In Other News

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Technology In Other news

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Amazon was considered the lead contender to provide technology for the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure (JEDI) programme, with Amazon Web Services dominating the cloud computing arena and the company already providing classified servers for other government agencies including the CIA. Amazon has alleged it was shut out of the deal because of Trump’s vendetta against the company and its chief executive Jeff Bezos. (Photo | AP)

Pentagon reaffirms deal with Microsoft for cloud computing despite Amazon's allegations of bias

However, the contract can’t move forward yet due to a court order putting it on hold as Amazon pursues a lawsuit over the bidding process.

05 Sep 2020 9:50 PM

Alain Cocq announced that he was now refusing all food, drink and medicine after President Emmanuel Macron turned down his request for euthanasia. Facebook said its rules don’t permit it to portray suicide. (Photo | AFP)

Terminally ill man refused euthanasia blocked by Facebook from livestreaming his days to death

To show France the “agony” caused by the law that does not allow euthanasia, Alain Cocq had planned to broadcast the end of his life.

05 Sep 2020 7:01 PM

No one ever is happy with the current amount of content moderation that platforms are undertaking. Some people think it is too little, while others think it is too much.

Tech This Week | Should India have its own social media content moderation rules?

Platforms are diverse and a one-size-fits-all approach will not work.

05 Sep 2020 6:03 PM

Twitter has cracked down by removing or labelling several of the president’s tweets. Facebook, citing the risk of civil unrest, announced Thursday that it would not allow new political ads on its platform in the last week of the November 3 race. (Photo | AFP)

Team Trump sticks to polarising, manipulative content on social media ahead of election

The open use of digitally-altered images by Trump and other candidates in 2020 has tech giants worried.

05 Sep 2020 5:38 PM

There were disagreements among the 40-lawyer team over how broad the complaint should be and what Google could do to resolve the problems that the investigation unearthed. The lawyers viewed the September-end deadline as arbitrary. (Photo | Wikimedia Commons - Shrijagannatha)

Google could face an antitrust case before the end of Trump's term, says report

A 40-lawyer team investigating Google was reportedly asked to wrap up by month-end, despite their seeking more time to make a strong case.

04 Sep 2020 6:50 PM

Banning the apps, including the popular PUBG Mobile, is the most visible indication of India’s slow decoupling from China, as it has both an emotional and an economic impact.

India’s virtual war on Chinese apps is an impactful move, say retired defence personnel

The ban on Chinese apps is the start of India’s decoupling from the Chinese economy, say defence and warfare experts.

04 Sep 2020 5:42 PM

Currently, apps are automatically given a tracking code unless users of iPhones and other Apple devices go to the extra trouble of changing their privacy controls on their own. With iOS 14, Apple planned to make apps get explicit consent from users to track them to serve them ads according to their web use. (Photo | AFP)

Apple postpones unveiling privacy feature on iPhones as apps complain about ad revenue loss

Facebook has said that the privacy feature in iOS 14 would deliver a blow to many apps at a time that they are struggling amid coronavirus.

04 Sep 2020 4:40 PM

Britain’s economy shrank by one fifth in the second quarter, more than any European neighbour, as the lockdown plunged the country into its deepest recession on record. Amazon, which has already created 3,000 new permanent UK roles this year, said it will offer more than 20,000 seasonal positions across the country ahead of the festive period. (Photo | AFP)

Amazon to add 7,000 permanent jobs in UK as demand for online shopping surges

Its total permanent UK workforce will number more than 40,000, up by a third in just a year as the pandemic triggers online shopping surge.

03 Sep 2020 9:01 PM

Fake posts that appear to be real are of particular concern ahead of the US presidential election in November, especially after false social media posts exploded in number during the 2016 vote that brought Donald Trump to power. Microsoft said it has partnered with the AI Foundation in San Francisco to make the video authentication tool available to political campaigns, news outlets and others involved in the democratic process. (Photo | AFP)

Microsoft launches software to detect deepfakes ahead of US election

The software analyses an image or each frame of a video, looking for evidence of manipulation that could be invisible to the naked eye.

03 Sep 2020 8:26 PM

The social media giant also vowed to fact check any premature claims of victory, stating that if a candidate tries to declare himself the winner before final votes are tallied “we’ll add a label to their posts directing people to the official results.” CEO Mark Zuckerberg said, “With our nation so divided and election results potentially taking days or even weeks to be finalised, there could be an increased risk of civil unrest across the country." (Photo | Wikimedia Commons - Anthony Quintano)

Facebook says it will ban fresh political ads in week before US elections to prevent disinformation

However, political campaigns will be allowed to run existing ads to run and change how they are targeted.

03 Sep 2020 8:06 PM

“I said that the United States has to be compensated—well compensated—because we are the ones that are making it possible, and so we should be compensated,” President Donald Trump said referring to his demand for a percentage for the government on the possible sale deal of TikTok to an American company. (Photo | AFP)

Trump repeats demand for piece of TikTok sale deal as September 15 deadline approaches

“Well, I told them that they have until September 15th to make a deal; after that, we close it up in this country,” the US President said.

