Technology
Congressman calls for Zuckerberg to answer on China dealings
Congressman Ro Khanna, D-Calif., is calling for Mark Zuckerberg to appear before the congressional oversight committee to address accusations about his efforts to create censorship tools for China.
The demand comes in the wake of explosive allegations made in a new memoir by a former Meta employee. Here’s what Khanna told me this morning:
“I think Mr. Zuckerberg needs to appear in front of my congressional oversight committee to answer questions about these allegations with China.”
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Mark Zuckerberg and California Congressman Ro Khanna (Meta; House.gov)
Shocking revelations from inside Meta
Sarah Wynn-Williams, a former director of global public policy at Facebook (now Meta), has penned a tell-all book titled “Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism.” The memoir paints a damning picture of Meta’s leadership, particularly focusing on Zuckerberg’s alleged attempts to gain access to the Chinese market.
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“This is all pushed by an employee terminated eight years ago for poor performance. We do not operate our services in China today,” a Meta spokesperson said. “It is no secret we were once interested in doing so as part of Facebook’s effort to connect the world. This was widely reported beginning a decade ago. We ultimately opted not to go through with the ideas we’d explored, which Mark Zuckerberg announced in 2019.”
Sarah Wynn-Williams’ new book (MacMillan)
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Zuckerberg’s China strategy unveiled
Zuckerberg’s China strategy, as revealed by Sarah Wynn-Williams, was far more extensive and controversial than previously known. According to her account, the Meta CEO went to extraordinary lengths to persuade the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to grant Meta permission to operate within China’s borders. Zuckerberg’s efforts reportedly included providing detailed briefings to CCP officials on cutting-edge technologies, with a particular focus on artificial intelligence.
Furthermore, Meta allegedly collaborated directly with the CCP to develop custom-made censorship tools tailored to the party’s specifications. Perhaps most alarmingly, Wynn-Williams claims that Zuckerberg attempted to conceal these cooperative efforts with the CCP from the U.S. Congress, raising serious questions about transparency and potential legal implications.
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Meta’s response and past statements
Meta has refuted the claims, stating that they haven’t seen the book and that the former employee was terminated in 2017. The company spokesperson referenced Zuckerberg’s 2019 speech at Georgetown University, where he claimed that despite his efforts, they could never reach an agreement with China on the terms of operation. We reached out to Meta for a response to our article but did not hear back before our deadline. Here is some of what he said back then:
“It’s one of the reasons we don’t operate Facebook, Instagram or our other services in China,” Zuckerberg said. “I wanted our services in China because I believe in connecting the whole world and I thought we might help create a more open society. I worked hard to make this happen. But we could never come to agreement on what it would take for us to operate there, and they never let us in. And now we have more freedom to speak out and stand up for the values we believe in and fight for free expression around the world.”
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Broader implications for tech and politics
The allegations raise serious questions about the relationship between big tech companies and authoritarian regimes. They also highlight the ongoing challenges faced by social media platforms in balancing global expansion with ethical considerations and national security concerns.
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Kurt’s key takeaways
The call for Zuckerberg to testify before Congress underscores the gravity of these allegations. If true, they could have far-reaching consequences for Meta, its leadership and the tech industry as a whole. As the story unfolds, it will be crucial to watch how lawmakers, regulators and the public respond to these revelations about one of the world’s most influential companies.
Is it ever OK for tech companies to compromise on ethics and transparency in pursuit of global growth, especially when dealing with authoritarian governments? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact
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Technology
TikTok ban: all the news on the app’s shutdown and return in the US
After briefly going dark in the US to comply with the divest-or-ban law targeting ByteDance that went into effect on January 19th, TikTok quickly came back online. It eventually reappeared in the App Store and Google Play as negotiations between the US and China continued, and Donald Trump continued to sign extensions directing officials not to apply the law’s penalties.
Finally, in mid-December, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew told employees that the agreements to create TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, which includes Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX as part owners, have been signed, and the deal is expected to close on January 22nd, 2026. His letter said that for users in the US, the new joint venture will oversee data protection, the security of a newly-retrained algorithm, content moderation, and the deployment of the US app and platform.
Read on for all the latest news on the TikTok ban law in the US.
Technology
Secret phrases to get you past AI bot customer service
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You’re gonna love me for this.
Say you’re calling customer service because you need help. Maybe your bill is wrong, your service is down or you want a refund. Instead of a person, a cheerful AI voice answers and drops you into an endless loop of menus and misunderstood prompts. Now what?
That’s not an accident. Many companies use what insiders call “frustration AI.” The system is specifically designed to exhaust you until you hang up and walk away.
Not today. (Get more tips like this at GetKim.com)
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Here are a few ways to bypass “frustration” AI bots. (Sebastian Kahnert/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Use the magic words
You want a human. For starters, don’t explain your issue. That’s the trap. You need words the AI has been programmed to treat differently.
Nuclear phrases: When the AI bot asks why you’re calling, say, “I need to cancel my service” or “I am returning a call.” The word cancel sets off alarms and often sends you straight to the customer retention team. Saying you’re returning a call signals an existing issue the bot cannot track. I used that last weekend when my internet went down, and, bam, I had a human.
Power words: When the system starts listing options, clearly say one word: “Supervisor.” If that doesn’t work, say, “I need to file a formal complaint.” Most systems are not programmed to deal with complaints or supervisors. They escalate fast.
Technical bypass: Asked to enter your account number? Press the pound key (#) instead of numbers. Many older systems treat unexpected input as an error and default to a human.
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“Supervisor” is one magic word that can get you a human on the other end of the line. (Neil Godwin/Future via Getty Images)
Go above the bots
If direct commands fail with AI, be a confused human.
The Frustration Act: When the AI bot asks a question, pause. Wait 10 seconds before answering. These systems are built for fast, clean responses. Long pauses often break the flow and send your call to a human.
The Unintelligible Bypass: Stuck in a loop? Act like your phone connection is terrible. Say garbled words or nonsense. After the system says, “I’m having trouble understanding you” three times, many bots automatically transfer you to a live agent.
The Language Barrier Trick: If the company offers multiple languages, choose one that’s not your primary language or does not match your accent. The AI often gives up quickly and routes you to a human trained to handle language issues.
Use these tricks when you need help. You are calling for service, not an AI bot.
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Long pauses and garbled language can also get you referred to a human. (iStock)
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Technology
The latest iPad Air is $400 for the first time and arrives by Christmas
If you have $400 and want an iPad, your options are usually kind of limited to either just the base iPad, or better yet, the latest iPad Mini — if it happens to be on sale when you’re shopping (it is now, but that’s not always the case). But right now, you should consider getting the 128GB version of Apple’s 11-inch iPad Air with the capable M3 processor. At Target, multiple colors of this model are $399.99, beating the previous low of $449.99 we’ve seen during large-scale deal events. Currently, no other retailer is matching this price. This sale ends Saturday night.
$400 is a sweet price for this model, as it debuted in early 2025 for $600. In terms of how it stacks up to other iPad models, Verge editor-at-large David Pierce said in his impressions that the M3 Air is “exactly what you think it is. Which is fine.” I know, that sounds like a back-handed compliment, but it’s been a while since iPads peaked in terms of utility, design, and fast performance. This one carries the torch in Apple’s tablet dominance, and its M3 processor means it’ll be a fantastic tablet for longer than any other iPad at the $400 price point. Read our in-depth impressions.
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