Sen Warner: Beware of regulating US tech companies in a way that gives Chinese tech companies an advantage

If politicians in the US make the mistake of over-regulating big tech, Chinese competitors could easily take over the market, according to Sen Mark Warner (D-VA). When asked if tech giants should be broken up under antitrust laws, Sen Warner said regulators need to be careful not to be too “heavy-handed” because breaking up those companies could create an opening for Chinese competitors. 

Sen Warner is also not terribly impressed with Facebook’s new commitment to labeling political ads. The Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman said Facebook was sort of missing the point with its new transparency dashboard that requires political advertisers on Facebook to confirm their “identity and location” to root out foreign governments. “I think they were slow to the game,” Sen Warner said. "Last week, when they came out with some of their new transparency tools — pretty darn good. But transparency around paid political advertising? I just don’t think it’s going to be to enough. That is not really where the rubber hits the road.” What really matters, Sen Warner insisted, is fake accounts that are based overseas — which are growing more sophisticated over time. Warner said he’s concerned about deepfake technology where someone can use a false face, video where and voice to speak to a consumer.