france24.com In what it called an effort to "combat criminals," Russia said Wednesday it would restrict calls on the popular messaging apps WhatsApp and Telegram, platforms a watchdog says are used for fraud, extortion, and that involve Russian citizens in "terrorist activities."
Russia announced curbs on calls on the WhatsApp and Telegram messenger apps on Wednesday, saying that this was necessary to fight criminality, state media reported.
"In order to combat criminals, measures are being taken to partially restrict calls on these foreign messaging apps (WhatsApp and Telegram)," communications watchdog Roskomnadzor said, as quoted by the RIA and TASS news agencies.
The messenger apps have become "the main voice services used for fraud and extortion, and for involving Russian citizens in subversive and terrorist activities," the watchdog added.
Russian security services have frequently claimed that Ukraine was using Telegram to recruit people or commit acts of sabotage in Russia.
Moscow wants the messengers to provide access to data upon request from law enforcement, not only for fraud probes but also for investigating activities that Russia describes as terrorist ones.
"Access to calls in foreign messengers will be restored after they start complying with Russian legislation," Russia's digital ministry said.
In a statement sent to AFP, Telegram said it "actively combats misuse of its platform, including calls for sabotage or violence, as well as fraud" and removes "millions of pieces of harmful content every day".
Since launching its offensive in Ukraine, Russia has drastically restricted press freedom and freedom of speech online.
"WhatsApp is private, end-to-end encrypted, and defies government attempts to violate people's right to secure communication, which is why Russia is trying to block it from over 100 million Russian people," a spokesperson for Meta-owned WhatsApp told AFP.
More than 100 million people in Russia use WhatsApp for messages and calls, and the platform is concerned that this is an effort to push them onto platforms more vulnerable to government surveillance, according to the spokesperson.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
france24.com - Chinese authorities summoned Nvidia representatives on Thursday to discuss "serious security issues" over some of its artificial intelligence chips, as the US tech giant finds itself entangled in trade tensions between Beijing and Washington.
Nvidia is a world-leading producer of AI semiconductors, but the United States effectively restricts which chips it can export to China on national security grounds.
A key issue has been Chinese access to the "H20", a less powerful version of Nvidia's AI processing units that the company developed specifically for export to China.
The California-based firm said this month it would resume H20 sales to China after Washington pledged to remove licensing curbs that had halted exports.
But the firm still faces obstacles -- US lawmakers have proposed plans to require Nvidia and other manufacturers of advanced AI chips to include built-in location tracking capabilities.
And Beijing's top internet regulator said Thursday it had summoned Nvidia representatives to discuss recently discovered "serious security issues" involving the H20.
The Cyberspace Administration of China said it had asked Nvidia to "explain the security risks of vulnerabilities and backdoors in its H20 chips sold to China and submit relevant supporting materials".
The statement posted on social media noted that, according to US experts, location tracking and remote shutdown technologies for Nvidia chips "are already matured".
The announcement marked the latest complication for Nvidia in selling its advanced products in the key Chinese market, where it is in increasingly fierce competition with homegrown technology firms.
Nvidia committed
CEO Jensen Huang said during a closely watched visit to Beijing this month that his firm remained committed to serving local customers.
Huang said he had been assured during talks with top Chinese officials during the trip that the country was "open and stable".
"They want to know that Nvidia continues to invest here, that we are still doing our best to serve the market here," he said.
Nvidia this month became the first company to hit $4 trillion in market value -- a new milestone in Wall Street's bet that AI will transform the global economy.
Jost Wubbeke of the Sinolytics consultancy told AFP the move by China to summon Nvidia was "not surprising in the sense that targeting individual US companies has become a common tool in the context of US-China tensions".
"What is surprising, however, is the timing," he noted, after the two countries agreed to further talks to extend their trade truce.
"China's action may signal a shift toward a more assertive stance," Wubbeke said.
Beijing is also aiming to reduce reliance on foreign tech by promoting Huawei's domestically developed 910C chip as an alternative to the H20, he added.
"From that perspective, the US decision to allow renewed exports of the H20 to China could be seen as counterproductive, as it might tempt Chinese hyperscalers to revert to the H20, potentially undermining momentum behind the 910C and other domestic alternatives."
New hurdles to Nvidia's operation in China come as the country's economy wavers, beset by a years-long property sector crisis and heightened trade headwinds under US President Donald Trump.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for the country to enhance self-reliance in certain areas deemed vital for national security -- including AI and semiconductors -- as tensions with Washington mount.
The country's firms have made great strides in recent years, with Huang praising their "super-fast" innovation during his visit to Beijing this month.
