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February 21, 2021, 12:30 PM
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| Dan Goodin / Ars Technica: |
Researchers discover macOS malware dubbed “Silver Sparrow” on at least 30K Macs, which includes a native M1 version and leverages the Installer JavaScript API — With no payload, analysts are struggling to learn what this mature malware does. — A previously undetected piece …
Source:
Red Canary. More:
Patently Apple, AppleInsider, Apple Terminal, Slashdot, 9to5Mac, and MacRumors
Tweets: @binitamshah, @kimzetter, @kimzetter, @freethesandbox, @macroliter, @profwoodward, and @kimzetter
| Manish Singh / TechCrunch: |
WhatsApp says users who haven't accepted its new privacy policy by May 15 can receive calls and notifications “for a short time”, but not read or send messages — WhatsApp said earlier this week that it will allow users to review its planned privacy update at “their own pace” …
More:
AppleInsider, Insider, gHacks Technology News, Digital Trends, SlashGear, MacRumors, iPhone Hacks, and Pocketnow
Tweets: @raamana_ and @tariqkrim
| BuzzFeed News: |
Sources: Zuckerberg's personal intervention to reduce the severity of Alex Jones' ban in 2019 slowed down Facebook's efforts to deal with dangerous content — In April 2019, Facebook was preparing to ban one of the internet's most notorious spreaders of misinformation and hate, Infowars founder Alex Jones.
More:
Washington Post. Tweets: @craigsilverman, @donie, @chastaylor, @philipoconnor, @surlybassey, @davidmackau, @blackamazon, @heathergtv, @anthony, @egkeller, @gilmored85, @cwarzel, @parkermolloy, and @jesselehrich
| Ina Fried / Axios: |
Margaret Mitchell, co-lead of Google's Ethical AI team, says she has been fired; Google says an employee conduct review confirmed multiple policy violations — Margaret Mitchell, the co-lead of Google's Ethical AI team, says that the company has fired her following an investigation into her use of corporate email.
More:
Gizmodo, The Verge, Sky News, Wired, Mashable, Bloomberg, Android Central, The Guardian, New York Times, TechCrunch, Input, Fortune, VentureBeat, Forbes, CNET, CNN, and The Next Web
Tweets: @mmitchell_ai, @dinabass, @kishau, @pedro_bcn_mx, @ant_pruitt, @rvaithianathan, @hkanji, @telegraphtech, @raminskibba, @k_chirp, @elliotkoss, @evanmiltenburg, @kentbye, @zoeschiffer, @bloombergquint, @wired, @androidcentral, @rabble, @dimillian, @aweiss, @gadgetlab, @wired, @scottthurm, @inafried, @kimcrayton1, @timnitgebru, @jamesrbuk, @azeem, @devindra, @timnitgebru, @jsnell, @timnitgebru, @lizthegrey, @shannoncoulter, @daiwaka, @nitashatiku, and @dinabass
| Ina Fried / Axios: |
More:
OneZero , TechCrunch, The Hill, Bloomberg, Engadget, Insider, Protocol, CNET, and The Verge
Tweets: @timnitgebru, @techgirlwonder, @mchardcastle, @inafried, @timnitgebru, @jmesole, @dinabass, @lilahsturges, @timnitgebru, @histoftech, @timnitgebru, @kimcrayton1, @timnitgebru, @timnitgebru, @azeem, @timnitgebru, @kimcrayton1, @timnitgebru, @timnitgebru, @ohthatflo, @timnitgebru, @anna_c_kramer, @timnitgebru, @timnitgebru, @aaschapiro, @stephentyrone, @dlowd, @shanavwhite, @axios, @inafried, @shannonvallor, @inafried, and @inafried
| Rich Mogull / TidBITS: |
Apple's new Platform Security user guide follows the industry trend of growing vertical hardware, software, and cloud integration to improve ecosystem security — Even as a security professional, it's easy to get lost within the digital covers of Apple's latest Platform Security user guide.| Reuters: |
Facebook deletes the main page of the Myanmar military for “repeated violations of Community Standards prohibiting incitement of violence and coordinating harm” — (Reuters) - Facebook on Sunday deleted the main page of the Myanmar military under it standards prohibiting …
Tweets: @haritho, @militarymonitor, @watchingmyanmar, @arvindhickman, @iainlevine, @walone4, @moui, and @donk_enby
| Christopher Mims / Wall Street Journal: |
For many services, moderating content has become an existential crisis; some services are even establishing rules that pre-empt the need for costly moderation — Content moderation rules used to be a question of taste. Now, they can determine a service's prospects for survival.
