Author: iMaster

Author: iMaster

Major Swedish Supermarket Chain Hit by Cyberattack
07/07/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

One of Sweden’s biggest supermarket chains said Saturday it had to temporarily close around 800 stores nationwide after a cyberattack blocked access to its checkouts.”One of our subcontractors was hit by a digital attack, and that’s why our checkouts aren’t working any more,” Coop Sweden, which accounts for around 20 percent of the sector, said

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Holiday-Weekend Ransomware Attack Leaves Companies Scrambling
07/07/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

Businesses around the world rushed Saturday to contain a ransomware attack that has paralyzed their computer networks, a situation complicated in the U.S. by offices lightly staffed at the start of the Fourth of July holiday weekend. It’s not yet known how many organizations have been hit by demands that they pay a ransom in order

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Asia Industry Group Warns Privacy Law Changes May Force Tech Firms to Quit Hong Kong
07/07/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

An Asian industry group that includes Google, Facebook and Twitter has warned that tech companies could stop offering their services in Hong Kong if the Chinese territory proceeds with plans to change privacy laws. The warning came in a letter sent by the Asia Internet Coalition, of which all three companies, in addition to Apple

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Up to 1,500 Businesses Affected by Ransomware Attack, US Firm’s CEO Says
07/07/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

Between 800 and 1,500 businesses around the world have been affected by a ransomware attack centered on U.S. information technology firm Kaseya, its chief executive said Monday. Fred Voccola, the Florida-based company’s CEO, said in an interview that it was hard to estimate the precise impact of Friday’s attack because those hit were mainly customers of

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Breakthrough Invention Aims to Eliminate Drunk Driving
07/07/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

A breakthrough safety feature being developed for vehicles is designed to potentially save the 10,000 lives lost to drunk driving in the U.S. each year. VOA’s Julie Taboh has more. Camera: Mike Burke    Footage: DADSS Program, WMUR …

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Chinese Social Media Giant WeChat Shuts LGBT Accounts
07/07/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

 China’s most popular social media service has deleted accounts on LGBT topics run by university students and nongovernment groups, prompting concern the ruling Communist Party is tightening control over gay and lesbian content.WeChat sent account holders a notice they violated rules but gave no details, according to the founder of an LGBT group, who asked

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Ukrainian Member of Cybercrime Gang Sentenced in US
06/24/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

A Ukrainian hacker was sentenced to seven years in prison for his role in a notorious cybercrime group that stole millions of credit and debit card details from across the United States, the Department of Justice said Thursday.Andrii Kolpakov, 33, was also ordered to pay $2.5 million in restitution after pleading guilty to one count

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US Lawmakers in Marathon Debate on Big Tech Regulation Bills
06/24/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

U.S. lawmakers debated into the night Wednesday over details of legislation aimed at curbing the power of Big Tech firms with a sweeping reform of antitrust laws.The House Judiciary Committee clashed over a series of bills with potentially massive implications for large online platforms and consumers who use them.The legislation could force an overhaul of

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McAfee Antivirus Software Creator Found Dead in Spanish Prison
06/24/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

John McAfee, creator of the McAfee antivirus software, has been found dead in his cell in a jail near Barcelona, a government official told The Associated Press on Wednesday.   Hours earlier, a Spanish court issued a preliminary ruling in favor of the 75-year-old tycoon’s extradition to the United States to face tax-related criminal charges.

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Cyberbullying Trial Tests French Tools to Fight Online Abuse
06/23/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

A landmark cyberbullying trial in Paris, involving thousands of threats against a teenager who savaged Islam in online posts, is blazing a trail in efforts to punish and prevent online abuse.It has also raised uncomfortable questions about freedom of expression, freedom to criticize a religion, and respect for France’s millions of Muslims. But most of

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EU Investigates Google’s Advertising Business
06/22/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

The European Union announced Tuesday it is once again investigating Google for what could be anti-competitive activities in digital advertising.The investigation will try to determine if Google is harming competitors by restricting third party access to user data that could better target advertising.”We are concerned that Google has made it harder for rival online advertising

