WhatsApp to delay new privacy policy by three months following widespread confusion over whether the policy would mandate data sharing with Facebook
The new update will now go out on May 15th — WhatsApp on Friday announced a three-month delay of a new privacy policy originally slated … Source: WhatsApp Blog .
Sources: Apple to launch redesigned iMacs this year with a Pro Display XDR-like design, and is working on two new Mac Pros, one of which may use Intel CPUs
Apple Inc. is planning the first redesign of its iMac all-in-one desktop computer since 2012, part of a shift away from Intel Corp. processors …
Kuo: 14" and 16" MacBook Pros coming in Q3 2021 with Apple Silicon, MagSafe charging, no Touch Bar, new design with squared-off sides and more built-in IO ports
Benjamin Mayo / 9to5Mac :
Sources: Apple has begun preliminary work on an iPhone model with a foldable screen, while testing an in-screen fingerprint reader for 2021
Apple Inc. has begun early work on an iPhone with a foldable screen, a potential rival to similar devices from Samsung Electronics Co. and others …
A deep dive into the WhatsApp privacy policy change that prompted an exodus of users from the app and why Facebook struggled to communicate what was in it
Even if you aren't the type of person who peruses WhatsApp on a regular basis, chances are you've tried perusing its new privacy policy.
On its 20th anniversary, Wikipedians recount how it began and how it grew to become the definitive digital encyclopedia and the default resource for everything
at least, not like this. https://read.medium.com/tLnGC1L See also Mediagazer
FAA approves the first fully automated commercial drone flights, letting Massachusetts-based American Robotics operate its drones in rural areas below 400 feet
American Robotics granted permission to operate drones without hands-on piloting — U.S. aviation regulators have approved …
Microsoft is planning to fix a Windows 10 vulnerability that could corrupt a NTFS-formatted hard drive simply by viewing a folder with a malicious shortcut
A bizarre Windows bug for 2021 — Microsoft says it's planning to fix a bizarre Windows 10 bug that could corrupt a hard drive just by looking at an icon.
How a group of Dorsey's lieutenants overcame his reluctance to ban Trump's account when it became clear Trump was using his Twitter presence to incite violence
Jack Dorsey, the chief executive, had reservations about locking the president's account. But the calls for violence that his tweets provoked were too overwhelming.
Study: smartwatches like Apple Watch and Fitbit, which can measure heart rate variability, could help detect COVID-19 at least a week before symptoms appear
Smartwatches and other wearable devices that continuously measure users' heart rates, skin temperature and other physiological markers …
Parler is not down due to a single company but because the market chose not to do business with it because it's toxic, which is the nature of a free market
I've delayed writing deeper thoughts on the total deplatforming of Parler, in part because there was so much else happening … Tweets: @benhixonva , @erratarob , @mcwm , @tynanpants , @jonjones , @erra...
A security researcher was able to purchase one of the Democratic Republic of Congo's top-level domains, potentially preventing malicious use by attackers
Fredrik Almroth thought the authorities would try to save the critical domain name. Nobody ever did.
Leaked screenshots show GitHub employees using the term “Nazi” in its internal Slack to protest the unexplained firing of an employee that used the same word
Now in protest, they're using Slack to call Nazis what they are — GitHub employees are protesting the firing … Tweets: @zoeschiffer , @bascule , @hshaban , @wwahammy , @find_evil , and @reckless Twe...
A look at the raging debate inside Wikipedia, where neutrality is prized above all, on what to call the attack on the Capitol
‘Storming’? ‘Insurrection’? ‘Riot’? ‘Attempted coup’? On Wikipedia, where neutrality is prized above all, volunteers are still searching for the words. Tweets: @bkeegan , @fuzheado , @harrymccrack...
Apple has started to block the sideloading of unsupported iOS and iPadOS apps using third party software on M1 Macs
Chance Miller / 9to5Mac :
Galaxy Buds Pro review: good sound quality, voice detect feature is nice, but the touch controls are finicky and some features only work with Samsung devices
They don't win at any one thing, but they strike a great mix in terms of sound quality, ANC, and comfort
A survey estimates that Apple Pay users reached 507M worldwide in September 2020, about 50% of the total iPhone userbase, adding ~66M users from September 2019
IN a recent release, Apple reported that “more than 90% of stores in the US, 85% of stores in the UK, and 99% of stores in Australia accept Apple Pay.” Tweets: @counternotions and @brianroemmele Tweet...
