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Miles Kruppa / Financial Times:
Many Silicon Valley startups are announcing job cuts and spending freezes to prove they can be disciplined about costs to would-be investors amid the pandemic — Balance of power shifts back to investors as founders look to bolster balance sheets — As one of Silicon Valley's hottest start-ups …
John Koetsier / Forbes:
According to a Startup Genome survey of 45 countries, nearly three-quarters of startups have laid off full-time employees due to the COVID-19 crisis — Three quarters of startups have laid off full-time employees due to COVID-19, according to a Startup Genome survey of 45 countries.
Christine Hall / Crunchbase News:
Denver-based Josh.ai, whose hardware and AI-powered software helps people with large homes manage dozens of smart home devices, raises $11M Series A — Many houses today are connected to some kind of device, such as Amazon's Alexa or Google Home, but for bigger houses with dozens of rooms …
FinSMEs:
Salt Lake City-based Vutiliti, whose data monitoring tech helps energy utilities reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase efficiency, raises ~$12M Series A — Vutiliti, a Salt Lake City, Utah-based smart utility monitoring company, raised $11.75m in Series A funding.
Yujie Xue / South China Morning Post:
Report: Huawei's HiSilicon overtakes Qualcomm as China's top smartphone processor supplier; Qualcomm's market share fell from ~38% YoY in Q4 to ~33% YoY in Q1 — Huawei's secretive chip unit shipped slightly more smartphone processor shipments in the latest quarter despite the coronavirus pandemic …
Paul Karp / The Guardian:
Australia's home affairs department data breach reveals personal details of 774,000 migrants and aspiring migrants, including the outcome of applications — Exclusive: Privacy experts say the breach in the SkillsSelect platform, which affects data going back to 2014, was ‘very serious’
Adriana Hamacher / Decrypt:
Malta's financial regulator says ~70% of crypto and blockchain startups applying for a license have given up; insiders say Malta's regulations are too stringent — Approximately 70% of the crypto and blockchain startups which completed the first stage of the application process failed …
Richard Milne / Financial Times:
Norwegian videoconferencing startup Pexip, whose clients include US government and Spotify, seeks ~$200M in IPO this quarter at a post-money valuation of ~$570M — Video-conferencing firm's clients include the US government, Amnesty International and Spotify
Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:
Barcelona-based Factorial, maker of an all-in-one HR automation platform aimed at SMBs that is used by 60K+ customers, raises €15M Series A funding led by CRV — A startup that's hoping to be a contender in the very large and fragmented market of human resources software has captured …
Since the start of the outbreak, governments and companies have scrambled to develop apps and websites that can help users identify COVID-19 symptoms.
India’s largest cell network Jio, a subsidiary of Reliance, launched its coronavirus self-test symptom checker in late March, just before the Indian government imposed a strict nationwide lockdown to prevent the further spread of the coronavirus. The symptom checker allows anyone to check their symptoms from their phone or Jio’s website to see if they may have become infected with COVID-19.
But a security lapse exposed one of the symptom checker’s core databases to the internet without a password, TechCrunch has found.
Jio’s coronavirus symptom checker. One of its databases exposed users’ responses. (Image: TechCrunch)
Security researcher Anurag Sen found the database on May 1, just after it was first exposed, and informed TechCrunch to notify the company. Jio quickly pulled the system offline after TechCrunch made contact. It’s not known if anyone else accessed the database.
“We have taken immediate action,” said Jio spokesperson Tushar Pania. “The logging server was for monitoring performance of our website, intended for the limited purpose of people doing a self-check to see if they have any COVID-19 symptoms.”
The database contains millions of logs and records starting April 17 through to the time that the database was pulled offline. Although the server contained a running log of website errors and other system messages, it also ingested vast numbers of user-generated self-test data. Each self-test was logged in the database and included a record of who took the test — such as “self” or a relative, their age, and their gender.
The data also included the person’s user agent, a small snippet of information about the user’s browser version and the operating system, often used to load the website properly but can also be used to track a user’s online activity.
