Summary
-Charlie Kirk, the right-wing internet personality and Turning Point USA founder, was killed in a shooting at Utah Valley University, and the FBI has named Tyler Robinson as the prime suspect; the shooting took place amid increasing political violence and polarisation in the US. -Data removal services and threat monitoring tools are now being offered to public servants who are increasingly in need of defending themselves and their data. -The number of US investors putting money into invasive commercial spyware rose significantly in 2024, and other countries are becoming increasingly involved in the spyware industry. -Massive data leaks have revealed that the Chinese company Geedge Networks sells its censorship and surveillance products to at least four countries in Asia and Africa. -Poland has shot down several Russian drones that entered its airspace, causing disruption to air travel and increasing tensions; Cindy Cohn, the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s executive director, reflected on encryption and AI and emphasised that she will continue to fight for digital rights. -Bloomberg has obtained more than 18,000 emails from Jeffrey Epstein’s personal Yahoo account, offering a raw window into the world of Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell and revealing Maxwell’s deep complicity in Epstein’s crimes.