Articles by David McHugh

Former Volkswagen Boss Goes on Trial Over Diesel Cars Rigged to Cheat Emissions Tests

Former Volkswagen Group CEO Martin Winterkorn went on trial last week on charges of fraud and market manipulation in connection with the corporate scandal over Volkswagen’s use of rigged software that let millions of cars cheat on emissions tests and …

U.S. Awards $1B for Road Safety Projects as Traffic Deaths Remain High

The U.S. Transportation Department said on Thursday it is awarding $1 billion for a series of projects aimed at reducing traffic crashes, as road deaths remain sharply higher than pre-pandemic levels. The department separately on Thursday estimated that 18,720 people …

Billionaire Siebel Sued Enel Over Trade Secret Theft Allegations

Silicon Valley billionaire Thomas Siebel has accused the Italian energy company Enel SpA of copying the IP of the software firm he runs, C3.ai. C3, based in Redwood City, California and known for its data management and analysis software, accused …

Dish Network in Talks With Investors to Settle Lawsuit

Dish Network Corp., the ailing satellite-TV provider with more than $20 billion in debt, is in talks with a group of creditors to resolve a lawsuit tied to a controversial transfer of assets. A meeting between the company and investors …

Snapchat Sued By New Mexico Over Failure to Protect Children From Sexual Exploitation

New Mexico said on Thursday it filed a lawsuit against Snapchat owner Snap Inc. alleging that the messaging app’s policies and design features facilitate the sharing of child sexual exploitation material. The lawsuit brought by New Mexico Attorney General Raul …

Hershey Attacks Lawsuits Targeting Product Packaging, Seeks to End Reese’s Case

Hershey urged a U.S. judge to dismiss a lawsuit claiming it misled consumers about several Reese’s peanut butter candies, using its request to level a broadside against what it considers baseless class action litigation over product packaging. In a Wednesday …

Resilience Names Gittler Global Head of Claims

Resilience named Jeremy Gittler global head of claims. Gittler will lead the company’s global claims team. Before Resilience, he held underwriting and claims leadership positions at AXA XL, where he built its cyber claims team. Earlier in his career, he …

Clearview AI Fined $33.7M by Dutch Data Protection Watchdog Over ‘Illegal Database’ of Faces

The Dutch data protection watchdog issued facial recognition startup Clearview AI with a fine of 30.5 million euros ($33.7 million) over its creation of what the agency called an “illegal database” of billion of photos of faces. The Netherlands’ Data …

Insurance Industry Contributing to Improved Cyber Hygiene in the U.S., Survey Shows

The property/casualty insurance industry is contributing to improved cyber hygiene in the U.S., a survey of insurers, agents, and brokers conducted by the American Property Casualty Insurance Association and the Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers shows. The survey responses …

Risks Too Big for Insurers Feed a $200 Billion Market Boom

As the market for in-house insurance surpasses a record $200 billion, the underlying reasons for that boom show how a hotter, less stable planet is redrawing the risk map for corporations. Captive insurance, where companies create their own coverage vehicles, …