The database also contains individual records of those who signed up to create a profile, allowing users to update their symptoms over time. These records contained the answers to each question asked by the symptom checker, including what symptoms they are experiencing, who they have been in contact with, and what health conditions they may have.
Some of the records also contained the user’s precise location, but only if the user allowed the symptom checker access to their browser or phone’s location data.
We’ve posted a redacted portion of one of the records below.
A redacted portion of the exposed database. (Image: TechCrunch)
From one sample of data we obtained, we found thousands of users’ precise geolocation from across India. TechCrunch was able to identify people’s homes using the latitude and longitude records found in the database.
Most of the location data is clustered around major cities, like Mumbai and Pune. TechCrunch also found users in the United Kingdom and North America.
The exposure could not come at a more critical time for the Indian telecoms giant. Last week Facebook invested $5.7 billion for a near-10% stake in Jio’s Platforms, valuing the Reliance subsidiary at about $66 billion.
Jio did not answer our follow-up questions, and the company did not say if it will inform those who used the symptom tracker of the security lapse.
Mary Ann Azevedo / Crunchbase News:
Telemedicine startup Medici raises $24M Series B as demand surges due to COVID-19 pandemic, bringing Medici's total raised since 2016 to over $70M — We've seen a number of industries hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. But we've also seen a number with increased demand. Telehealth is one of the latter.
How many times have you searched Google only to get a bunch of incorrect or unrelated search results that you wish you could filter out? Well, with a few search shortcuts, you can narrow down your search results and always get the exact results you’re looking for.
You’ll find these shortcuts in our Google Search cheat sheet below. It contains various search tips, operators, and commands to help you filter content by site, timelines, context, and more.
FREE DOWNLOAD: This cheat sheet is available as a downloadable PDF from our distribution partner, TradePub. You will have to complete a short form to access it for the first time only. Download The Google Search Shortcuts Cheat Sheet.
| Operator | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Informational Search Queries | ||
| define | Returns a definition of the given term. | define gregarious |
| time | Returns the current time at a particular location. | time stockholm |
| to | Convert measurements from one unit to another. | 1 cup to tbsp |
| in | Convert measurements from one unit to another. | 1000USD in GBP |
| translate | Translates the queried terms into another specified language. | translate hello world german |
| map | Returns map result. | map new york |
| stocks | Returns stock information. | stocks sbux |
| weather | Returns the weather forecast for the given location or ZIP code. | weather 90210 |
| Basic Search Symbols | ||
| - | Excludes search results that include this term. | best tablets -drawing |
| | | Returns search results that match terms on either side of the pipe. The same as writing "OR" between search terms. | computer | tablet |
| @ | Returns search results that match a particular social media site. | phone recall @twitter |
| # | Returns search results that include a specific hashtag. | #throwbackthursday |
| “” | Returns search results that include all terms within quotes in the exact given order. | “never gonna give you up” |
| * | Returns search results where any words can be matched in place of the asterisk. | best * in america |
| .. | When placed between two numbers, returns search results that match within the number range. | chromebook $200..$500 |
| () | Used to group search terms and control the search logic of the query. | (best | worst) office suite |
| $ | Returns prices. | mac $1000 |
| Popular Search Operators | ||
| cache: | Show Google's cached version of a specific page. | cache:makeuseof.com |
| filetype: | Returns only search results that match a particular file extension. | sleep study filetype:pdf |
| related: | Returns other websites that are similar to the queried website. | related:nytimes.com |
| site: | Returns only search results from a particular website. | productivity tips site:makeuseof.com |
| Other Search Operators | ||
| inanchor: | Returns pages that are linked to using anchor text matching the search query. | |
| allinanchor: | Same as inanchor, but matching every term that appears after allinanchor. | |
| intext: | Returns only search results that match in the page's body. | |
| allintext: | Same as intext, but matching every term that appears after allintext. | |
| intitle: | Returns only search results that match in the page's title. | |
| allintitle: | Same as intitle, but matching every term that appears after allintitle. | |
| inurl: | Returns only search results that match in the page's URL. | |
| allinurl: | Same as inurl, but matching every term that appears after allinurl. | |
The most useful shortcuts are site:, filetype:, and to, but all of these operators and commands are good to know.
