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Social media technology

October 28, 2020 28 Oct'20
Privacy and online safety are focus of new UKRI research funding

Online safety research centre of excellence will look into technology to boost privacy and tackle disinformation, fake news, conspiracies and other online harms
October 15, 2020 15 Oct'20
UK regulators lack the skills and expertise to cope with increasing use of algorithms

MPs told that multiple regulators will be needed to govern the ever-growing use of algorithmic systems in all areas of the economy and public sector
October 14, 2020 14 Oct'20
US Elections: Malicious internet domains spike as campaigns heat up

Internet domains related to the US presidential election are 56% more likely to be malicious than regular ones
October 14, 2020 14 Oct'20
Public data should not be held by US tech giants

One-off evidence sessions to follow up on the recommendations of the House of Lords AI Committee revisit the data and ethics debate

October 12, 2020 12 Oct'20
Five Eyes spy group again demands access to private messages

Spooks are once again calling for the tech industry to break end-to-end encryption in messaging platforms
October 09, 2020 09 Oct'20
Facebook critics’ webpage removed over false phishing allegations

Real Facebook Oversight Board alleges Facebook is trying to censor it for speaking out against the social media company’s behaviour
October 07, 2020 07 Oct'20
US lawmakers release big tech antitrust report

House Democrats have published a report on the monopoly power wielded by big tech companies and how to restore competition in digital markets
October 05, 2020 05 Oct'20
Facebook critics launch ‘Real Facebook Oversight Board’

Organisation formed as an ‘emergency response’ to address the ‘immediate risk’ posed by Facebook’s role in the US election
October 05, 2020 05 Oct'20
Fake news tops list of online concerns worldwide

Receiving false information is a greater worry than other online risks such as cyber bullying and fraud, says the Lloyd’s Register Foundation
September 28, 2020 28 Sep'20
TikTok ban stayed after last-minute court case

TikTok’s lawyers have staved off an imminent ban for the time being, after successfully arguing that it infringed rights guaranteed under the Constitution of the United States

September 24, 2020 24 Sep'20
Third-party code bug left Instagram users at risk of account takeover

A critical vulnerability in Instagram’s image processing could have allowed attackers to take over not just their victim’s account, but their entire device
September 23, 2020 23 Sep'20
Latest Tech Nation fintech cohort reflects diversifying sector

The latest group of fintechs accepted into Tech Nation’s growth programme reflects the diversification of a maturing sector
September 23, 2020 23 Sep'20
Major tech firms urged to end targeted ads to under-18s

An open letter to Google, Facebook and others is calling on the tech firms to take responsibility for protecting users of their services by ending behavioural advertising to children
September 23, 2020 23 Sep'20
Video gamers barraged with cyber attacks

From credential stuffing to SQL injection and DDoS, video game producers and players are seeing massive volumes of cyber attacks
September 22, 2020 22 Sep'20
Twitter investigates image cropping algorithm for racial bias

The algorithm’s consistent favouring of white faces in image previews has forced the company to investigate it for racial bias
September 22, 2020 22 Sep'20
Activision shoots down data breach claims

Gaming company denies there has been any data breach after up to 500,000 accounts appeared to have been compromised, but evidence mounts that credential stuffing attacks are to blame
September 22, 2020 22 Sep'20
Scam mobile apps spreading via rogue TikTok accounts

Malicious TikTok accounts are promoting a number of adware scam mobile apps
September 21, 2020 21 Sep'20
Royal Mint coin production freeze points to digital future for small payments

Royal Mint freezes production of certain coins as demand dries up amid changing consumer habits
September 21, 2020 21 Sep'20
Big questions to be answered over TikTok and WeChat reprieve

TikTok and WeChat seem to have received a stay of execution, but big questions and contradictions remain
September 18, 2020 18 Sep'20
US government deplatforms TikTok and WeChat

The Commerce Department of the US government has banned new downloads of TikTok and WeChat in the US, and announced new prohibitions on doing business with them
September 17, 2020 17 Sep'20
Swedish bank cuts branches and jobs, increases IT spend

