Techmeme
April 4, 2020, 10:20 PM

Top News

Zack Whittaker / TechCrunch:
Zoom apologizes for routing some calls made in N. America through China, says it “mistakenly” allowed Chinese data centers to accept calls due to traffic spike  —  Hours after security researchers at Citizen Lab reported that some Zoom calls were routed through China …
New York Times:
Analysis: thousands of people are organizing via private group chats, message boards, Twitter, Instagram, more to execute coordinated “Zoombombing” campaigns  —  Zoom, the videoconferencing app, has become a target for harassment and abuse coordinated in private off-platform chats.
Josh Constine / TechCrunch:
Zoom will require passwords to enter calls via Meeting ID and will turn on Waiting Rooms by default to prevent trolls from disrupting calls, starting April 5  —  Zoom is making some drastic changes to prevent rampant abuse as trolls attack publicly shared video calls.
Alex Konrad / Forbes:
Micah Lee / The Intercept:
Jonathan Shieber / TechCrunch:
US Small Business Administration issues new guidance for the $350B stimulus program that still seems to exclude most VC-backed startups  —  Under new guidance issued by the Small Business Administration it seems non-profits and faith-based groups can apply for the Paycheck Protection Program loans designed …
Zac Hall / 9to5Mac:
Sources: Apple is in the process of acquiring the California-based VR startup NextVR in a deal valued around $100M  —  It's no secret that Apple has ambitious plans for augmented reality and a future AR-focused headset.  Apple is practically building the platform for its future headset out in the open with ARKit.
Jim Waterson / The Guardian:
Telecom engineers, considered essential workers in the UK, are facing harassment from anti-5G conspiracy mongers, linking the deployment of 5G to coronavirus  —  EE suspects telephone mast engulfed by fire in Birmingham was an arson attack as celebrities claim Covid-19 caused by new network
Dieter Bohn / The Verge:
Apple's deal with Amazon to allow the Prime Video app to process some in-app payments on its own shows how arbitrary, unfair, and outdated App Store rules are  —  Apple and Amazon very, very quietly unveiled a monumental app deal this week, without fanfare or, sadly, much in the way of transparency.
Andrey Kuzmin / Reuters:
Report: Russia delays the implementation of a law banning devices not pre-installed with Russian software, by six months until January 1, 2021  —  MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia on Tuesday pushed back legislation that would require all smartphones, computers and smart TV sets sold in Russia …
Casey Newton / The Verge:
Google uses aggregated anonymized location data from 131 countries to show which places are complying with social distancing and which aren't  —  New COVID-19 mobility reports show changes in traffic to stores, parks, transit stations, and more  —  Google is using location data gathered …
Financial Times:
China's efforts to track COVID-19 cases using personal data has been messy, partly due to sporadic coordination between different agencies and local governments  —  Efforts to track cases have been haphazard but technology companies face pressure to hand over information

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More News

David McCabe / New York Times:
Abhilash Kumar / Counterpoint Research:
Aliya Chaudhry / The Verge:

Earlier Picks

Anthony Ha / TechCrunch:
Reuters:
Zac Hall / 9to5Mac: