Today’s Tech Sightings: Reliance Jio Brings ‘Pokémon GO’ to India Starting Wednesday India is about to catch the Pokémon GO craze – beginning Wednesday. The country’s 4G-LTE carrier, Reliance Jio, has partnered with Niantic, Pokémon GO’s publisher and developer to bring the game to the Indian masses. Unofficially, however, many Indians have already been busy […]
‘Pokémon GO’ Goes to India; ‘Popcorn Time’ Redefines Ransomware
UK Snooping on Citizens for Years; Bill Gates, Tim Cook for VP?
Today’s Tech Sightings: UK Spies Have Been Snooping on Citizens Since 1998 Britain’s Investigatory Powers Tribunal found that intelligence agencies have been running bulk data-collection programs for the last 17 years, in violation of EU privacy protections in many cases. Web traffic, location and device data, biographies, and financial activities were all collected for years […]
Samsung’s Exploding Nightmare; Android Ransomware Spreading
Today’s Tech Sightings: Samsung’s Exploding-smartphone Nightmare Is Getting Even Worse Samsung is in the middle of a global recall of its new Galaxy Note 7 after its Lithium-ion batteries started catching fire and exploding, and has been replacing them with “safe” smartphones. But the “safe” replacement started smoking on a U.S. flight Wednesday, prompting an […]
Nigerian Girls to Get Tech Training; Indian Students Take on WhatsApp
Today’s Tech Sightings: Youth for Technology Foundation to Train 6,000 Nigerian Girls in Technology The Youth for Technology Foundation announced it will train 6,000 Nigerian girls unable to attend school or risk the dangers of human trafficking to use 3-D printing. The training, which was made public during the 2016 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting and […]
India to Probe WhatsApp Privacy; DeepMind, UK Join to Fight Cancer
Today’s Tech Sightings: WhatsApp in Hot Water in India Over Privacy Policy Changes Messaging service WhatsApp’s about-face on privacy has raised eyebrows in the U.S., Europe, and now in India. New Delhi’s High Court has asked the government and telecom regulators to look into WhatsApp data-sharing after some users complained about changes in its privacy […]
WhatsApp Turns Its Back on Privacy; Happy 25th Birthday, Linux
Today’s Tech Sightings: WhatsApp Is Going to Share Your Phone Number With Facebook So much for WhatsApp’s promise to protect the privacy of its one billion users! The global messaging service today announced users have a limited time to opt-out of sharing their information with Facebook. WhatsApp claims Facebook won’t post the telephone numbers online […]
Twitter Account Verification Now Open; Indian Teen Wins Google Award
Today’s Tech Sightings: Twitter Opens Up Account Verification Twitter used to award its “verified account” blue badge to celebrities who might contend with fake accounts using their names. Now, any public Twitter account can apply to get the verification, provided users fill up a form with information about their influence level and various personal data. […]
Facebook Reassures Thai Users After Arrests; UK Hospital Hires Watson
Today’s Tech Sightings: Facebook Tells Thai Users Their Data Not Given to Government Recent arrests for violations of Thailand’s Computer Crime Act have sparked fears Facebook might have failed to protect user privacy from the country’s military government. But Facebook issued a statement to reassure users it has not shared their information with the government […]
India Rebuffs Apple; Scientists Seek Gamers to Battle Dementia
Today’s Tech Sightings: Apple Rebuffed as New Delhi Pushes ‘Make in India’ Initiative Indian government officials have rejected Apple’s plan to import refurbished iPhones at a discount, citing rules against importing used electronics. A government spokesman said India “does not encourage dumping or recycling of hazardous materials.” But the development also coincides with New Delhi’s […]