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STEM Jobs Lead List of Fastest-Growing Occupations
06/22/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

The number of STEM jobs — science, technology, engineering and mathematics — have sped past the number of non-STEM jobs by three times since 2000. And experts say there might not be enough graduates in those fields to fill the jobs.  “Look around at how many times a day you touch a computer, tablet, phone … these industries are accelerating so much that

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Disruptions in Wi-Fi Waves Could Help Catch Trespassers
06/22/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

Home security companies often rely on cameras and motion sensors to catch trespassers, but as VOA’s Tina Trinh discovers, Wi-Fi signals can be a less intrusive way to monitor activity. Produced by: Tina Trinh      …

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STEM Jobs Lead Fastest-Growing Occupations
06/22/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

The number of STEM jobs — science, technology, engineering and mathematics — have sped past the number of non-STEM jobs by three times since 2000. And experts say there might not be enough graduates in those fields to fill the jobs.  “Look around at how many times a day you touch a computer, tablet, phone … these industries are accelerating so much that

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Takeaways From Biden-Putin ‘Cyber Summit’
06/18/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

Cybersecurity experts have been poring over the transcripts from Wednesday’s news conferences in Geneva to determine whether the U.S.-Russia summit will produce real progress in halting a wave of high-profile ransomware attacks. For most, the answer is: It’s too soon to tell. In the run-up to the meeting between President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin,

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Facial Recognition Technology Solves Crimes, but at What Cost?
06/17/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

Even as big tech companies such as Amazon limit their sale of facial recognition software to law enforcement, one company has not: Clearview AI, a facial recognition search engine that contains three billion images scraped from the internet.    More than 3,000 U.S. law enforcement agencies employ the software, which uses an advanced algorithm to identify

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Facial Recognition Technology Plays Important Law Enforcement Role, but at What Cost?
06/17/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

Facial recognition technology is playing an increasingly important role in helping law enforcement with criminal investigations, police say. But civil rights advocates are raising the alarm about its power and potential abuse of people’s privacy. VOA’s Julie Taboh has more …

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Biden’s New FTC Head Could Make Big Tech Sweat 
06/17/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

U.S. President Joe Biden’s unexpected decision to name a staunch antitrust advocate to lead the Federal Trade Commission has thrilled supporters of stronger regulation of the tech industry and has prompted predictions of regulatory overreach from representatives of some of the country’s largest internet companies.Lina Khan, 32, a professor at Columbia Law School prior to

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Internet Outages Briefly Disrupt Access to Websites, Apps
06/17/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

A wave of brief internet outages hit the websites and apps of dozens of financial institutions, airlines and other companies across the globe Thursday.The Hong Kong Stock Exchange said in a tweet Thursday afternoon Hong Kong time that its site was facing technical issues and that it was investigating. It said in another post 17

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NASA, ESA Astronauts Take Space Walk to Install Solar Panels on ISS
06/16/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

Astronauts from both the U.S. space agency, NASA, and the European Space Agency ((ESA)) left the International Space Station ((ISS)) Wednesday to begin a project to upgrade the floating laboratory’s solar panel power supply system.   NASA flight engineer Shane Kimbrough and ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet worked for several hours to install the first two

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MacKenzie Scott Donates $2.7 Billion to ‘Underfunded and Overlooked’ Causes
06/16/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott announced Tuesday that she has donated $2.7 billion to communities “that have been historically underfunded and overlooked.” “Because community-centered service is such a powerful catalyst and multiplier, we spent the first quarter of 2021 identifying and evaluating equity-oriented nonprofit teams working in areas that have been neglected,” Scott wrote in a blog

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Biden, Putin Brace for Possible Fight Over Ransomware
06/16/2021 iNews,iTechnology iMaster

As President Joe Biden prepares for his first meeting with Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Wednesday in Geneva, the White House says the threat of ransomware will be a “significant topic” of conversation between the two leaders.Until just a couple of years ago, ransomware was viewed largely as a financial crime, hardly an issue that would

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