Swedish bank is increasing investment IT to improve digital banking as it reduces its branch network
September 15, 2020 15 Sep'20
TikTok-Oracle partnership moves forward for consideration

Joint venture proposal could create thousands of jobs and secure TikTok’s future outside China
September 14, 2020 14 Sep'20
Microsoft drops out of TikTok talks, paves way for Oracle partnership

Microsoft confirms it is dropping out of the running to acquire the US operations of TikTok, leaving the way clear for an imminent partnership deal with Oracle
September 11, 2020 11 Sep'20
Facebook takes legal action against Irish privacy watchdog

Facebook’s legal action against the Data Protection Commission will attempt to preserve the company’s ability to transfer European citizens’ data to the US despite its lower privacy protections
September 10, 2020 10 Sep'20
Irish privacy watchdog orders Facebook to stop sending user data to the US

Irish privacy watchdog orders Facebook to suspend transfers of European citizens’ data to the US after Schrems II ruling that Europeans have no effective way to challenge American government surveillance
September 03, 2020 03 Sep'20
M&S and Ocado enter first week of online delivery partnership

Customers can now order M&S food through online supermarket Ocado’s website as part of an ongoing partnership between the two retailers
September 02, 2020 02 Sep'20
Asos launches TikTok brand campaign

Fashion brand Asos has launched a campaign on TikTok to bring awareness of its products to a wider audience
August 27, 2020 27 Aug'20
Tour de France 2020 fans to get virtual experience delivered by NTT

This year’s Tour de France was delayed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. IT services company NTT has teamed up with event organiser ASO to offer a virtual experience to fans who cannot be at the roadside
August 27, 2020 27 Aug'20
Tech and telecoms advisory group set up to help trade negotiations

Department of International Trade launches new Trade Advisory Groups to guide trade negotiations with other countries
August 27, 2020 27 Aug'20
TikTok CEO clocks off

TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer has resigned from the firm after just three months
August 25, 2020 25 Aug'20
TikTok takes Trump to court

Under-fire video app TikTok files a formal complaint in the federal courts challenging the Trump administration’s attempt to ban it in the US
August 21, 2020 21 Aug'20
TikTok’s GDPR compliance probed amid accusations of data misuse

Dutch privacy organisation SOMI claims TikTok falls short in protecting young users, and that it is likely violating GDPR
August 20, 2020 20 Aug'20
Social media data leak highlights murky world of data scraping

A data brokerage left its database of 235 million Instagram, TikTok and YouTube profiles exposed to anybody who cared to access it
August 20, 2020 20 Aug'20
Pandemic behaviour shift will continue for many consumers, research finds

A large number of customers say the way they have been forced to shop during the pandemic will have a lasting impact on their shopping behaviours
August 18, 2020 18 Aug'20
Reports Oracle to enter TikTok bidding war

Oracle may be about to make a bid to acquire the US operations of TikTok from its Chinese parent ByteDance, according to the FT
August 14, 2020 14 Aug'20
US decision to file new charges against Julian Assange ‘astonishing and potentially abusive’

Lawyer for WikiLeaks founder slams US decision to serve a second indictment at the 11th hour alleging that Assange conspired with hackers, as a potential abuse of process
August 11, 2020 11 Aug'20
French data protection authorities to probe TikTok as suitors circle

France’s CNIL has confirmed a new investigation into TikTok’s data protection practices
August 07, 2020 07 Aug'20
Virgin Media customers targeted in Twitter phish

Customers seeking help from the ISP are being targeted by a scam Twitter account
August 07, 2020 07 Aug'20
TikTok to be banned in US in 45 days

Trump says his Executive Orders against Chinese mobile apps are in the interests of dealing with a national emergency
August 06, 2020 06 Aug'20
TikTok to open first European datacentre in Ireland during early 2022

The CISO of TikTok has confirmed the social video company's plans to open its first European datacentre in early 2022, as its data security processes come under increased scrutiny from the US government
August 06, 2020 06 Aug'20
GCHQ seeks researchers to tackle deep fakes and misinformation

