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February 21, 2021, 7:40 PM
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| 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 and Slashdot
Tweets: @craigsilverman, @juddlegum, @juddlegum, @juddlegum, @egkeller, @adamcbest, @jason_kint, @donie, @surlybassey, @davidmackau, @jason_kint, @blackamazon, @mollyjongfast, @cwarzel, @brij, @markruffalo, @heathergtv, @parkermolloy, @anthony, @slpng_giants, @jesselehrich, @chastaylor, @bruce_arthur, @aaschapiro, @gilmored85, and @philipoconnor
| 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:
The Register, The Verge, CNN, Mashable, TechSpot, Patently Apple, Slashdot, AppleInsider, Apple Terminal, 9to5Mac, and MacRumors
Tweets: @binitamshah, @reybango, @johnkoetsier, @freethesandbox, @macroliter, @profwoodward, @kimzetter, @kimzetter, and @kimzetter
| David Uberti / Wall Street Journal: |
Accellion's file transfer software hack, which affected Jones Day, also impacted New Zealand's central bank, 1M unemployment benefits applicants in WA, and more — Like the SolarWinds breach, the incident highlights supply-chain vulnerabilities — The hack of software provider Accellion USA LLC …
More:
BleepingComputer, PR Newswire, KIRO, WXIX-TV, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, LawStreetMedia, and Forbes
Tweets: @dodegaard and @knash99
| 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:
Gizmodo, Insider, gHacks Technology News, MacRumors, SlashGear, Digital Trends, iPhone Hacks, AppleInsider, Mashable, and Pocketnow
Tweets: @tariqkrim and @raamana_
| 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, @aditi_muses, @wsj, @markstenberg3, @roncharles, @jeffjarvis, @mims, @marklittlenews, @mims, @maxabrahms, @mims, @wiczipedia, and @shenlulushen
| Ashlee Vance / Bloomberg: |
Profile of Youyang Gu, a 27-year-old data scientist whose ML model most accurately predicted COVID-19 death totals which the CDC used on its forecasting website — Spring 2020 brought with it the arrival of the celebrity statistical model. As the public tried to gauge how big a deal …
More:
Newcomer
| Wall Street Journal: |
Sources: Toast, a cloud-based restaurant management software provider, is planning an IPO that could value it at ~$20B; in Feb. 2020 it was valued at $4.9B — Toast taps Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase to underwrite a possible listing later this year — Toast Inc. is planning …
Tweets: @edbott
| Ian Carlos Campbell / The Verge: |
App Annie: Australian Broadcasting Corporation's news app was briefly the most downloaded app on the AU App Store after Facebook's news ban and is now second — Readers may be going directly to the source — The Australian Broadcast Company's ABC News app shot to the top of Apple's App Store charts …
More:
MIT Technology Review, MUO, iPhone in Canada Blog, Vox, OneZero , Techdirt, and Micky
Tweets: @justinhendrix, @caseynewton, @umabp, @producing2power, @justinhendrix, @informor, @justinhendrix, @eileenguo, @freakboy3742, @cterp23, @jamescridland, @steipete, @chrisapplegate, @jesseweigert, @glenngabe, @carissaveliz, @soloversal, @juliepsamuels, @jeunj, @sarthakgh, @glenngabe, @stanfordcis, @gumleafwhistler, @paulbrislen, @macaulaybalkan, @neilwrites, @cameronwilson, @chrismessina, @nathanblawrence, @macotani, @neerajka, @umabp, @brianboyer, @brooklynmarie, @umabp, @umabp, @rasmus_kleis, @karlbode, @dhh, and @umabp
| Sheldon Chanel / The Guardian: |
More:
BIG by Matt Stoller. Tweets: @dailypostdan, @glynmoody, @susanamet, @ahawatson, @politicoryan, @robpegoraro, @bendohertycorro, @matthewstoller, @tmcw, @tmcw, and @tmcw
| 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:
TechCrunch, Gizmodo, The Australian, Sky News, Mashable, The Verge, The Hill, Wired, Bloomberg, Android Central, and Input
Tweets: @mmitchell_ai, @erin, @timnitgebru, @kishau, @pedro_bcn_mx, @ant_pruitt, @rvaithianathan, @hkanji, @techgirlwonder, @telegraphtech, @raminskibba, @k_chirp, @evanmiltenburg, @elliotkoss, @dinabass, @kentbye, @jmesole, @zoeschiffer, @bloombergquint, @wired, @androidcentral, @rabble, @dimillian, @inafried, @aweiss, @histoftech, @timnitgebru, @gadgetlab, @wired, @scottthurm, @inafried, @kimcrayton1, @timnitgebru, @jamesrbuk, @azeem, @devindra, @timnitgebru, @jsnell, @timnitgebru, @lizthegrey, @shannoncoulter, @daiwaka, @nitashatiku, @dinabass, @anna_c_kramer, @aaschapiro, @axios, and @shannonvallor
| Anthony Ha / TechCrunch: |
