Techmeme
December 18, 2020, 4:15 PM

Top News

Brad Smith / Microsoft On the Issues:
Microsoft identified 40+ customers targeted in the SolarWinds hack, 80% in the US, says the attack is “ongoing” and calls for a global cybersecurity response  —  The final weeks of a challenging year have proven even more difficult with the recent exposure of the world's latest serious nation-state cyberattack.
Reuters:
An analysis of publicly available web records shows SolarWinds hackers accessed the networks at Cox Communications and the local government in Pima County, AZ  —  LONDON (Reuters) - Suspected Russian hackers accessed the systems of a U.S. internet provider and a county government in Arizona …
Washington Post:
CISA issues an alert that says evidence suggests attackers used malware to access US systems, beyond SolarWinds vulnerabilities, but offers no other details  —  Federal investigators reported Thursday on evidence of previously unknown tactics for penetrating government computer networks …
Catalin Cimpanu / ZDNet:
Microsoft says compromised SolarWinds apps were on its networks but that no customer data was stolen; it denies report hackers used its systems to attack others  —  Microsoft denies that hackers pivoted to production systems and abused its software to attack customers.
Politico:
Scott Simmie / DroneDJ:
China-based drone maker DJI is among the companies the US Commerce Department has added to its blacklist  —  An updated “Entity List” is bad news for the world's largest drone manufacturer.  DJI has been put in the company of Huawei and others, a move that will have negative consequences for the firm.
Reuters:
US to add ~80 more Chinese companies and affiliates, including SMIC, to the trade blacklist  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is set to add dozens of Chinese companies, including the country's top chipmaker SMIC, to a trade blacklist on Friday, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday.
Jay Peters / The Verge:
Sony is removing Cyberpunk 2077 from PlayStation Store until further notice, and offering full refunds to people who bought it, amid reports of it being buggy  —  You can request a refund now  —  Sony is pulling Cyberpunk 2077 from the PlayStation Store and offering full refunds for anyone …
Bloomberg:
Sources: Microsoft is working on in-house designs for chips to run its cloud servers and Surface PCs  —  Microsoft Corp. is working on in-house processor designs for use in server computers that run the company's cloud services, adding to an industrywide effort to reduce reliance …
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Tim Hardwick / MacRumors:
Apple clarifies power-saving modes of AirPods Max, says they enter low power mode after 5 minutes of non-use and ultralow power state after 18 hours in the case  —  When Apple unveiled AirPods Max last week, it revealed that they don't come with an on/off power button, but instead enter an …
Jonathan Shieber / TechCrunch:
H1, a professional networking platform for healthcare workers, raises $58M Series B co-led by Menlo Ventures and IVP  —  The idea sounds almost too simple.  Create a version of Linkedin that's specifically for the healthcare industry, where professionals can find out not just who has what credentials …
More: IVP
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Amazon launches group video and audio calling for up to seven participants on Echo devices  —  It's also coming soon to the Alexa app  —  Amazon is launching a new group video or audio calling feature for Echo devices today, just in time for the holidays.
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Twitter launches Spaces, its Clubhouse-like service, in private beta on iOS, limited to select individuals, largely from under-represented backgrounds  —  Last month, Twitter announced it would soon begin testing a new social experience on its platforms involving audio-only chat rooms …

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More News

Russ Frushtick / Polygon:
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Earlier Picks

Jeff John Roberts / Fortune:
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