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  • In recent weeks, Facebook Inc. investigated a claim from an outside researcher about suspicious content in support of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ Democratic presidential campaign, according to people familiar with the matter, although a company spokesman said Facebook was unable to “substantiate the researcher’s claims” and that the intelligence community hasn’t reached out to the company about it. Members of Facebook’s leadership team were recently briefed on the matter, some of the people said, and it’s unclear if the probe is related to a reported brief by U.S. officials to the Sanders campaign regarding Russian influence. (The Wall Street Journal)
  • The Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal from Apple Inc. regarding a federal court’s 2016 ruling that the company infringed on four patents belonging to VirnetX Inc. in its FaceTime video calling and VPN on Demand tools. The U.S. Court of Appeals upheld the verdict last year, which includes nearly $440 million in damages awarded to VirnetX. (Reuters)
  • The Pentagon introduced new ethical principles regarding the department’s use of artificial intelligence in combat, which recommend that users “exercise appropriate levels of judgment and race” when deciding whether to rely on the technology. The new principles come after the Defense Innovation Board, led by former Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt, made recommendations last year. (The Associated Press)

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