In addition to searching Google, you should also get acquainted with these advanced search operators for Gmail. And did you know that there are some cool games hidden in Google Search? Once you’re familiar with all these advanced tools, you can put them to good use. For example, advanced Google Search comes in handy when you’re trying to find a book without knowing the title or author!
We’ll wrap up with a word of caution: don’t trust all types of Google Search results blindly.
Read the full article: The Best Google Search Cheat Sheet: Tips, Operators, and Commands to Know
Dan Goodin / Ars Technica:
Researchers detail the increasingly prevalent LockBit ransomware, which may one day reach parity with other feared ransomware packages like Maze or Ryuk — You've probably never heard of LockBit, but that's likely to change. — Ransomware has emerged as one of the top threats facing large organizations …
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Justin Sherman / Wired:
One year after the passage of Russia's domestic internet law, a look at the uneven past and uncertain future of Moscow's attempts to regulate the internet — The Kremlin's path toward censorship, surveillance, and repression has many more layers than meets the eye.
Emil Protalinski / VentureBeat:
Profile of Canada-based Draganfly, which is piloting “pandemic drones” that use machine vision and AI to track social distancing and monitor health vitals — Like the rest of the world, Canadian drone maker Draganfly has been anxiously watching the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Sirin Kale / WIRED UK:
An inside look at the dropshipping scene in Bali, where expats typically purchase items on AliExpress and have them shipped directly to buyers in the West — In Bali, western immigrants are selling products they've never handled, from countries they've never visited, to consumers they've never met
John Pavlus / Quanta Magazine:
How researchers are working to build AI with common-sense reasoning, such as the COMET system, which combines symbolic reasoning and neural language modeling — The problem of common-sense reasoning has plagued the field of artificial intelligence for over 50 years.
Hagop Kavafian / Android Police:
Google's Messages app, which isn't part of Google's apps package often pre-installed on phones by 3rd-party Android OEMs, passes 1B+ installs on the Play Store — Google's Messages app is packed with features, including a built-in markup tool, reminders, context-aware recommendations, a dark mode, RCS support, and a web interface.
George Chidi / CoinDesk:
Bitfinex's parent firm has applied for subpoenas in three US states asking federal courts to aid in recovering $800M+ in user funds seized by legal authorities — The Bitfinex crypto exchange is making a new push to find and potentially recover more than $800 million in user funds seized …
Everybody wants to know, “What’s the best free video chat app?” The answer is, the one that best fits your needs. Here’s a look at some of the new and free video conference apps that you should be using.
When you’re working remotely and conducting video conferences, you need them to be easy to set up, secure, and fast for everyone. You’re spoilt for choice when it comes to free video calling apps on both desktop and mobile.
Zoom and Skype are always popular choices. But it’s not without its flaws. This guide helps you pick an alternative video chat software for your requirements.
For the longest time, Microsoft Skype has been the gold standard for video calls. But it has always involved hurdles like paid accounts, registration, and installing apps. The new Skype Meet Now is free and makes it easy for anyone to join a Skype call even without an account.
The website is best used through a desktop web browser, but you can join calls through Skype mobile apps too. Skype Meet Now is packed with features for team meetings, which include sharing files and contacts, scheduling calls, creating a poll, recording video, and sharing your screen.
Participants in the room can also chat in text and search the text later, as well as record and send audio messages to each other. In fact, Skype is a fully capable chat messaging app to use for office discussions.
Skype Meet Now is easy to set up and doesn’t have any major restrictions on meeting time and participants. Plus, it has been around for so long and used by so many large corporations that you can rest assured Microsoft is taking care of security concerns.
Download: Skype Meet Now for Android | iOS (Free)
Zipcall is one of those fantastic calling apps without sign-ups or installations. It works entirely in any modern browser, on both desktop and mobile. As long as you have a functional webcam, microphone, and speakers, you can start a video call in seconds.
