Author | Lightnews

Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 28

We’ve had an incredible run here, and it wouldn’t have been possible without your support. Now, it’s up to all of us to support the next generation doing this work. Give them a follow today: designitforus.org

Design It For Us

We’re young people taking on Big Tech.

designitforus.org

Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 28

We know that young people will be the most successful in leading this charge. Having grown up online, they’ve got the know-how to ensure that people’s online wellbeing, safety, and privacy are prioritized over Big Tech’s profits.

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 28

The fight for a better online world is in extremely good hands. As a group developed for and by young people, Design It For Us is gathering supporters of all ages to demand more from Big Tech and design a digital future that works for all of us.

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 28

This is our last thread here at Accountable Tech. But the good news is, the fight continues with our partner, @designitforus.bsky.social – and they’re just getting started.

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 22

You don’t have to be a young person to be part of this movement. Follow them to stay up-to-date on the latest ways to hold Big Tech accountable. designitforus.org

Design It For Us

We’re young people taking on Big Tech.

designitforus.org

Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 22

Design It For Us has big plans in place. They’ve created the first-ever Declaration of Digital Rights to share their vision for a safer online world.

Plus, they’re developing training programs to level up new leaders. And they’re convening young innovators to dream up alternatives to Big Tech.

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 22

Meet @designitforus.bsky.social! Our youth-led partner, fighting for a safer digital world, especially for young people. Having grown up online, they’ve got the lived experience to know just how Big Tech harms young people, and how to fix it.

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 14

We’re so excited to see all that @designitforus.bsky.social will accomplish, but they’ll need your support to make it happen. Give them a follow and let’s ensure a safer digital future for all. designitforus.org

Design it For Us

We are young people taking on Big Tech

designitforus.org

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 14

With support from people like you, we coined “surveillance advertising.” We revealed how Google was tracking and retaining abortion seekers' sensitive location data, exposed the dangers of Instagram’s “Teen Accounts,” and so much more. And this work is far from over.

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 14

We’ve been doing this long enough to know that in order to win against Big Tech, we need young people at the helm, leading the charge.

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 14

They’re an advocacy group working to ensure safer social media and online platforms for kids, teens, and young adults – and they’ve got the lived experience to do it well.

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 14

This was a big decision, and one we didn’t make lightly. We’re doing this to focus our resources on the youth-led coalition we helped support: @designitforus.bsky.social

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 14

We’ve got a big announcement: After five years of working with advocates like you to hold Big Tech accountable, we’ve made the decision to wind down operations.

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Aug 6

A race to the bottom if you ask us www.theverge.com/news/719756/...

Instagram adds a reposts feed and rips off Snap Maps

You can now repost Reels and grid posts.

www.theverge.com

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Jul 31

CW: Suicide

A new study shows that jailbroken AI tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity still give dangerous advice on suicide and self-harm. time.com/7306661/ai-s...

AI Chatbots Can Be Manipulated to Give Suicide Advice: Study

Researchers found that some LLMs’ safety guardrails can be easily bypassed.

time.com

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Jul 31

The Trump administration is pushing an initiative to track people’s health and behavior.

This is not just dystopian. It’s dangerous. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

Trump administration launching health tracking system with big tech’s help

Initiative involving Americans’ personal data on systems run by private firms has ‘enormous concerns’, say experts

www.theguardian.com

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Jul 29

DOGE is using an AI tool to remove and end federal regulations, “with the goal of eliminating half of Washington’s regulatory mandates by the first anniversary of President Donald Trump’s inauguration.” Sources say the tool is already in use. www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

DOGE builds AI tool to cut 50 percent of federal regulations

The U.S. DOGE Service is using a new AI tool to eliminate federal regulations, aiming to cut 50 percent of rules by the first anniversary of President Donald Trump’s inauguration.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Jul 29

In a rejection of EU regulations, Meta will stop distributing political or social issue ads in the region. They claim the regulations are “unworkable,” but the EU’s regulations center on controlling disinformation around elections and politics. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/25/b...

Citing New Rules, Meta Says It Will End Political Ads in E.U.

www.nytimes.com

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Jul 29

A new lawsuit alleges that Meta has been pirating copyright porn videos since 2018, potentially distributing them to minors and using them to train their AI. arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...

Meta pirated and seeded porn for years to train AI, lawsuit says

Lawsuit: Meta may have seeded porn to minors while hiding piracy for AI training.

arstechnica.com

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Jul 28

Scammers are using AI deepfakes to impersonate Trump-era officials and CEOs, tricking diplomats, job interviewers, and executives.
apnews.com/article/arti...

Creating realistic deepfakes is getting easier than ever. Fighting back may take even more AI

The use of deepfakes to impersonate high-level officials in the U.S. presents a growing security challenge.

apnews.com

Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Jul 28

Meta is pulling all political ads in the EU starting this October.

Why? New EU transparency laws require clear disclosure around political ad spend, targeting, and funders. Instead of complying, Meta is just... opting out. www.forbes.com/sites/emmawo...

Meta To Pull All Political Ads In The EU

Meta has decided to stop serving political, electoral, and social advertising on its platforms in the EU, rather than be subject to upcoming regulation.

www.forbes.com

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Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Jul 25

Media organizations are losing website traffic at an alarming speed thanks to Google’s AI summaries in search. Those outlets rely on site visits for advertising dollars that support their work. Without visits, we could witness “the death of quality information online.”

AI summaries cause ‘devastating’ drop in audiences, online news media told

Exclusive: Study claims sites previously ranked first can lose 79% of traffic if results appear below Google Overview

www.theguardian.com

Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Jul 25

The Trump administration is letting Big Tech have free rein on AI development, free from what Trump is calling “foolish rules,” also known as regulations, in order to win the AI race. www.cnn.com/2025/07/23/t...

Trump reveals plan to win in AI: Remove ‘red tape’ for Silicon Valley | CNN Business

The Trump administration on Wednesday unveiled its AI action plan, a package of initiatives and policy recommendations meant to cement the United States as a global leader in a technology that’s expec...

www.cnn.com

Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Jul 25

SpOoKY: “this experimental technology reads the electrical signals that pulse through your muscles when you move your fingers. These signals, generated by commands sent from your brain, can reveal what you are about to do even before you do it.” www.nytimes.com/2025/07/23/s...

Meta Unveils Wristband for Controlling Computers With Hand Gestures

www.nytimes.com

Accountable Tech @accountabletech.bsky.social · Jul 25

Meta is the biggest Big Tech lobbying spender, shelling out almost $6M in the past quarter. They’re trying to influence policy around: misinformation, “AI, kids' online safety, and more.” www.axios.com/pro/tech-pol...

Meta tops Big Tech lobbying spending as more industries shell out over AI

Meta once again outspent its Big Tech counterparts in lobbying, but dropped far less cash than last quarter.

www.axios.com