How To Thrive in The Shadow of Giants
By: The Economist May 20, 2021 A couple of years ago Snap, the company behind Snapchat, a social-media app, came close to imitating the feature for which it was then famous: digital photos that self-destruct ten seconds after the recipient views them. Shortly after a headline-grabbing initial public offering in 2017, the firm faced […]
Lawmakers Want to Force Big Tech to Give Researchers More Data
By: Protocol May 20, 2021 Facebook’s ad library allows researchers to see the content of ads that run on the platform and information on who those ads reach. But there is one key insight Facebook doesn’t offer: information on how those ads were targeted. A new bill being introduced Thursday by two House Democrats could […]
Doctors Fear Google Skin Check App Will Lead to ‘Tsunami of Overdiagnosis’
By: Guardian May 20, 2021 Google’s entry into health diagnostics has alarmed health experts who fear a new artificial intelligence tool to identify skin conditions could lead to overdiagnosis, or rare and complex skin conditions being missed. At a technology conference in the US on Tuesday, Google revealed there are almost 10bn Google […]
Elon Musk Says Tesla Will No Longer Accept Bitcoin Due to Fossil Fuel Use
By: The Guardian May 13, 2021 Tesla has suspended customers’ use of bitcoin to purchase its vehicles, Elon Musk said on Wednesday, citing concerns about the use of fossil fuel for bitcoin mining. Bitcoin, the world’s biggest digital currency, fell almost 17% after the tweet to its lowest point since the beginning of March. It […]
How Apple’s AirTag Turns us Into Unwitting Spies in a Vast Surveillance Network
By: The Guardian May 17, 2020 Apple has launched the latest version of its operating system, iOS 14.5, which features the much-anticipated app tracking transparency function, bolstering the tech giant’s privacy credentials. But iOS 14.5 also introduced support for the new Apple AirTag, which risks doing the opposite. For the uninitiated, an AirTag […]
Amazon’s Ring is the Largest Civilian Surveillance Network the US Has Ever Seen
By: The Guardian May 18, 2021 In a 2020 letter to management, Max Eliaser, an Amazon software engineer, said Ring is “simply not compatible with a free society”. We should take his claim seriously. Ring video doorbells, Amazon’s signature home security product, pose a serious threat to a free and democratic society. Not only […]
Gig Economy Couriers Should be Eligible For a Pension, Says UK Regulator
By: Guardian May 17, 2021 The head of the UK’s pension regulator has called on gig economy companies to recognise the employment rights of those who work for them and set up workplace pensions. Charles Counsell, the chief executive of the Pensions Regulator, said the government-backed body was already working closely with Uber […]
Censorship, Surveillance and Profits: A Hard Bargain for Apple in China
By: New York Times May 17, 2021 GUIYANG, China — On the outskirts of this city in a poor, mountainous province in southwestern China, men in hard hats recently put the finishing touches on a white building a quarter-mile long with few windows and a tall surrounding wall. There was little sign of its […]
UK Government Lays Out Plans to Protect Users Online
By: BBC May 12, 2021 Social media firms will have to remove harmful content quickly or potentially face multi-billion-pound fines under new legislation. The government’s Online Safety Bill, announced in the Queen’s Speech, comes with a promise of protecting debate. It is “especially” geared at keeping children safe and says “democratically important” content should […]