Techmeme: Recent cyberattacks on Iran's fuel distribution system and an Israeli LGBTQ dating site show that Iran-Israel cyberwar is impacting civilians on a large scale (New York Times)

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November 29, 2021, 9:05 AM

Top News

Financial Times:

Sources: UK's CMA is expected to block Meta's proposed acquisition of Giphy in the coming days — Move would be the first time the competition watchdog has reversed a Big Tech acquisition — The UK competition regulator is expected to block Meta's acquisition of online gif platform Giphy …

More: Reuters, Protocol, Insider, Coinspeaker, equalocean.com, City A.M., and The Economic Times

Tweets: @bergmayer, @mdudas, @ldignan, and @martinsfp

Christopher Mims / Wall Street Journal:

How “neo-conglomerates” like Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta replaced and outgrew industrial conglomerates like GE, Toshiba, and Johnson & Johnson — As General Electric and other old-school behemoths break up, Amazon, Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft and Meta are taking …

More: 9to5Mac. Tweets: @pkafka, @fmbutt, @brian_callaci, @sub8u, @halsinger, and @mims

Chance Miller / 9to5Mac:

Gurman: Apple is still working on a multi-device charger, other short and long-distance wireless chargers, and reverse wireless charging for its devices — Despite its failed AirPower experiment a few years ago, Apple is reportedly still working on a multi-device charger for its products.

Source: Bloomberg. More: MacRumors, iPhone Hacks, iPhone in Canada Blog, iMore, Mashable, Pocket-lint, Gizchina, AppleTrack, iThinkDifferent, Forbes, Philip Elmer‑DeWitt, and AppleInsider

Tweets: @markgurman and @joshuaswingle

Tom Lowrey / ABC:

Australian PM Scott Morrison proposes new defamation legislation mandating social media companies reveal the identities of anonymous online trolls or face fines — Social media companies could be forced to reveal the identities of anonymous users in an effort to crack down on online trolling …

Warren P. Strobel / Wall Street Journal:

A look at the challenges spies face with biometrics, smartphones, and surveillance cameras, and how AI sifting through data changes espionage — U.S., rivals seek ways to adapt spycraft to a changing world; being on the grid can blow your cover, but so can staying off

More: 9to5Mac. Tweets: @tuomorusila, @evanselinger, @jayshams, @vmsalama, @jessmarindavis, and @niubi

Natasha Lomas / TechCrunch:

Thought Machine, which helps banks launch cloud-based services, raises a $200M Series C led by Nyca Partners at a $1B+ valuation — Thought Machine, a 2014 (Xoogler) founded startup that sells cloud-based b2b banking services, has closed a $200 million Series C round and announced …

More: FinSMEs, Thought Machine, PYMNTS.com, altfi.com, The Block, Crowdfund Insider, Tech.eu, and CNBC. Tweets: @disruptionbank

Manish Singh / TechCrunch:

Slice, whose credit cards are used by 5M+ people in India and let users pay their bills interest-free over three months, raises a $220M Series B — Rajan Bajaj, founder of fintech Slice, chimed in on a Twitter thread earlier this year and wondered aloud what he needs to do to turn his startup into a unicorn before he turns 30.

More: International Business Times, Entrackr, DealStreetAsia, Bloomberg, Tech in Asia, The Economic Times, and PYMNTS.com. Tweets: @refsrc

Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols / ZDNet:

Nextcloud and ~30 other EU companies file an antitrust complaint with the European Commission against Microsoft for bundling OneDrive and Teams with Windows — Nextcloud and almost 30 other European companies have filed a complaint about Microsoft's anti-competitive behavior with its OneDrive cloud storage offering.

Source: Nextcloud and Nextcloud. More: European DIGITAL SME Alliance, TechSpot, Politico, SiliconANGLE, Slashdot, PCMag, Reclaim The Net, MSPoweruser, and Neowin

Tweets: @simonvandorpe, @carnage4life, and @carnage4life

Les Pounder / Tom's Hardware:

Report: Raspberry Pi Trading hired investment banks Stifel and Liberum to advise on a London IPO planned for this spring that would value it at ~$500M — The listing could see Raspberry Pi valued at $500m — According to a report in The Telegraph, Raspberry Pi Trading …

Source: Telegraph. More: CNX Software and Slashdot

Tweets: @sub8u, @recantha, @frankcatalano, and @rob_kimbell

New York Times:

Recent cyberattacks on Iran's fuel distribution system and an Israeli LGBTQ dating site show that Iran-Israel cyberwar is impacting civilians on a large scale — Iranians couldn't buy gas. Israelis found their intimate dating details posted online. The Iran-Israel shadow war is now hitting ordinary citizens.

