Internet ICANN Move Hits Congressional Block; Google Launches Allo

Posted September 21st, 2016 at 12:25 pm (UTC-4)
Leave a comment

Today’s Tech Sightings:

FILE – The logo of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, ICANN, is seen in London, Britain.

FILE – The logo of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, ICANN, is seen in London, Britain.

The Internet Belongs to the World, Not to Ted Cruz

The United States is supposed to hand over control of internet domain management to ICANN on October 1. ICANN is short for the nonprofit Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, a nonprofit organization. The problem now is that the U.S. Congress has some objections to this move. Some Republicans, in particular, are trying to block it, arguing that it will negatively impact free speech online and national security.

Google Launches Allo, Bets on AI to Spice Up Chats

Allo is a new messaging app equipped with a chatbot that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to improve with use. Launched by Google’s parent company, Alphabet, Allo is powered by the Google Assistant, a “smarter” digital assistant that can be invoked in a chat for help with search. The assistant taps into a Smart Reply feature to come up with canned responses for different occasions. Unsurprisingly, that doesn’t always turn out well. Oh, and if you use Allo, watch what you say.

Survey: Majority of Consumers Fear ID Theft Within 1-2 Years

A new survey from TransUnion, a U.S. credit data and management company, reveals that 83 percent of respondents are concerned about falling victim to identity theft. Up to 53 percent of respondents said they or someone they know had already been subjected to ID theft or online fraud.

More:

Aida Akl
Aida Akl is a journalist working on VOA's English Webdesk. She has written on a wide range of topics, although her more recent contributions have focused on technology. She has covered both domestic and international events since the mid-1980s as a VOA reporter and international broadcaster.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *