he said Newsmax blocked him from being able to go on air to talk about voting machines after it apologized to Coomer. Coomer denied there was any such deal to block Lindell under his agreement with the network. Coomer's lawyers tried to show how their client's life was devastated by the conspiracy theories spreading about him. Lindell was comparatively late to seize on Coomer, not mentioning him until February 2021, well after his name had been circulated by other Trump partisans. Coomer said the conspiracy theories cost him his job, his mental health and the life he'd built and said Lindell's statements were the most distressing of all. He specifically pointed to a statement May 9, 2021, when Lindell described what he believed Coomer had done as 'treason.'
