CNN: Facebook announces first takedown of influence campaign with ties to Saudi government. “Facebook said Thursday it had found evidence of something cyber security and national security experts have long suspected: people tied to the government of Saudi Arabia have been running covert campaigns on Facebook and Instagram in a bid to prop up support for the kingdom and attack its enemies.”
Saudi Arabia
Arab News: Ministry of Culture launches first national competition to document Saudi industrial heritage
Arab News: Ministry of Culture launches first national competition to document Saudi industrial heritage. “The Ministry of Culture launched the first day of the national competition to document the Kingdom’s industrial heritage on Sunday July 14. The competition aims to establish the first national database for all industrial sites that fall under this category, with the participation of Saudis and residents from all social segments.”
Slate: Saudis Fed Up With Twitter “Censorship” Jump Ship to a Pro-Trump Social Media Site
Slate: Saudis Fed Up With Twitter “Censorship” Jump Ship to a Pro-Trump Social Media Site. “Disdain for Twitter’s policies has spread to the Arabian Peninsula, where nearly 200,000 new users—largely from Saudi Arabia—flocked to a pro-Trump social media network called Parler. The users who left Twitter complained the site was suppressing their speech. The new Saudi users actually used Twitter to promote their migration to the new platform, posting hashtags like #Twexit and sharing cartoons and memes of the iconic blue Twitter bird in distress.”
Business Insider: Twitter mysteriously suspended several accounts linked to women who say they are refugees fleeing abuse in Saudi Arabia
Business Insider: Twitter mysteriously suspended several accounts linked to women who say they are refugees fleeing abuse in Saudi Arabia. “Twitter has suspended accounts claiming to belong to two Saudi Arabian sisters who fled the country to seek asylum, as well as the account of an activist who was posting on their behalf.”
Zawya: Google Assistant launches in Arabic in Saudi Arabia
Zawya: Google Assistant launches in Arabic in Saudi Arabia. “Google has announced recently that the Google Assistant, a virtual assistant available on mobile devices designed to help people get more things done with their phone, has launched in Saudi Arabia on both Android and iOS devices and can understand the Saudi dialect and answering in standard Arabic.”
Ars Technica: Twitter shuts down 5,000 pro-Trump bots retweeting anti-Mueller report invective
Ars Technica: Twitter shuts down 5,000 pro-Trump bots retweeting anti-Mueller report invective. “Twitter has suspended over 5,000 accounts tied to a network amplifying a message denouncing the report by Special Counsel Robert Mueller as a ‘RussiaGate hoax.’ According to a researcher, the accounts—most of which had only posted three or four times in the past—were connected to other accounts previously used to post pro-Saudi messages.”
The Quint: Google Won’t Pull App That Lets Men Track and Control Women
The Quint: Google Won’t Pull App That Lets Men Track and Control Women. “Google has declined to remove controversial Saudi Arabia app Absher from its Play Store, Business Insider reported. The all-purpose government app also offers features that lets men track and control the movement of women. Google declined the removal of the app saying that it does not violate any of its agreements and hence, continues to stay on Google Play Store.”