Abound, a wholesale marketplace for both e-commerce and brick-and-mortar retailers that launched in Oct. 2019, raises $22.9M Series A led by Left Lane Capital — Abound, an online marketplace that helps independent retailers stock their shelves with new products from up-and-coming brands …
More:
FinSMEs and PYMNTS.com
| 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.| 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
| Shoshanna Solomon / The Times of Israel: |
Israel-based Earnix, which helps banks and insurers provide personalized real-time offers to clients, raises $75M at a $1B pre-money valuation — Funds raised will help startup access new markets, finetune software that helps banks and insurers offer clients personalized pricing and products
More:
Bloomberg, Globes Online, and CTech
Sponsor Posts
Google:
Gemini 2.5 Pro: Our most intelligent AI model — Gemini 2.5 Pro is now available, with thinking capabilities, enhanced performance, and improved accuracy. Try it at no cost in the Gemini app.
Gemini 2.5 Pro: Our most intelligent AI model — Gemini 2.5 Pro is now available, with thinking capabilities, enhanced performance, and improved accuracy. Try it at no cost in the Gemini app.
UiPath:
UiPath Unveils 10 Innovations that Will Shape the Agentic Future — Orchestration engine, API workflows and agentic testing among key features of new UiPath Platform™ for agentic automation, launched at UiPath DevCon 2025
UiPath Unveils 10 Innovations that Will Shape the Agentic Future — Orchestration engine, API workflows and agentic testing among key features of new UiPath Platform™ for agentic automation, launched at UiPath DevCon 2025
Zoho:
Pay bosses in units of purpose — On average, it takes just 14 seconds for candidates to decide whether to apply for a job. How can you craft job descriptions that truly connect — from entry-level to C-suite?
Pay bosses in units of purpose — On average, it takes just 14 seconds for candidates to decide whether to apply for a job. How can you craft job descriptions that truly connect — from entry-level to C-suite?
IDrive:
Protecting your Cloud Applications Data — Backing up Office 365, Google Workspace, Dropbox & Box data is critical to preventing data loss or corruption, complying with laws and avoiding critical downtime in case of a disaster.
Protecting your Cloud Applications Data — Backing up Office 365, Google Workspace, Dropbox & Box data is critical to preventing data loss or corruption, complying with laws and avoiding critical downtime in case of a disaster.Featured Podcasts
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Apple Playing Games Again
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How to Reinvent a Magazine, with Wired's Katie Drummond
Media and tech aren't just intersecting - they're fully intertwined. To understand how those worlds work, Peter Kafka talks to industry leaders, upstarts and observers.
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Azeem Azhar's Exponential View:
GitHub CEO on what AI means for developer salaries, SaaS, and more
Azeem Azhar explores how AI and exponential technologies are shaping our future.
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Spotlight On:
*Live from Accel's 2025 People Summit* Behind the Netflix Culture Deck with Patty McCord and Jessica Neal
A podcast from Accel about how companies are built, from the people doing the building.
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Decoder with Nilay Patel:
Google CEO Sundar Pichai on the future of search, AI agents, and selling Chrome
A show from the Verge about big ideas - and other problems.
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Invest Like the Best:
Graham Weaver - Building Alpine
The leading destination to learn about business and investing. We do this by showcasing exceptional talent and ideas.
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Boing Boing. Tweets: @haritho, @militarymonitor, @watchingmyanmar, @arvindhickman, @iainlevine, @walone4, @moui, and @donk_enby
| Erika Hayasaki / New York Times: |
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GeekWire and Protocol
Tweets: @jerseejess, @progintl, @dealbook, @r0wdy_, @ungoldman, @vanishingcorp, @gideonresnick, @benwerd, @clairegilch, @rahrahraina, @quatoria, @hal_coi, @greenhousenyt, @sarahljaffe, and @quinnypig
| Chris Welch / The Verge: |
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music.avclub.com, Gizmodo, Variety, GameSpot, Engadget, IGN, Kotaku, and Mashable
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