It is forbidden to work WhatsApp without a sponsor.. What is the new social platforms law in Turkey?
Analysts say it is unlikely that social media companies will fully comply with the new Turkish law requiring them to remove "disinformation" content and share user data with the authorities.
raising the specter of possible unrest on the platform before elections next year, according to a report published by Reuters.
The new law requires Facebook, Twitter, Google and others to fully comply with the law by next April or face a possible advertising ban and ultimately reduce their ability to reach Turkish users, posing a dilemma for companies ahead of elections scheduled for June.
Analysts and consultants said that companies have global privacy standards and are unlikely to violate them in Turkey, as this could set dangerous precedents for other countries looking to exert control over social platforms.
"Some of these companies are unlikely to comply with the law,"Sinan Ulgen, co-founder of Istanbul Economics, which advises on regulatory and legal matters, told Reuters.
This is because of the onerous requirements and what this may signal for data privacy and confidentiality standards, as well as for practices that can be used to direct additional court offenses, the speaker concluded.
Under the law, which came into force this week, companies must share user information with the authorities if they publish content that constitutes crimes, including disinformation.
Social media companies have to hire Turkish representatives. Companies will face reducing their use of Turkey's bandwidth by up to 90% immediately after a court order is issued if the representative fails to provide information to the authority, which results in fewer people being able to access their services.
The law's detractors believe that it might increase the Turkish government's control over social media.
The measure was backed by the AKP and its nationalist supporters. It has been nicknamed the "censorship bill" by the opposition, which claims it could have an impact on the presidential and legislative elections in June.
The law was criticized mainly for imposing prison sentences on social media users and journalists who spread "disinformation", but it is also based on legislation imposed on social media companies in 2020, with stricter measures.
For example, companies will be held "directly responsible" for "illegal" content if they do not remove it within 4 hours after the request of the authorities.
Block WhatsApp
Yaman Akdeniz, an electronic rights expert and professor at Istanbul Bilgi University, said that so far social media companies have been able to comply with the 2020 law, by setting up small business entities in Turkey that can easily withdraw if they are pressured.
He added that those laws were a "soft transition" but the government has now made it more serious with the new bill.
Companies may be fined up to 3% of their global revenue if they do not comply with the law, in addition to blocking advertising.
Akdeniz said the authorities probably will not impose sanctions such as an immediate ban on the work of companies, but start with smaller steps such as fines. However, he said that the prospect of tougher action is a constant threat to companies.
Twitter declined to comment on the law to Reuters. Facebook-owned Meta Platforms, Google-owned Alphabet and TikTok did not respond to requests for comment.
Cezin Yessel, meta's public policy director for Turkey and Azerbaijan, told a parliamentary committee in June that there were doubts about how the laws would be implemented.
- Belen Kozi Karaman, director of government relations and public policy at Google in Turkey, told the committee that it had made "maximum efforts" to comply with the 2020 law.
- Under the new law, network service providers, such as the meta-owned messaging application "WhatsApp", which is ubiquitous in Turkey, are also required to create a local company.
- The law places them under the authority of the information and Communication Technology (ICTA), which can ban them if they work without permission.
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And in other news
Apple Watch saves teenage girl from rare cancer
The "Apple Watch" is credited with helping many people to detect heart disease or even save their lives thanks to having the features of detecting falls and car accidents.
But this time, the watch managed to save a 12-year-old girl, discover her cancer and cure it before it's too late with the help of the heart rate notifications feature.
The website "Detroit hour"reported that Imani miles-a 12 - year-old girl-and her mother Jessica kitchen; found alerts from the Apple Watch about an abnormally high heart rate.
Kitchen made the decision to take her daughter to the hospital following several alerts. And there, Imani had to undergo an operation to cure appendicitis, but the story did not stop there.
Doctors noticed a tumor in the appendix and, according to them, "it rarely appears in children". After further examination, the doctors found out that the cancer had already spread to other parts of Imani's body.
After that, Imani had to undergo surgery again to remove the cancer, and, fortunately, everything went well.
Kitchen told the website that she might have waited longer to take Imani to the hospital if it hadn't been for the Apple Watch alerts. And such a long wait can be fatal for the girl.
If she hadn't had that watch, it would have been much worse, "Kitchen said.
- JOA Bocas, who works as an "influencer" in the field of Digital Health, explains how wearables have played a "crucial role in supporting people to build better health behaviors".
- Wearable devices on their own will not be a miracle, but with concerted human efforts they can improve well-being.
- Earlier this month, a 34-year-old woman reported that she found out she was pregnant after noticing a significant increase in her resting heart rate after being measured by an Apple Watch.
Last August, a 70-year-old man said that his Apple Watch automatically called the emergency services after he fainted and hit his head hard on the floor.
Apple uses these and similar reports to promote its smartwatch as a product that can save people's lives. The company released a video last month of several people telling their stories about the Apple Watch changed their lives.