Welcome to the CAVEAT Weekly Newsletter, where we break down some of the major developments and happenings occurring worldwide when discussing cybersecurity, privacy, digital surveillance, and technology policy.
At 1,500 words, this briefing is about a 7-minute read.
At a Glance.
- Google antitrust case holds closing arguments.
- Apple submits a legal challenge to the EU.
Google’s search engine antitrust case closes.
The news.
On Friday, closing arguments concluded in the United States (US) government’s landmark antitrust case against Google. While District Judge Amit Mehta is not expected to release his opinion on the matter until August, the matter could have far-reaching consequences for how Google operates. The remedies phase of this trial began on April 21st after Judge Mehta found Google guilty of acting as a monopoly in 2024 for violating Section 2 of the Sherman Act. At the time, Judge Mehta stated:
“Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly.”
During Friday’s hearing, Judge Mehta expressed openness to moderate remedies, including the possibility of limiting data sharing and ending monopolistic payments if other measures did not increase competition. Outside of these solutions, Judge Mehta also commented on how artificial intelligence (AI) could resolve the monopoly as these technologies could replace engines like Chrome.
Judge Mehta commented:
“If anything it’s going to be one of these AI companies that can do more than just search. And why? Because maybe people don’t want 10 blue links anymore.”
Regardless of Mehta’s opinion, Google is expected to file a request for a stay of the remedies while it appeals to the 2024 ruling that initially found the company guilty.
The knowledge.
Judge Mehta's eventual ruling has the potential to impact both the company and the search engine marketplace. Under the Trump administration, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has continued to advocate for aggressive remediation solutions. These solutions have included forcing Google to divest from its Chrome browser as well as making the company license its core search technology.
Google has pushed back arguing that such measures would harm consumers, harm the economy, and stifle innovation. Instead, Google has proposed more moderate remedies, like ending its exclusive search engine agreements with device makers and establishing an oversight committee. However, this is not the only antitrust battle Google is facing.
In a separate case, US District Judge Leonie Brinkema found Google guilty of monopolistic behavior in the online advertising markets. The case found that Google had abused its dominance in ad publisher and ad exchange markets with Judge Brinkema ruling that Google violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act by “willfully acquiring and maintaining monopoly power.”
The remedies phase of that case is scheduled for September, with the DOJ again signaling for tougher remediation solutions. Assistant Attorney General Abigail Slater responded to Judge Brinkema’s ruling stating:
“Google’s unlawful dominance allows them to censor and even de-platform American voices. And at the same time, Google destroyed and hid information that exposed its illegal conduct. Today’s opinion confirms Google’s controlling hand over online advertising and, increasingly, the internet itself. I am extraordinarily proud of the dedicated public servant whose tireless efforts led to today’s decision.”
The impact.
No remedies have been imposed, but both cases carry significant implications. Given that Google’s search engine remains the default engine used across the internet for most Americans, forced divestitures or other strong regulatory actions could significantly disrupt how consumers receive information and how businesses engage with online consumers.
Additionally, any remedies from the advertising services case could reverberate throughout the digital economy, affecting platforms, publishers, advertisers, and consumers alike.
As these developments continue, both businesses and consumers alike should closely monitor these cases and begin preparing for a dramatically impacted digital landscape.
Apple challenges EU.
The news.
On Monday, Apple filed a legal challenge against a European Union (EU) order arguing that the demands are unreasonable and hamper innovation. When issuing their legal challenge, Apple released the following statement:
“These requirements will also hand data-hungry companies sensitive information, which poses massive privacy and security risks to our EU users. These deeply flawed rules that only target Apple - and no other company - will severely limit our ability to deliver innovative products and features to Europe, leading to an inferior user experience for our European customers.”
This order stems from the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) and was originally issued in March 2025. The order mandates that Apple open its closed ecosystems to competitors, such as Google and Meta. If Apple does not comply with the order, the company could face an investigation and a potential fine of as much as ten percent of its global annual sales.
