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Salvador Rodriguez / CNBC:
How Silicon Valley food caterers, event planners, venue owners, models, DJs, and others who relied on tech parties and events are coping with the loss of income — - Performers, food caterers, event planners, venue owners, models, DJs and others that rely on the tech industry's parties …
Dave Gershgorn / OneZero :
Washington state's facial recognition law, which is championed by Microsoft, was sponsored by State Sen. Joe Nguyen, who also is a program manager at Microsoft — Plus, live facial recognition updates and the week's A.I. research — Welcome to General Intelligence, your weekly dive into the A.I. news and research that matters.
Sidney Fussell / Wired:
Uber Eats waived delivery fees in the name of supporting local restaurants, but some restaurants say Uber's 25% commission for take-out orders is too high — Social distancing rules have reduced many eateries to delivery and take out. But apps like Uber Eats exact a 25 percent toll on their shrinking revenue.
Valerie Strauss / Washington Post:
Zoom is being banned over security concerns by some US school districts, including NYC, which is directing teachers to switch to Microsoft Teams — Some school districts around the country have started to ban the use of Zoom for online learning from home during the coronavirus crisis …
J.M. Porup / CSO:
Critics say bug bounty programs buy researcher silence, may violate labor law, and are less effective when they are closed and have NDAs placed on them — When Jonathan Leitschuh found a catastrophic security vulnerability in Zoom, the popular videoconferencing platform …
Andrey Kuzmin / Reuters:
Report: Russia delays the implementation of a law banning devices not pre-installed with Russian software, by six months until January 1, 2021 — MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia on Tuesday pushed back legislation that would require all smartphones, computers and smart TV sets sold in Russia …
New York Times:
Analysis: thousands of people are organizing via private group chats, message boards, Twitter, Instagram, more to execute coordinated “Zoombombing” campaigns — Zoom, the videoconferencing app, has become a target for harassment and abuse coordinated in private off-platform chats.
Jim Waterson / The Guardian:
Telecom engineers, considered essential workers in the UK, are facing harassment from anti-5G conspiracy mongers, linking the deployment of 5G to coronavirus — EE suspects telephone mast engulfed by fire in Birmingham was an arson attack as celebrities claim Covid-19 caused by new network
Jane Zhang / South China Morning Post:
4Paradigm, a China-based startup providing AI-powered real-time data analytics, raises $230M from Cisco, Lenovo, and others, at a post-money valuation of ~$2B — The funding round has attracted new strategic investors including American technology conglomerate Cisco and the world's largest …
Had enough of the constant barrage of depressing and negative news in the media? Look on the brighter side with these websites and apps that give you uplifting and positive news.
These days, it seems like every news media outlet only reports on death, disease, and distress. While you shouldn’t shy away from harsh realities, the incessant bad news can affect your mental health. That’s when you should turn to these people who highlight the good.
There are news websites, apps, podcasters, and YouTubers who focus on the steps taken for betterment. This includes small acts of goodness and kindness to large leaps that inspire you to fight the good fight.
Alright everybody, how about #SomeGoodNews ! Send me the stories that have made you feel good this week or the things that just made you smile!
— John Krasinski (@johnkrasinski) March 25, 2020
Actor John Krasinski, famous for The Office, was also overwhelmed by the avalanche of depressing news on TV. So he asked his Twitter followers to send him good and positive events in their lives, as well as stories they heard. That gave birth to Some Good News.
Stuck at home during the pandemic, Krasinski’s new YouTube show is all about focusing on positive news. He hosts it himself, sitting in front of an “SGN” banner drawn by his children.
The actor is quick to point out that this isn’t his natural strong suit, but it’s a good alternative to the kind of footage you’ll see on news channels.
In the first episode, Krasinski talked about a few good stories and spoke to someone who went viral after getting a rousing social-distancing reception when she beat cancer. And he spent a few minutes talking to his co-star Steve Carell.
More episodes of Some Good News will air every week, so subscribe to this channel for positive vibes with a hint of celebrity magic.
Newser is one of the oldest news aggregators on the internet. Its dedicated team of editors and writers hand-pick articles from a variety of news publications in the US and also come up with their own. One of its hidden gems is the Uplifting News section to give you a dose of happiness.
If you’re new to Newser, the website’s aim is to curate articles and summarize them. You’ll often find the juiciest part of the story in a quick few paragraphs. It’s the ideal format for positive and good news because in most cases, the cool part is worth only a few sentences. It’s the feeling you get that lasts longer than the words.
While Reddit’s r/UpliftingNews is perhaps the fastest and most frequently-updated good news website, Newser isn’t far behind. In the course of writing this article, the section got two new articles. A quick glance shows that these are daily updates, so you’ll get a little bit of joy every day.
