Tech

Meta uncovers global disinformation battle; Congress talks 230 reforms

As governmental entities abuse social media platforms’ influence on a universal scale, Facebook released on Wednesday a report highlighting its takedown on global disinformation networks promoting false information to manipulate the public’s opinion. One thing the January 6 Capitol riot uncovered is that social media platforms, especially Facebook, have an influential effect on shaping the […]

From Square to Block: Another tech company changes its name

There’s a new Silicon Valley corporate name change on the block. A month after Facebook renamed itself Meta, Square Inc., the payments company headed by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, is changing its name to Block Inc. The San Francisco-based company said Wednesday it’s making the change because the Square name has become synonymous with […]

Haugen urges lawmakers to avert impasse on social media laws

Ex-Facebook employee and whistleblower Frances Haugen implored lawmakers Wednesday to avert the usual congressional stalemates as they weigh proposals to curb abuses on social media platforms by limiting the companies’ free-speech protections against legal liability. Still, Haugen urged caution in making changes to the 1996 law that provides legal protection both for content the platforms […]

Facebook: Fake scientist used to spread anti-US propaganda

A disinformation network with ties to China used hundreds of fake social media accounts — including one belonging to a fictitious Swiss biologist — to spread an unfounded claim that the U.S. pressured scientists to blame China for the coronavirus, Facebook said Wednesday. The company based in Menlo Park, California, did not directly attribute the […]

Semiconductor crisis to last till early 2023, Deloitte reports

Consulting firm, Deloitte, released on Wednesday its latest report addressing the ongoing global semiconductor crisis, with predictions of the crunch to last till early 2023. Deloitte’s research stated that even though the chip shortage crisis’ intensity will be far less severe than it is now, chances are customers will wait around 10 to 20 weeks for a […]

Meta’s co-founder of Diem Project, David Marcus to depart company

Top cryptocurrency executive at Meta Platforms Inc., David Marcus, publicized on Tuesday his departure from Meta’s Diem Project after seven years of service to pursue different entrepreneurial projects. Marcus joined Facebook’s team in 2014 to supervise the networking platform’s Messenger division. Then, in December 2017, he was reshuffled to take charge of the giant’s cryptocurrency […]

UK to block Facebook parent Meta’s $315M acquisition of Giphy

It is expected that the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will reverse Facebook parent company Meta’s purchase of Giphy in the coming days, according to the Financial Times.  If that happens, it will mark the first time that the country’s competition regulator has unraveled a major tech acquisition. Meta (Facebook previously) announced in May […]

Nissan investing in electric vehicles, battery development

Nissan said Monday it is investing 2 trillion yen ($17.6 billion) over the next five years and developing a cheaper, more powerful battery to boost its electric vehicle lineup. The Japanese automaker’s chief executive, Makoto Uchida, said 15 new electric vehicles will be available by fiscal 2030. Nissan Motor Co. is aiming for a 50% […]

NASA launches spacecraft to test asteroid defense concept

NASA launched a spacecraft Tuesday night on a mission to smash into an asteroid and test whether it would be possible to knock a speeding space rock off course if one were to threaten Earth. The DART spacecraft, short for Double Asteroid Redirection Test, lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base atop a SpaceX Falcon […]

WhatsApp pushes privacy update to comply with Irish ruling

WhatsApp is adding more details to its privacy policy and flagging that information for European users, after Irish regulators slapped the chat service with a record fine for breaching strict EU data privacy rules. Starting Monday, WhatsApp’s privacy policy will be reorganized to provide more information on the data it collects and how it’s used. […]