A GCHQ research fellowship based at its Manchester office will explore various national security priorities such as deep fakes, fake news and the impact of AI
August 03, 2020 03 Aug'20
Microsoft offers way out of TikTok impasse

Microsoft offers to buy TikTok from its Chinese parent to ease security fears in the US
July 31, 2020 31 Jul'20
US lawmakers grill big tech chiefs over market power

Sixth antitrust hearing sees CEOs of major technology companies face combative questioning from members of Congress over their market power and dominance
July 31, 2020 31 Jul'20
Twitter confirms it was hit by targeted spearphishing attack

Investigation into 15 July 2020 hack of a number of high-profile accounts by cryptocurrency scammers has found evidence of a targeted spearphishing incident
July 23, 2020 23 Jul'20
Twitter announces crackdown on QAnon accounts

In a bid to stem the spread of disinformation and prevent real-world harm, Twitter is taking action against QAnon conspiracists
July 21, 2020 21 Jul'20
Why now could be the right time to launch a digital bank

Launching a bank during a global crisis is fraught with risk, but an established customer base, experience, agility and diversification could help Zopa do just that
July 21, 2020 21 Jul'20
Coronavirus: Government drags its feet on online misinformation

Online misinformation about Covid-19 continues to spread unchecked, according to a DCMS committee report which has accused the government of dragging its feet over online harms
July 17, 2020 17 Jul'20
Twitter hack fallout: Investigators on trail of cyber criminals

Investigators are hunting the cyber criminals who broke into Twitter’s systems to hijack prominent accounts, amid concerns that more attacks may come
July 16, 2020 16 Jul'20
Schrems v Facebook: European court strikes down EU-US Privacy Shield agreement

The European Court of Justice has struck down Privacy Shield, the EU-US data-sharing agreement, creating uncertainty for European countries that share data with the US and pressuring the US to reform surveillance laws
July 16, 2020 16 Jul'20
Room for improvement in Dutch digital skills

The Netherlands has good telecommunications and IT networks that can be used safely and reliably, but there is room for improvement in digital skills among the Dutch
July 16, 2020 16 Jul'20
Cryptocurrency scammers attack Twitter in insider breach

Apparent insider breach at Twitter saw so-called “blue tick” accounts of business people, politicians and celebrities hijacked to promote a Bitcoin scam
July 15, 2020 15 Jul'20
Video providers slammed by credential stuffing attacks

Attacks on the media sector are spiking as cyber criminals try to gain access to valuable consumer accounts
July 14, 2020 14 Jul'20
European court to decide legality of EU-US data sharing in dispute between Schrems and Facebook

A ruling by the European Court of Justice will have ramifications for hundreds of thousands of companies that share data with the US. The case aims to balance US surveillance laws with the rights of EU citizens to keep their data private
July 08, 2020 08 Jul'20
Use of spyware apps linked to domestic abuse soars in lockdown

The rise in domestic violence during the pandemic has been linked to increase use of stalkerware apps by abusers
July 08, 2020 08 Jul'20
Over 15 billion credentials for sale on dark web

Research by Digital Shadows reveals the scale of the security threat facing consumers as it uncovers 15 billion usernames and passwords stolen in more than 100,000 different data breaches
June 25, 2020 25 Jun'20
Peer-to-peer lender Zopa gets full banking licence

Peer-to-peer lending pioneer works towards creating the ‘Netflix of banking’
June 23, 2020 23 Jun'20
Advertisers revolt over Facebook’s inaction on hate speech

Several companies plan to pull their adverts from Facebook in protest at its unwillingness to deal with hateful content on its platforms
June 19, 2020 19 Jun'20
Online shopping fraud hits £16m during lockdown

A quarter of victims were aged between 18 and 26, says Action Fraud
June 19, 2020 19 Jun'20
Facebook allows US users to disable political ads

Users of the social media platform will soon be able to opt out of seeing politically motivated posts
June 12, 2020 12 Jun'20
Twitter kills thousands of misinformation accounts

The accounts were linked to the governments of China, Russia and Turkey, and engaged in systematic operations against pro-democracy activists, political opponents and dissidents
June 10, 2020 10 Jun'20
Berlin breaks the national mould to become a global hub

