Techmeme
September 22, 2022, 10:25 AM

Top News

Chris Welch / The Verge:
Apple AirPods Pro (second-gen) review: improved ANC, sound quality, and clarity, but an unchanged design, Lightning connector, and no major software update  —  Redesigned inside but not out, the new AirPods Pro are destined to be another hit — even if the magic is waning
Max Chafkin / Bloomberg:
A look at the quiet success of AirPods, which sold an estimated 120M units in 2021, and how Apple's upcoming VR headset could be the next product to do so  —  Sometime next year, Tim Cook will appear before the Apple Inc. faithful and unveil the company's next major computing platform …
New York Times:
An investigation, based on ~160K documents from Roskomnadzor, details Russia's vast surveillance and censorship apparatus, which helps Putin maintain his regime  —  Four days into the war in Ukraine, Russia's expansive surveillance and censorship apparatus was already hard at work.
Sheena Vasani / The Verge:
Instagram is working on a feature to protect users from receiving unsolicited nude photos in their DMs; Meta says the tech won't let the company view the photos  —  Instagram is working on a way to protect users from receiving unsolicited nude photos in their DMs.
Russell Brandom / The Verge:
Instagram, and increasingly TikTok, have fallen afoul of the Bootleg Ratio, offering mostly reposted, clout-chasing content that slowly turns viewers off  —  TikTok is changing. … That stuff is still on the platform, but it's largely fallen off my For You page, replaced by Tim Robinson sketches and funny animal videos.
Sergiu Gatlan / BleepingComputer:
Take-Two Interactive's 2K, the publisher of Bioshock, Xcom, and popular sports games, says a hacker accessed its help desk and sent customers links to malware  —  American video game publisher 2K has confirmed that its help desk platform was hacked and used to target customers …
Ryan Browne / CNBC:
UK media regulator Ofcom plans to investigate the cloud computing, personal messaging, and smart device markets over competition concerns  —  - Ofcom, the U.K. media watchdog, is set to launch a study examining the role of Amazon, Microsoft and Google in the cloud services market.
Steve Dent / Engadget:
Google refreshes Chromecast with Google TV, dropping the price to $35, adding a remote control, and supporting only 1080p content, down from 4K  —  Confirming rumors, Google has unveiled the Chromecast with Google TV (HD) device that offers features from the $50 4K model at a significantly cheaper $30 price.
Gina Chon / Semafor Media:
Nick Clegg says Meta could lift its ban on Donald Trump's accounts in January 2023, when the current suspension expires, after it consults with experts  —  Semafor launches this fall, but we wanted to get this news right out to you.  Sign up for Semafor Technology for regular coverage …
Yogita Khatri / The Block:
Immunefi, which helps crypto services create bug bounty programs, raised a $24M Series A led by Framework Ventures  —  - Immunefi has raised $24 million in Series A funding led by Framework Ventures.  — The startup hosts bug bounty programs by crypto projects and earns a 10% commission on bounty payouts.
Margi Murphy / Bloomberg:
Microsoft President Brad Smith says the company can't “use what others might consider censorship as a tactic” regarding labeling content that seems to be false  —  Microsoft Corp. won't label social media posts that appear to be false in order to avoid the appearance that the company …
Ionut Ilascu / BleepingComputer:
A Python directory traversal vulnerability disclosed in August 2007, but never patched, likely affects 350K+ open-source projects and can lead to code execution  —  A vulnerability in the Python programming language that has been overlooked for 15 years is now back in the spotlight …
Sam Biddle / The Intercept:
Meta-commissioned report from BSR details censorship and allegations of “unintentional bias” against Palestinians during violence by Israeli forces in May 2021  —  Facebook and Instagram's speech policies harmed fundamental human rights of Palestinian users during a conflagration …
Matthew Boyle / Bloomberg:
Disney, P&G, LVMH, and other large companies have hired chief metaverse officers, seeking to capitalize on Web3, but questions remain about their usefulness  —  Advertising giant Publicis Groupe SA introduced the newest member of its C-suite at a technology conference in Paris this year.
Jeff John Roberts / Fortune:
Kraken CEO Jesse Powell plans to step down and Chief Operating Officer Dave Ripley will succeed him in the coming months; Powell will stay on as chairman  —  Jesse Powell, the CEO of Kraken, is stepping down from the top job at the cryptocurrency exchange he founded in 2011.
Moneycontrol:
WhatsApp confirms Manesh Mahatme, who led its Indian payments business, has stepped down after 18 months; a source says Mahatme plans to rejoin Amazon  —  Mahatme's resignation comes at a time when WhatsApp's mobile payments business has failed to take off in a significant fashion in India
More: ReutersThanks:@tsuvik
NetBlocks:
Amid protests, Iran restricts access to WhatsApp and Instagram across major ISPs; Instagram had been one of the few remaining social networks in Iran  —  Network data from NetBlocks confirm a near-total disruption disruption to internet service in parts of Kurdistan province in west Iran from the evening of Monday 19 September 2022.

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