From its name to its approach, Good News keeps things simple. Every weekday, you get seven news items that talk about good things happening in the world. In particular, it focuses on social and ecological progress, showing how the world isn’t stuck in a rut.
Instead of the website, use the well-designed and powerful app. In six swipes, you’ll see all the headlines for the day. Tap any item to read the full article at the original site. You can also sort the categories you want items in, such as conservation, climate, sustainability, health, education, and human rights. The app also allows you to save items to read later.
The Good Impact Foundation, the developers, are based in Germany and get their news from German-language media, but you can switch to English language easily. And while there are a few items that only matter to Germany, largely, the news affects anyone in the world.
Download: Good News for Android | iOS (Free)
It’s best to give your eyes and neck some rest from continuous screen time. Podcasts are an excellent way to catch up on infotainment. J. P. Phillips and Tim McCoy host The Positive Truth, a podcast that’s all about good news.
Updated thrice a week, The Positive Podcast has three sections, one for each day.
The Uplifting and Positive News episode is a round-up of news articles that the duo comes across.
Inspiring Stories is an episode series of both articles and social media snippets.
And finally, in the Improving Your Community/World episodes, they discuss how you can make a difference in social, ecological, or other humanitarian causes.
Phillips and McCoy have an easy-going conversational style, sharing light banter and keeping a happy tone. They often have guests joining them too. Each episode lasts about 15 minutes.
It’s available on several podcast feeds, with detailed episode descriptions on Apple Podcasts.
Subscribe to The Positive Truth: SoundCloud | Apple Podcasts
Mauro Gatti isn’t a journalist, an actor, a social media influencer, or anything else. Mauro is an average person like you, who got fed up with venomous and vitriolic news in the media. So he started collecting positive news and used his skills as an artist to illustrate them.
The Happy Broadcast is a labor of love as Gatti uses his inimitable style to draw a new picture for uplifting news stories. Click the picture to get a short excerpt from a leading publication that inspired him.
It’s a great website to browse with your children, with bright colors and kid-friendly language. You can submit stories to Gatti through the website too.
Gatti updates the website about three times every week. You should also follow The Happy Broadcast on Instagram for the “Happier Sundays” posts, where he shares three positive stories and a feel-good task for the week.
Sometimes, fighting fire with fire isn’t the best way. You can’t always drown out the negativity of the media by reading positive news instead. Be open to trying different strategies to ensure a healthy mindset.
If you’re feeling depressed or overwhelmed with bad vibes, turn to techniques that have proven to help. Try exercising or moving around, talk to a friend, or put on your headphones and listen to one of the best meditation apps for relaxing.
Read the full article: Be Positive! 5 Good News Websites for Uplifting & Inspirational Stories
Whether you’re a new convert or a veteran user, whether you have the latest Samsung Galaxy or something much older, our Android tips and tricks will help you!
Android phones have come a long way over the past few years. No matter which brand you’re using, there are plenty of awesome tips and features that you need to know about—they’ll make your life easier, guaranteed.
And not just tips and features, but apps as well. With so many apps in the Google Play Store (and elsewhere), you can pretty much do anything you want with your Android phone. You just need to know what’s out there!
Here’s everything we’ve written to turn you into an Android master.
Confused about a particular Android feature? Want to grab a few tips and tricks for things like Google Assistant and Android Auto? Check out these useful articles:
Your Android phone can do more than just download and install apps. Here are some of our favorite practical tips for taking your Android skills to the next level, and they aren’t difficult at all:
Did you know your Android phone has a built-in FM radio? Or maybe you want to connect a game controller to play your mobile games? Here are some of the cooler things you can do with a bit of know-how:
With the right apps, you can turn your mundane Android phone into a powerhouse tool. Want to make free phone calls? Learn a new skill? Work out and improve your health? Listen to podcasts or stream TV shows? Yep, there’s an app for that:
No matter what device you’re using, Android or otherwise, you’re bound to run into issues. When that happens, you can consult our best articles on how to solve issues and problems on Android phones:
Read the full article: Do More With Your Android Phone: 70+ Tips and Tricks You Should Know
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Angel Au-Yeung / Forbes:
Profile of Larry Ellison, who has turned the Hawaiian island of Lanai into a data-powered wellness lab and is building a COVID-19 database for the White House — As Larry Ellison sits in one of several idyllic bubbles he has created for himself, a lush 249-acre estate in Rancho Mirage …
Zack Whittaker / TechCrunch:
Zoom apologizes for routing some calls made in N. America through China, says it “mistakenly” allowed Chinese data centers to accept calls due to traffic spike — Hours after security researchers at Citizen Lab reported that some Zoom calls were routed through China …
David McCabe / New York Times:
A look at how tech's lobbying efforts in the US are quietly pushing for long-held goals in the frantic political and economic environment amid COVID-19 outbreak — Silicon Valley hasn't suffered from the same financial devastation as other industries. Tech companies still have an agenda to push.