Tweets: @mims, @wiczipedia, @roncharles, @mims, @maxabrahms, @aditi_muses, @marklittlenews, @mims, @wsj, @markstenberg3, @mims, and @jeffjarvis
| Mary Ann Azevedo / TechCrunch: |
Titan, which offers online investment management services to both accredited and unaccredited investors, raises $12.5M Series A led by General Catalyst — Titan, a startup that is building a retail investment management platform aimed at millennials, has closed on $12.5 million in a Series …
More:
Titan and FinSMEs
Tweets: @aplusk, @bayareawriter, @ycombinator, @nkatragadda, @jta4t, @titanvest, and @bingchen
| Chris Welch / The Verge: |
Twitch replaced the audio for Metallica's “For Whom The Bell Tolls” with folk music during the band's BlizzCon livestream, presumably to avoid a DMCA notice — The Twitch Gaming stream gave us this beautiful moment — Despite its later-than-usual timing and going completely virtual …
More:
music.avclub.com, Gizmodo, GameSpot, Variety, Engadget, Kotaku, IGN, Mashable, and dexerto.com
Tweets: @slasher, @dexerto, @grindheadjim, @jimmforce, @egoraptor, @starfire2258, @thehermitdruid, @prairiephlox, @deathdrive905, @troywho, @queenyeet20, and @wardcarroll
| Sheldon Chanel / The Guardian: |
Facebook's Australia ban is acute for people in places like Fiji, who rely on phone plans with cheap Facebook access as going to news websites costs more data — Media experts fear that communities reliant on the site for information will suffer significant impact
More:
BIG by Matt Stoller. Tweets: @dailypostdan, @glynmoody, @susanamet, @ahawatson, @politicoryan, @robpegoraro, @bendohertycorro, @matthewstoller, @tmcw, @tmcw, and @tmcw
| Ian Carlos Campbell / The Verge: |
More:
Vox, Micky, Social Media Today, and Insider
Tweets: @umabp, @caseynewton, @glenngabe, @eileenguo, @freakboy3742, @cterp23, @jamescridland, @steipete, @chrisapplegate, @jesseweigert, @carissaveliz, @soloversal, @juliepsamuels, @jeunj, @sarthakgh, @glenngabe, @stanfordcis, @gumleafwhistler, @chrismessina, @paulbrislen, @macaulaybalkan, @neilwrites, @cameronwilson, @nathanblawrence, @macotani, @neerajka, @umabp, @brianboyer, @brooklynmarie, @umabp, @umabp, @rasmus_kleis, @karlbode, @dhh, and @umabp
| Reuters: |
Brazil-based Descomplica, which offers online undergraduate courses and test prep for university and civil service entrance exams, raises ~$83M led by SoftBank — A group of investors led by Softbank Group has invested 450 million reais ($83 million) in Brazilian test-prep startup Descomplica …
| Andrew Thurman / Cointelegraph: |
Synthetix, which develops a DeFi protocol for trading derivatives, raises $12M after three VC firms purchased its native tokens directly from its DAO treasury — As the community debates VCs participating in DAOs, Synthetix welcomes three new community members
More:
CoinDesk, InsideBitcoins.com, and FinSMEs
| Erika Hayasaki / New York Times: |
An in-depth look at Amazon's ubiquitous presence in California's Inland Empire, with 16 facilities, as COVID-19 spurs Amazon workers nationwide to organize — Covid-19 has cemented the e-commerce giant's hold on the economy — but it has also spurred employees all around the country to organize.
More:
GeekWire and Protocol
Tweets: @jerseejess, @progintl, @dealbook, @r0wdy_, @ungoldman, @vanishingcorp, @gideonresnick, @benwerd, @clairegilch, @rahrahraina, @quatoria, @hal_coi, @greenhousenyt, @sarahljaffe, and @quinnypig
Sponsor Posts
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Cloudflare:
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Zoho:
Stop re-entering Shopify order details in Zoho CRM — This is a guest blog from Xapplets (Zeeyes AI Inc).Here's a scene that plays out in many growing Shopify stores every day: a customer places an order …
Stop re-entering Shopify order details in Zoho CRM — This is a guest blog from Xapplets (Zeeyes AI Inc).Here's a scene that plays out in many growing Shopify stores every day: a customer places an order …
IDrive:
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IDrive Autonomy: low-cost L2+ driver assistance with AI — L2+ driver assistance with a scalable AI stack built for automotive companies and laying the foundation for the autonomous future.Featured Podcasts
Big Technology Podcast:
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Hard Fork:
The A.I. Mob That Attacked Hugging Face + METR's Ajeya Cotra
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Sources:
Sam Altman on OpenAI's next model and the AI backlash
Candid conversations with the leaders shaping what's next in AI and the broader tech industry. Hosted by Alex Heath, who has covered Silicon Valley for more than a decade.
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Connecting the Unconnected: Doreen Bogdan-Martin
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