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Reddit debunks a conspiracy, LGBT emoji arrive, and Trump gets censured over Khan feud: ICYMI

Some important news you might have missed on Monday, Aug. 1.

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Dell Cameron

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Here’s some news you may have missed today: 

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New York became the first state to ban convicted sex offenders from playing or even downloading the Pokémon Go app. The directive, handed down by Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office, followed research by two state senators, whose staff discovered Pokémon, PokéStops, and Pokémon gyms near the homes of registered sex offenders 73 percent of the time.

Donald Trump’s feud with the parents of a fallen soldier has reached its tipping point. The Republican candidate for president isn’t winning any fans attacking the parents of U.S. Army Capt. Humayun Khan, who died in a 2004 suicide attack while serving in Iraq. Trump’s remarks—particularly those targeting Khan’s mother—drew carefully worded censure from leaders in his own party. Trump was also criticized by Veterans of Foreign Wars.

Protesters against police brutality occupied a park in New York City on Monday. The group has demanded that the city fire NYPD Police Commissioner Bill Bratton, a proponent of the controversial “broken windows” law enforcement strategy. The protesters further demanded defunding of NYPD and reparations for victims of police brutality.

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When it comes to privacy, Facebook wants you to trust yourself. Despite frequent criticism of its practices, the company argues its platform is actually “privacy enhancing.” Erin Egan, Facebook’s privacy chief, sat down with the Dot to explain why. 

And finally, the LGBT pride flag emoji has arrived


Redditors helped debunk a conspiracy theory about a “white noise machine” supposedly used to drown out Bernie Sanders supporters at the Democratic National Convention. Spoiler alert: It was actually a Wi-Fi antenna.—via Vocativ

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Black Lives Matter is taking steps to shed its image as a leaderless, structureless movement. The group released a list of “more than 40 policy recommendations, including demilitarizing law enforcement, unionizing unregulated industries, and decriminalizing drugs.”—via Fusion

Meet Moxie Marlinspike, the anarchic founder of Open Whisper Systems, the software company behind Edward Snowden’s favorite encryption app, Signal.—via Wired

Yahoo is aware that a notorious cybercriminal is selling access to 200 million alleged Yahoo user credentials but has yet to confirm or deny the legitimacy of the data.—via Motherboard

As tools for network intrusion become more popular among U.S. law enforcement agencies, new rules are needed to define the scope of the government’s capabilities, particularly regarding the use of malware. The Electronic Frontier Foundation has a few suggestions worth considering.—via EFF

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A veteran FBI agent who once held top secret clearance faces up to 10 years in prison after pleaded guilty in court to acting as an agent of China.—via Fox News

 
The Daily Dot