More: infosecurity-magazine.com and The Overspill

Tweets: @snlyngaas, @kylieatwood, @alexgibneyfilm, @seanmcfate, @ebkania, @loumariehsd, @kevincollier, @nytimes, @jonathanmtweet, @int_rec_day, @kenroth, @jasonmbrodsky, @jasonmbrodsky, @chris_sactoca, @zachsdorfman, @sangernyt, and @farnazfassihi

Mike Butcher / TechCrunch:

UK-based Motorway, a second-hand car auction site used by 4K+ car dealers, raises a $190M Series C at a $1B+ valuation after raising a $67.7M Series B in June — It was only in June that Motorway - a U.K. platform on which professional car dealers can bid in an auction for privately owned cars for sale …

More: Tech.eu and Sifted

Adam Rogers / Wired:

A look at efforts to develop brain-computer interfaces, including Musk's Neuralink and a DARPA program to build a 64,000-electrode array for brain implants — The idea of a synthetic experience uploaded to the mind has been a sci-fi fantasy forever. New brain-computer interfaces are making it nonfiction—very slowly.

Tweets: @sub8u, @hankgreelylsju, @rossdawson, @condenast, and @jetjocko

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From Mediagazer

Associated Press:

President Trump signed an EO on May 1 instructing CPB and other agencies to cut federal funding for NPR and PBS, alleging “bias” in the broadcasters' reporting

Minho Kim / New York Times:

An appeals court allows the Trump admin to continue withholding funds from federally funded newsrooms, temporarily reversing parts of two lower-court rulings

Bron Maher / Press Gazette:

RSF's 2025 Press Freedom Index classifies media freedom globally as “difficult”, a first; economic score hits a record low due to ownership concentration, more

More News

Gleb Stolyarov / Reuters:

Russia's Roskomnadzor regulator says its slowdown of Twitter on mobile, in force since March, will continue until all content deemed illegal is removed

James Rundle / Wall Street Journal:

Intel is stockpiling around 3,000 legacy pieces of its hardware and software, going back about a decade, for security research at a warehouse in Costa Rica

Dean Takahashi / VentureBeat:

Q&A with Forte founder and CEO Josh Williams on Forte's $725M Series B, adding “real purpose” to speculation-fueled tokens via games, potential regulation, more

Miriam Gottfried / Wall Street Journal:

Sources: Clearlake Capital will buy Quest Software, which makes tools for IT departments, from Francisco Partners for $5.4B including debt

More: Quest Software Acquired, Reuters, and iTnews

Dennis Schaal / skift.com:

Booking.com plans to acquire its Sweden-based flight-booking partner Etraveli Group from CVC Capital Partners for ~$1.83B

Financial Times:

Sky Mavis says its crypto-based game Axie Infinity quadrupled DAUs in under 3 months to 2M in October, as some analysts question Axie's economic sustainability

Tweets: @smdiehl, @financialtimes, and @saemin4655

Javier Espinoza / Financial Times:

Vestager asks the EU Parliament and Council to approve the Digital Markets Act and the Digital Services Act as a matter of urgency, even if they are imperfect

More: PYMNTS.com and Reuters

Tweets: @thierrybreton, @javierespft, @vestager, @andreas_schwab, @samuelstolton, @chrismessina, @vestager, and @charanzova

Earlier Picks

Lauren Thomas / CNBC:

Adobe: US consumers spent $8.9B online on Black Friday, down from the record $9B in 2020, the first ever YoY decline

More: Engadget, New York Post, ABC News, The Verge, Forbes, Engadget, Axios, CNET, and Benzinga

Tweets: @laurenthomas, @ericjhonsa, @thinking_panda, @hytrekprosiecka, @itsreapagain, and @darjohn25

Arol Wright / Android Police:

Spotify confirms it is retiring the Car View mode in its mobile apps, offering no replacement, but says it is working to improve how users listen while driving

More: Android Headlines, Pocket-lint, PYMNTS.com, Thurrott, The Verge, Gizmodo, Engadget, 9to5Google, Mashable, PhoneArena, PCMag, TechRadar, Android Central, Pocketnow, MobileSyrup, Gizchina, and MSPoweruser

Tweets: @stephanievasko and @jak1192

Vlad Savov / Bloomberg:

Now that most video game platforms have a digital-only purchasing option, paying separately for the same video game on each is indefensible

More: Philip Elmer‑DeWitt. Tweets: @reksveks, @alangebhardtsba, @steuph, @gruber, @reneritchie, @stroughtonsmith, and @daringfireball

Stephen Diehl:

Crypto tokens allow venture capitalists to dump their investments on an enthusiastic public without regulation, in the midst of a speculative mania

Reuters:

Indian government tells Starlink to stop “booking/rendering the satellite internet service” as it does not have a license to operate in the country

More: pib.gov.in, The Hindu, Gizmodo, Techaeris, The Verge, PCMag, Engadget, and Insider

Tweets: @jeffnolan, @gyude_moore, and @gojomo

Bloomberg:

Sources: Cloud Village, the music streaming arm of Chinese gaming giant NetEase, raises ~$422M in a Hong Kong IPO, pricing shares at HK$205, or ~$26.30

More: Caixin Global, Wall Street Journal, and CNBC