Tencent Music acquires China-based Lazy Audio, a platform for audiobooks, podcasts, and radio shows, for $417M
(Reuters) - China's Tencent Music Entertainment Group said on Friday it acquired audiobook platform Lazy Audio, owned by Shenzhen Lanren Online Technology Co, for 2.7 billion yuan ($417 million).
Federal judge denies Apple's appeal of a $502.8M patent infringement verdict favoring VirnetX; Apple's total payout in two lawsuits could cross $1.1B
Jonathan Stempel / Reuters :
Bumble files for an IPO, says it had 42M MAUs, 2.4M total paying users, and lost $117M on revenue of $417M in the first nine months of 2020
Alex Wilhelm / TechCrunch :
Rob Joyce will replace Anne Neuberger as the director of NSA's Cybersecurity Directorate; Neuberger will join the Biden admin as deputy adviser on the NSC
Shannon Vavra / CyberScoop :
Sources: at an all-hands staff meeting, incoming CEO says Intel has to deliver better products for PCs than what a “lifestyle company in Cupertino” makes
Can an old school CEO restore the company as a certain “lifestyle” company once did? Tweets: @mattyglesias : @asymmetricinfo Didn't Apple bring in a new CEO from Pepsi at one point? (Admittedly it did...
Israel-based social casino game developer Playtika closes up 17.1% on its first day of trading, valuing the company at $14.5B, after raising $1.88B in its IPO
Dean Takahashi / VentureBeat :
Google says it will remove the inadvertent ability for Chromium browsers to access Chrome bookmarks and other sync features when users are logged into Google
Abner Li / 9to5Google :
Sources: Apple is discussing launching a new subscription service that would charge people to listen to podcasts
The Information :
Ahead of Biden's inauguration, Facebook blocks users from creating new events near the White House and Capitol, restricting features for some users
Megan Graham / CNBC :
Oqton, which is developing a factory OS that combines several fabrication processes like CNC and polymer 3D printing, raises $40M Series A
Kyle Wiggers / VentureBeat :
Profile of New Zealand-based Letterboxd, a social network for reviewing movies, which has grown to 3M member accounts during the pandemic
Calum Marsh / New York Times : Tweets: @aneeshchaganty and @matt_blackwell Tweets: Aneesh Chaganty / @aneeshchaganty : While there's always something bittersweet about your favorite secret going main...
Twitter outlines its plans for Wednesday's Inauguration Day, including transitioning @POTUS and other handles to Biden and archiving several official accounts
This will be the account for my official duties as President. At 12:01 PM on January 20th, it will become @POTUS. Until then, I'll be using @JoeBiden. And while you're here, follow @FLOTUSBiden @SenKa...
Interview with Walmart's e-commerce chief Marc Lore, who is leaving the company at the end of the month to build “a city of the future”
A look at the rise and fall of Xiami, Alibaba's discontinued music streaming service, which only had 22.4M MAUs by Oct. vs. 450M+ for Tencent's three music apps
Once a leader, Xiami saw its monthly active users (MAUs) fall to 22.4 million by October 2020, a tiny fraction of the 450 million …
Sources: investors, including BlackRock, GIC, and Silver Lake, who invested $10.3B in Ant's 2018 pre-IPO round are left with illiquid stakes after canceled IPO
BlackRock among groups left holding $10.3bn worth of illiquid stakes in Chinese fintech — Investors including BlackRock …
Biden's COVID-19 relief bill earmarks $9B to beef up the CISA and $200M to hire technology and cyber experts to support the federal CISO and US Digital Service
Emily Birnbaum / Protocol :
GitLab is considering going public after an employee share sale valued it at $6B; GitLab revenue crossed $150M annually after growing 74% in the latest quarter
Ari Levy / CNBC :
The Trump admin adds Xiaomi, along with 8 other Chinese firms, to a blacklist of alleged Chinese military companies, forcing US investors to divest by Nov. 11
Mike Stone / Reuters :
Amazon launches Alexa Custom Assistant, which will let car makers build their own custom AI assistants with their own wake words, custom voices, and more
Nick Statt / The Verge :
Services like Substack, Spotify, and Clubhouse are coming under scrutiny now that platforms like Facebook and YouTube have warmed to aggressive moderation
Shopify's new AI commerce stack
Their VP of Product digs into just-launched products to help entrepreneurs and developers build with the latest AI and tech.
Email fatigue is real: Here's how smart email tools help you regain control
Picture this: It's Monday morning. You walk into the office feeling energized and ready to take on the week.
Protecting your Cloud Applications Data
Backing up Office 365, Google Workspace, Dropbox & Box data is critical to preventing data loss or corruption, complying with laws and avoiding critical downtime in case of a disaster.