Go to the website and create a video conference room with its auto-generated links or key in your own phrase. You can mute your microphone, pause your webcam, share your screen, or chat in a text pop-up within the app.
Zipcall has a cool picture-in-picture mode that’s especially useful while screen-sharing or when you have a large grid of participants. Since it’s based on WebRTC and doesn’t require servers, the app is more secure and private than many others.
The Live Caption feature requires Google Chrome but it didn’t work that well in our tests. Nonetheless, when it did work, it was quite cool to see spoken words immediately translated to text. It might be a useful feature on bad connections where the voice breaks.
Remote working has its benefits, but it lacks the relationships you build in office. It also seems like “a quick video call” can often last longer than talking to a colleague for a few minutes to update on projects. Touchbase wants to solve both problems with its approach.
Touchbase is a video call app that works only on desktop browsers, which is the first step in adding that “work feel.” You can’t be taking this video call on your phone while doing other things.
It also adds a time limit of 15 minutes for video calls (with a five-minute extension if needed, but the idea is to wrap it up in 15).
Before you set up a video chat, you’ll also have to pick a topic. Write a custom one or pick from suggested topics like quick catch-up, coffee, daily team stand-up meeting, etc.
The makers say that by adding intent, topic, and time limit, you won’t have those endless rambling calls. Plus, other team members can decide if they want to join for that topic or not, which is especially useful for casual conversations.
Touchbase allows for up to 10 participants at a time. You can share a meeting link or send out a Google calendar invitation. The video call itself is a grid of participants. The only sparse features are that you can mute your call or share your screen.
Download: Touchbase for Chrome (Free)
Team.Video is still in beta, but it’s already shaping up to be one of the best video conferencing apps for office meetings. It has a lot of features designed to keep meetings on point and solve common video call annoyances.
For example, each meeting has a sidebar with an Agenda, to keep you on point. You can use this sidebar to also share files or add links. The pane doubles up as a shared notepad for participants to add minutes or put down any important discussions in text.
Team.Video adds a wonderful way to be silent and give reactions. Instead of someone always adding a “hmm” to indicate they’re listening or agreeing, you can send emojis.
Use keyboard shortcuts to thumbs up, thumbs down, conflicted, deference, and raising our hand to talk. Other reactions include things like “I can’t hear you,” which is a simple solution to one of the most annoying things about video calls.
While you’re waiting for people to join, you can play a quick game within Team.Video. The anagram word game gives you six letters and makes you guess all the words you can make with it.
Apart from all that, you get all of the usual features of a robust video calling app. You can share your screen, chat in text, mute audio or disable video, etc.
Usually, the free version lets you set up meetings of up to 60 minutes with up to seven people. But at the moment, the app has made it unlimited minutes for up to 15 people. Team.Video is one of the best free online meeting tools to collaborate with your team.
While this list talks about several new or little-known free video chat apps, you still want to consider some of the popular ones. After all, they’re more likely to be packed with the features you want. But what’s the difference between the best video chat apps? Find out at Video Conferencing Guide.
This website charts the major features of every popular video calling app in a table. You can easily compare many of the big names like Zoom, Webex, Hangouts, WhatsApp, and more.
The table tells you the difference between free and paid video chat apps, participant and time limits, and which platforms it’s available for. In a quick glance, you can also find features like screen sharing, recording, grid view, and encryption.
Developer Paul Schriber made the website to quickly find out which video chat app is best for your needs. Unfortunately, there isn’t a simple filter to sort lists by feature. If you want to do that, copy-paste it into a standard spreadsheet program.
While Zoom picks up in popularity, there are concerns about its security. When you’re discussing sensitive work information, you want to know that the data is safe.
One of the best free and secure alternatives to Zoom is Jitsi Meet. This open-source, no-downloads, no-registration video conferencing app encrypts all calls and doesn’t store them on its server.
Read the full article: 5 Free Zoom Alternatives for Video Conferencing and Online Meetings