02 Sep 2020 7:11 PM

The move comes as a huge blow to the 33 million active gaming enthusiasts who play PUBG on their mobile phones in India. Youth in India are already nursing soreness from having had to give up TikTok, and now this.

First TikTok, now PUBG: Fresh government orders block popular mobile gaming app

PUBG Mobile among 118 Chinese apps banned amid heightened tension between troops of the two countries on Ladakh border.

02 Sep 2020 6:26 PM

Flipkart Wholesale is currently available for fashion retailers, especially footwear and apparel, in Gurugram, Delhi and Bengaluru, with plans to expand to Mumbai as well, the company said in a press release. (Representative Image | Pixabay - Rudy and Peter Skitterians)

Flipkart launches wholesale app for manufacturers to transact with retailers

A one-stop solution, Flipkart Wholesale will enable manufacturers and retailers to find each other easily on the platform.

02 Sep 2020 5:35 PM

At least 98 online bartering groups, some with tens of thousands of members, are operating across the archipelago, according to an AFP tally. In this photo taken on July 29, 2020, Lorraine Ann Imperio checks goods bartered via the Las Pinas Barter Community in Las Pinas City, suburban Manila. Struggling to make ends meet, Lorraine Imperio swapped a pair of Nike slip-ons for a whole dressed chicken on an online bartering site, one of dozens that have sprouted during the Philippines' virus lockdowns. (Photo | AFP - Maria Tan)

A Ralph Lauren jacket swapped for a bag of groceries: Jobs lost, people barter belongings online

Struggling for bare essentials, Filipinos are exchanging kitchen appliances, children’s toys and designer handbags — mostly for food.

02 Sep 2020 4:43 PM

States in the US must choose whether they want to enable the Apple-Google system. If they do, iPhone users in those states will automatically be able to opt into the system without having to download an app. They’ll be prompted with a notification asking if they consent to running the system on their phones. For people with Android phones, Google will automatically generate an Android app for public health agencies that phone users can then download. (Photo | Pixabay - iXimus)

No app, no problem: US users can enable Apple-Google virus tracing tech incorporated into phones

The second phase of their “exposure notification” system automatically alerts people if they might have been exposed to the coronavirus.

02 Sep 2020 4:03 PM

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) said it had barred users from accessing Tinder, Grindr, SayHi, Tagged and Skout after the social networking apps failed to “moderate... content in accordance” with Pakistan’s laws.

Tinder, Grindr blocked in Pakistan for 'immoral content'

An app can request to have the block lifted if it shows it is “moderating the indecent/immoral content through meaningful engagement”.

01 Sep 2020 10:16 PM

Daniel McMahon, 32, of Brandon, Florida pleaded guilty in April to using social media to threaten a Black activist to deter the man from running for office in Charlottesville, Virginia and also admitted that he threatened to sexually assault the young autistic daughter of a North Carolina woman who protested against white nationalists. (Photo | AP)

Online hate gets punished: White supremacist gets three years in jail for racist threats

He called himself “the Antifa hunter,” a reference to anti-fascist, leftist militant activists who confront or resist white supremacists.

01 Sep 2020 5:21 PM

The world’s biggest retailer is still a distant second online to Amazon. Walmart is expected to take 6% of all online sales in the US this year, compared to Amazon’s 38%, according to market research firm eMarketer. (Photo | Wikimedia Commons - MikeMozartJeepersMedia)

Walmart+ launched in US to rival Amazon Prime — 15 years later

Same day deliveries, discounts at fuel pumps and other services are offered to Walmart+ users for a fee.

01 Sep 2020 3:50 PM

Back in December 2013, Amazon CEO and founder Jeff Bezos said in a TV interview that drones would be flying to customer’s homes within five years. Last year, Amazon unveiled self-piloting drones that are fully electric, can carry 5 pounds of goods and are designed to deliver items in 30 minutes by dropping them in a backyard. (Representative Image | Wikimedia Commons - Mollyrose89)

Amazon gets the green light to use drones for delivery in the US

The online retailer has got Federal Aviation Administration approval after years of facing regulatory hurdles on drone delivery.

01 Sep 2020 2:19 PM

“Mark Zuckerberg is happy to let Facebook be a tool to spread misinformation and fake news, but is apparently fine with Facebook dropping real news altogether,” John Stanton, co-founder of the Save Journalism Project, said in a statement. “Regulators need to reign in the tech giants’ total domination of the online marketplace before it’s too late.” (Photo | Pixabay - PhotoMIX-Company)

Facebook threatens to throw out news from platform after Australia asks it to pay publishers

The move came after the deadline for negotiations with publishers ended on August 31.

01 Sep 2020 1:23 PM

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Sanjaya Baru