Techmeme
March 3, 2021, 12:35 PM

Top News

Mitchell Clark / The Verge:
Google promises it will not build alternate identifiers to track users after phasing out third-party tracking cookies  —  Google says it wants a ‘privacy-first web’  —  Google is slowly phasing out third-party tracking cookies, and today, it's making it clear that it won't just replace …
Zack Whittaker / TechCrunch:
Microsoft warns users a new Chinese state-sponsored threat actor is exploiting four previously undisclosed zero days in Exchange Server; patches are available  —  Microsoft is warning customers that a new China state-sponsored threat actor is exploiting four previously undisclosed security flaws …
Natasha Lomas / TechCrunch:
Brave unveils a privacy-focused search engine, as it acquires an open source search engine developed by the team behind the Cliqz anti-tracking browser  —  Brave, the privacy-focused browser co-founded by ex-Mozilla CEO Brendan Eich, is getting ready to launch an own-brand search engine for desktop and mobile.
Joseph Cox / VICE:
Emails show US surveillance company Flock has rolled out a nationwide network of cameras with AI-powered license plate reading tech via 500+ police departments  —  Hundreds of pages of emails obtained by Motherboard show how little-known company Flock has expanded from surveilling individual neighborhoods …
New York Times:
Colleges requiring virus-screening tech, from virus symptom-checking apps to temperature check stations and wearables, have not rigorously studied if it works  —  Many schools that use fever scanners and symptom checkers have not rigorously studied if the technology has slowed the spread of Covid-19 on campuses.
Dell Cameron / Gizmodo:
Facebook Oversight Board member told UK Parliament that the panel feels constrained when reviewing decisions on a case-by-case basis, may seek algorithm access  —  Facebook's so-called “Supreme Court” is reportedly seeking the company's permission to examine the underlying machine-learning models …
Chris Metinko / Crunchbase News:
Open source SQL database developer Yugabyte raises $48M Series C led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, nine months after a $30M Series B  —  Sunnyvale, California-based SQL database developer Yugabyte secured a $48 million funding round after seeing increased traction with large enterprise customers …
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Microsoft unveils Microsoft Mesh, a mixed-reality platform on Azure, and demos a meeting service to let users join virtual rooms using devices like HoloLens 2  —  Mesh is Microsoft's vision for the future of mixed reality  —  Last week, Microsoft's Alex Kipman, the inventor of Kinect and HoloLens …
Mary Jo Foley / ZDNet:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Sony says the PlayStation Store will stop offering movie and TV show purchases and rentals on Aug. 31, citing users' preference for video streaming services  —  As of Aug. 31, 2021, the PlayStation Store will stop offering movie and TV show purchases and rentals.
Chaim Gartenberg / The Verge:
Amazon quietly updated its app icon, changing the appearance of the ripped packaging tape after some drew comparisons of it to Adolf Hitler's mustache  —  The company's icon gets a less problematic new look  —  Amazon has quietly rolled out a slight update to its new app icon that it debuted …
Dave Gershgorn / OneZero :
A look at “Sharp Eyes”, a computerized video surveillance program that aims to surveil 100% of Chinese public spaces and relies largely on reports from citizens  —  The program turns neighbors into agents of the surveillance state  —  One of China's largest …
Kari Paul / The Guardian:
Avaaz study: while 70% of misinformation in English on Facebook ends up flagged with warning labels, just 30% of comparable misinformation in Spanish is flagged  —  Researchers say Spanish-language content is less often and less quickly moderated for misinformation than English content
Chris O'Brien / VentureBeat:
Cutover, which lets teams plan, orchestrate, and analyze complex work, raises $35M led by Eldridge, bringing its total funding to $55M  —  Join Transform 2021 for the most important themes in enterprise AI & Data.  Learn more.  —  Executives are increasingly feeling the pressure of being forced …
Cecilia D'Anastasio / Wired:
In its first transparency report, Twitch says it saw a 40% rise in the number of channels in 2020, a 70% drop in reports of harassment via Twitch DMs, and more  —  The decade-old streaming platform has for the first time detailed its efforts to safeguard its user base in one place.
Bloomberg:
Intel ordered to pay $2.18B after a federal court jury in TX found it infringed two patents once owned by NXP Semiconductors and now owned by VLSI Technology  —  - Intel had claimed royalty demands of VLSI were ‘outrageous’  — NXP would get a share of any damage award, Intel lawyer said

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