TTP Investigation: YouTube Still Awash in False Voter Fraud Claims
Today, CfA and TTP released a report revealing that YouTube is failing to remove new videos spreading baseless conspiracies about widespread voter fraud, despite the company’s Dec. 9 announcement that it would take down such content. In the days following the announcement, TTP easily found examples of new videos spreading disinformation on YouTube, often racking up thousands of views.
Report: Facebook’s Failures on Harmful Content Place Users and Nation at Risk
Tech Transparency Project (TTP) Report Clear and Present Danger Documents Facebook’s Continued Negligence on Threats to Elections, Incitement of Violence, Public Health Disinformation.
TTP Investigation: Facebook, Google Still Offering ‘Embed’-Like Consulting to Campaigns
After facing heavy criticism for “embedding” staff with the Trump campaign in 2016, Facebook promised to scale back its on-site help for candidates and focus instead on a website that provides basic training on how to use its tools. But a review of LinkedIn profiles and other research by TTP suggests that Facebook and Google staffers continue to offer strategic advice to political campaigns that goes far beyond technical guidance.
TTP + Common Cause Investigation: Google’s Continued Failure to Stop Exploitative Ads Targeting American Voters
Google publicly stated that it would remove some of ads identified by TTP’s June report, but a review conducted in September found that searching Google for terms like “absentee ballot,” “early voting,” and “vote by mail” in a selection of battleground states generated more than 70 ads for sites that try to plant unwanted software on people’s browsers or direct them to low-quality search sites that serve up questionable results.
TTP Investigation: Facebook Leans on States to Monitor Election Disinformation, but Provides Insufficient Tools
According to emails obtained by TTP through open records requests, Facebook representatives offered various state officials customized dashboards on CrowdTangle, a Facebook-owned social media metrics tool, to track instances of voter interference and report their findings to Facebook.
TTP Report Details Google’s Exclusive Access to Government Airfield Within Minutes of Company Headquarters
The sweetheart deal between a Google-affiliated company, H211, and the government dates back to 2007, when Google promised to pay a lease, and help NASA collect atmospheric data in exchange for landing rights at the field. However, flight data reviewed by TTP shows far more flight activity from private planes used by Google executives than from the single fighter jet used to by Google to satisfy the minimum requirements laid out in the scientific portion of the lease agreement.
TTP Investigation: Apple Inc. Buys Gold from Suppliers Connected to Illicit Activity
Despite Apple’s reputation as a leader on environmental and human rights issues, TTP identified eight current and former gold suppliers that have ties to the Kaloti Group, a Dubai-based company that has been credibly linked to illicit activity in the gold trade.
TTP Investigation: Facebook Scaled Back Voter Registration Kickoff Amid Complaints from Trump Campaign
Today, Campaign for Accountability (CfA), a nonprofit watchdog group that runs the Tech Transparency Project (TTP), released a report revealing that Facebook scaled back an initial voter registration drive over the July 4 weekend, raising questions about how it will conduct the initiative going forward.