Ryan Gallagher / Bloomberg:
UK researchers are using Google's mobile location data collected from apps like Google Maps to help track and predict the spread of COVID-19 across Europe — - Data is anonymized and aggregated, can't track individuals — Effort is one of many to use mobile phone data to track virus
Josh Constine / TechCrunch:
Zoom will require passwords to enter calls via Meeting ID and will turn on Waiting Rooms by default to prevent trolls from disrupting calls, starting April 5 — Zoom is making some drastic changes to prevent rampant abuse as trolls attack publicly shared video calls.
Hours after security researchers at Citizen Lab reported that some Zoom calls were routed through China, the video conferencing platform has offered an apology and a partial explanation.
To recap, Zoom has faced a barrage of headlines this week over its security policies and privacy practices, as hundreds of millions forced to work from home during the coronavirus pandemic still need to communicate with each other.
The latest findings landed earlier today when Citizen Lab researchers said that some calls made in North America were routed through China — as were the encryption keys used to secure those calls. But as was noted this week, Zoom isn’t end-to-end encrypted at all, despite the company’s earlier claims, meaning that Zoom controls the encryption keys and can therefore access the contents of its customers’ calls. Zoom said in an earlier blog post that it has “implemented robust and validated internal controls to prevent unauthorized access to any content that users share during meetings.” The same can’t be said for Chinese authorities, however, which could demand Zoom turn over any encryption keys on its servers in China to facilitate decryption of the contents of encrypted calls.
Zoom now says that during its efforts to ramp up its server capacity to accommodate the massive influx of users over the past few weeks, it “mistakenly” allowed two of its Chinese data centers to accept calls as a backup in the event of network congestion.
From Zoom’s CEO Eric Yuan:
During normal operations, Zoom clients attempt to connect to a series of primary datacenters in or near a user’s region, and if those multiple connection attempts fail due to network congestion or other issues, clients will reach out to two secondary datacenters off of a list of several secondary datacenters as a potential backup bridge to the Zoom platform. In all instances, Zoom clients are provided with a list of datacenters appropriate to their region. This system is critical to Zoom’s trademark reliability, particularly during times of massive internet stress.”
In other words, North American calls are supposed to stay in North America, just as European calls are supposed to stay in Europe. This is what Zoom calls its data center “geofencing.” But when traffic spikes, the network shifts traffic to the nearest data center with the most available capacity.
China, however, is supposed to be an exception, largely due to privacy concerns among Western companies. But China’s own laws and regulations mandate that companies operating on the mainland must keep citizens’ data within its borders.
Zoom said in February that “rapidly added capacity” to its Chinese regions to handle demand was also put on an international whitelist of backup data centers, which meant non-Chinese users were in some cases connected to Chinese servers when data centers in other regions were unavailable.
Zoom said this happened in “extremely limited circumstances.” When reached, a Zoom spokesperson did not quantify the number of users affected.
Zoom said that it has now reversed that incorrect whitelisting. The company also said users on the company’s dedicated government plan were not affected by the accidental rerouting.
But some questions remain. The blog post only briefly addresses its encryption design. Citizen Lab criticized the company for “rolling its own” encryption — otherwise known as building its own encryption scheme. Experts have long rejected efforts by companies to build their own encryption, because it doesn’t undergo the same scrutiny and peer review as the decades-old encryption standards we all use today.
Zoom said in its defense that it can “do better” on its encryption scheme, which it says covers a “large range of use cases.” Zoom also said it was consulting with outside experts, but when asked, a spokesperson declined to name any.
Bill Marczak, one of the Citizen Lab researchers that authored today’s report, told TechCrunch he was “cautiously optimistic” about Zoom’s response.
“The bigger issue here is that Zoom has apparently written their own scheme for encrypting and securing calls,” he said, and that “there are Zoom servers in Beijing that have access to the meeting encryption keys.”
“If you’re a well-resourced entity, obtaining a copy of the internet traffic containing some particularly high-value encrypted Zoom call is perhaps not that hard,” said Marcak.
“The huge shift to platforms like Zoom during the COVID-19 pandemic makes platforms like Zoom attractive targets for many different types of intelligence agencies, not just China,” he said. “Fortunately, the company has (so far) hit all the right notes in responding to this new wave of scrutiny from security researchers, and have committed themselves to make improvements in their app.”
Zoom’s blog post gets points for transparency. But the company is still facing pressure from New York’s attorney general and from two class-action lawsuits. Just today, several lawmakers demanded to know what it’s doing to protect users’ privacy.
Will Zoom’s mea culpas be enough?
