Microsoft took nearly two months to issue a patch after hearing of Exchange Server's flaws, even as a mass-hack unfolded; some of the flaws were 10+ years old  —  Sometimes when a complex story takes us by surprise or knocks us back on our heels, it pays to revisit the events in a somewhat linear fashion.

EU approves Microsoft's $7.5B deal to acquire ZeniMax Media, the parent company of Bethesda Softworks, without conditions  —  Microsoft will have 23 first-party game studios  —  The European Commission has approved Microsoft's $7.5 billion deal to acquire ZeniMax Media …

Source: Discord generated $130M in revenue in 2020, up from $45M in 2019, and isn't profitable; CEO Jason Citron says its focus will be subscriptions, not ads  —  The chat startup is leaning on its millions of passionate users to fuel growth after nearly tripling revenue last year

The new Google Pay app that came out of beta this week replaces a perfectly fine service for P2P users with a less-functional service that has more fees  —  For P2P users, the new app has fewer features, is less convenient, and has more fees.  —  The new Google Pay app came out of beta this week …

PayPal says it acquired Tel Aviv-based Curv, which facilitates secure storage of cryptocurrency, source says for nearly $200M  —  PayPal announced on Monday it has acquired Curv, a Tel Aviv-based startup that uses a novel form of cryptography to safeguard customers' stashes of Bitcoin and other digital assets.

GSMA says Mobile World Congress Barcelona will go ahead in June, with plans for up to 50,000 in-person attendees  —  - MWC Barcelona is industry body's main source of revenue  — Gathering was among first major Covid-related cancelations  —  The global mobile industry is planning …

McAfee announces the sale of its enterprise business to private equity firm Symphony Technology Group in an all-cash deal worth $4B  —  Join Transform 2021 for the most important themes in enterprise AI & Data.  Learn more.  —  McAfee is selling its enterprise cybersecurity unit …

The NYT editorial board calls for federal US privacy legislation mandating opt in as default on data collection practices by tech companies like Facebook  —  Using an opt-in approach will help curb the excesses of Big Tech.  —  The editorial board is a group of opinion journalists whose views …

Apple partners with Common Sense Media, which specializes in age-based content reviews, to curate collections of podcasts for kids in the US  —  Coming to Apple Podcasts in the US  —  Apple is making it easier for parents to find podcasts to listen to with their kids.

Bitcoin trading and custody services provider NYDIG raises $200M from Morgan Stanley and others, bringing its total raised to $305M  —  Quick Take  — Bitcoin trading and custody services provider NYDIG announced Monday that it raised $200 million in a growth capital round.

Secureworks: a second threat actor targeting SolarWinds flaws, by adding backdoors via Orion bugs, has characteristics that suggest the group is based in China  —  Back in December 2020, days after the massive SolarWinds supply chain attack came to light, Microsoft warned …

Sources: US plans attacks on Russian networks and new sanctions, in retaliation for SolarWinds hack; Biden curbed Cyber Command's offensive leeway in Jan. 20 EO  —  The proliferation of cyberattacks by rivals is presenting a challenge to the Biden administration as it seeks to deter intrusions on government and corporate systems.