When originally filing this order, EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera stated “with this decision, we are simply implementing the law, and providing regulatory certainty both to Apple and to developers.”
The knowledge.
Coming into enforcement in November 2022, the EU’s DMA was designed to establish a more fair and open competition within the digital marketplace. The act designates various large online platforms as “gatekeepers,” and imposes rules intended to curb anti-competitive behavior. The six current gatekeepers are Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, ByteDance, Meta, and Microsoft.
Key gatekeeper obligations under the DMA include:
- Allowing third parties to inter-operate with gatekeeper’s services.
- Allowing business users to access the data they create on a gatekeeper’s platform.
- Preventing gatekeepers from treating their own services and products more favorably on their platform.
- Stopping users from uninstalling pre-loaded applications or software.
- Stopping gatekeepers from tracking user actions outside of their platform for targeted advertising purposes.
By designating various platforms as gatekeepers and applying greater regulatory scrutiny, the EU hopes to foster a more diverse and competitive digital ecosystem, one that benefits consumers, startups, and existing businesses alike. Apple’s legal challenges target one of the DMA’s core principles, whose outcome could dramatically reshape how the law is interpreted and enforced.
The impact.
Although Apple’s legal challenge is in its early stages, it could significantly reshape how the DMA is applied. A ruling in Apple’s favor could significantly weaken the EU’s regulatory leverage and a loss could force Apple to make sweeping changes to its EU operations.
EU businesses and users who rely on Apple’s ecosystem should monitor this legal challenge. Depending on how the matter progresses, they may see changes in how services are delivered, how apps are accessed, and how user data is handled within the EU.
Highlighting key conversations.
In this week’s Caveat Podcast, our team covered two key developments. The first story involves Texas passing a new law mandating age verification systems for both Google and Apple application stores. This law echoes a Utah state law passed in March which required companies to secure parental permission before minors can download an app or buy something through their store. The second story focuses on President Trump’s budget proposal, which if passed, would significantly impact CISA by removing over 1,000 positions and cutting nearly $500 million in the agency’s budget.
Like what you read, and curious about the conversation? Head over to the Caveat Podcast for the full scoop and additional compelling insights. Our Caveat Podcast is a weekly show where we discuss topics related to surveillance, digital privacy, cybersecurity law, and policy. Got a question you'd like us to answer on our show? You can send your audio file to caveat@thecyberwire.com. Hope to hear from you.
Other noteworthy stories.
FDA launches AI tool for scientific reviews.
What: The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced its new generative AI tool, Elsa.
Why: On Monday, the FDA announced Elsa and the agency's goals to utilize it to improve efficiency across its operations, including its use in scientific reviews. The agency has already begun using Elsa to expedite clinical protocol reviews, shorten the time required for scientific evaluations, and identify high-priority inspection targets.
When announcing Elsa, FDA Commissioner Marty Makary stated that “today’s rollout of Elsa is ahead of schedule and under budget, thanks to the collaboration of our in-house experts across the centers.”
The FDA also stated that:
“Elsa offers a secure platform for FDA employees to access internal documents while ensuring all information remains within the agency. The models do not train on data submitted by regulated industry, safeguarding the sensitive research and data handled by FDA staff.”
Google spending $500 million revamping compliance.
What: In a settlement, Google agreed to spend $500 million over ten years to overhaul its compliance systems.
Why: On Tuesday, Google settled a shareholder lawsuit, which emerged after shareholders accused the company of antitrust violations. These changes will include creating a new board committee tasked with overseeing risk and compliance and creating a new senior vice president-level committee to address regulatory and compliance issues. Lastly, the company will also create a new compliance committee that will be made up of Google product team managers and internal compliance experts.
This lawsuit emerged when shareholders accused Google executives and directors of breaching their fiduciary duties after exposing the company to antitrust liability.
The settlement still needs to be approved by US District Judge Rita Lin.