Microsoft and Google disclose Speculative Store Bypass CPU flaw that exploits speculative execution and is similar to Spectre and Meltdown  —  New firmware updates are on the way  —  Microsoft and Google are jointly disclosing a new CPU security vulnerability that's similar to the Meltdown …

Adobe announces $1.68B deal to buy e-commerce platform Magento Commerce alongside a $8B common stock buyback program through 2021  —  - Company also announces $8 billion share repurchase plan  — Acquisition will help it compete against Salesforce, Oracle

Sources: Trump has rebuffed efforts to improve security around his phone use, has gone as long as five months without having phone checked by security experts  —  The president has kept features at risk for hacking and resisted efforts by staff to inspect the phones he uses for tweeting.

Google Photos is adding a new star-shaped Favorites button for your own photos starting today, and a heart-shaped Like button coming next week for shared photos  —  Twitter swapped out its Favorite star icon for an appreciation-focused heart icon instead, but Google Photos is embracing both icons with an update rolling out now.

Epic Games, maker of popular Fortnite, commits $100M over next 12 months to prize pools for the game's competitions, dwarfing other games' esports prize money  —  Epic Games had $100 million burning a hole in its proverbial pocket, and the company has decided to use that cash to begin building …

Acer to pre-install Alexa on its PC lineup, starting with Spin 5 laptops, and roll the feature out to compatible Acer models over the next few weeks  —  Acer announced this morning that it is the first to ship notebook PCs preinstalled with Amazon Alexa.  It won't be the last.

Microsoft launches SharePoint Spaces so users can view company content in mixed reality and says that 400K organizations now use SharePoint, up about 100% YoY  —  Microsoft today unveiled its latest vision for a mixed reality (MR) world with the launch of SharePoint Spaces …

Barack and Michelle Obama sign multiyear deal with Netflix to produce TV shows and films for the streaming service, from scripted series to documentaries  —  WASHINGTON — Former President Barack Obama formally announced on Monday a multiyear production deal with Netflix in which he and the former …

Researcher Karan Saini finds a bug in Comcast's website that leaks Xfinity users' info, including home address where the router is located and Wi-Fi credentials  —  Exclusive: A bug in Comcast's website leaks sensitive customer information.  —  A bug in Comcast's website used …

After last week's Google resignations, a look at how big tech firms' employees feel about their employers' defense contracts, from indifference to activism  —  FOR MONTHS, A growing faction of Google employees has tried to force the company to drop out of a controversial military program called Project Maven.

Comcast launches xFi Pods, its Wi-Fi extender devices nationwide, following its investment in mesh router maker Plume last year; a six pack will cost $199  —  Comcast today is officially launching its own Wi-Fi extender devices called xFi Pods that help to address problems with weak Wi-Fi signals …

Intel and Micron launch their jointly-developed QLC NAND flash memory, the first time the tech has reached market, trading write performance for lower cost  —  Intel and Micron are announcing today that their jointly-developed QLC NAND flash memory is now available, and Micron is now shipping …

Twitter risks ostracizing its longtime and more influential users by killing its native Mac app twice and squeezing 3rd-party apps to death via API changes  —  Twitter's old habits die hard  —  The new Tweetbot for Mac is good.  Very good, even.  But it's just short of great.

Instagram is testing a mid-feed alert that tells users they are caught up on all new posts from the past 48 hours  —  Without a chronological feed, it can be tough to tell if you've seen all the posts Instagram will show you.  That can lead to more of the compulsive, passive …

China, signaling thaw with US over trade, approved sale of Toshiba's lucrative microchip unit last week to a consortium led by Bain Capital  —  Chinese officials have finally approved Toshiba's sale of a majority stake in its lucrative microchip unit to an American-led group …

Facebook and Qualcomm partner to develop high-speed Terragraph WiFi for cities, will begin field trials in 2019 using 60GHz technology from Qualcomm  —  Facebook's plan to connect neighborhoods and businesses wirelessly, known as Terragraph, will begin field trials in 2019 using 60GHz technology …

Amazon debuts Marketplace Appstore, to provide 3rd-party tools for pricing, inventory, and advertising to professional sellers, rolling out in North America  —  The app store is part of Amazon's broader push to work more closely with developers of seller tools.  —  Amazon is creating another app store, but it's not for consumers.

Inside Project Indigo, the quiet info-sharing program between banks and US Cyber Command that helps the government respond quickly to online attacks  —  A secret information sharing agreement between the Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center (FS-ISAC) …

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin urges DOJ to review monopolies in tech after a 60 Minutes segment about Google's monopoly in search  —  - Mnuchin acknowledged that antitrust matters don't fall under his jurisdiction, but said someone ought to be looking.  — His comments come on the heels of a …

Sales automation startup Outreach raises $65M Series D led by Spark Capital, CEO says at $500M valuation, with SAP's Sapphire Ventures joining as a new investor  —  - The hot Seattle startup Outreach has raised another $65 million, bringing its total investment to $125 million at a valuation …