German capital is attracting tech startups from across the world as it cements its position as a leading European hub
June 09, 2020 09 Jun'20
Netherlands digital sector yearns for government recognition

The sector building and supporting the Netherlands’ digital infrastructure wants to be valued as highly as Schiphol airport and the port of Rotterdam are for the Dutch economy
June 05, 2020 05 Jun'20
Coronavirus: Digital bank Monzo cuts 120 staff

Digital challenger Monzo has announced 120 job cuts as it navigates the current economic slowdown
June 05, 2020 05 Jun'20
London Tech Week to go ahead through Zoom

London Tech week will go ahead next week, with the tech industry attending through Zoom
June 04, 2020 04 Jun'20
Government evades being pinned to a date for online harms legislation

MPs challenge government on online harms bill timetable, but have to settle for “clear assurances” that it will brought to parliament before the end of the session
June 04, 2020 04 Jun'20
Black Lives Matter activists targeted by cyber attacks

Civil liberties organisations are being targeted by far-right trolls as protests over the murder of George Floyd spread worldwide
May 26, 2020 26 May'20
Max Schrems accuses Ireland of ‘Kafkaesque’ delay in Facebook GDPR investigation

Privacy campaigner Max Schrems has urged the European Commission to intervene after the Irish Data Protection Commission allegedly used ‘Kafkaesque’ tactics to delay investigations into Facebook’s compliance with GDPR
May 20, 2020 20 May'20
Coronavirus: Bahrain sees fintech take-up surge amid Covid-19 crisis

Covid-19 has spurred the use of financial technology in Bahrain, which could boost the industry in the country and wider Gulf region
May 15, 2020 15 May'20
Coronavirus: Digital bank’s valuation falls as it seeks funds to ride Covid-19 storm

Monzo is seeking new investment to help it through the coronavirus pandemic
May 14, 2020 14 May'20
Coronavirus: Nearly £2bn of UK fintech investment lost so far

Investment into UK fintechs falls dramatically during Covid-19 pandemic as venture capitalists hold back
May 13, 2020 13 May'20
Government tells social media companies they must go further to address disinformation

House of Lords committee hears about government collaboration with social media firms to combat pandemic-related disinformation and online harms
May 12, 2020 12 May'20
Opportunity in times of crisis for Nordic tech startups

Nordic tech startups face some major challenges during the Covid-19 pandemic, but this could be the making of some of them
May 07, 2020 07 May'20
Zoom buys secure messaging service Keybase

Unified comms platform Zoom says the acquisition of Keybase will finally let it bring end-to-end encryption to the table
May 07, 2020 07 May'20
Facebook announces oversight board members

New board will rule on freedom of expression issues and make policy recommendations to social media giant.
May 07, 2020 07 May'20
FBI search warrants reveal Trump aide’s messages to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange

FBI search warrants reveal Trump campaigner Roger Stone sent private messages to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange after the site published thousands of documents that damaged Hillary Clinton’s election campaign
May 07, 2020 07 May'20
Next round of Zoom updates targets consumer security

Casual consumer users of Zoom will get additional protections in an update to be released over the long weekend
May 04, 2020 04 May'20
Nordic real estate sector becoming increasingly digital

The Nordic real estate and construction industry is modernising through digital technology, with an injection of urgency amid global pandemic
April 28, 2020 28 Apr'20
Under the spotlight, video apps rush to strengthen security

Most popular videoconferencing applications now meet Mozilla’s minimum security standards, with fierce competition and public pressure driving rapid improvement
April 28, 2020 28 Apr'20
Covid-19 will decimate fintechs, but those that survive will prosper

The coronavirus will wipe out some fintechs, but those that get through it will share in the next growth phase of the industry's development
April 27, 2020 27 Apr'20
UK tech companies launch online safety body

Online Safety Tech Industry Association unites 14 technology companies to drive conversation and policy around online safeguarding
April 23, 2020 23 Apr'20
Zoom to roll out fresh cyber security updates

New features include support for advanced AES 256-bit encryption
April 22, 2020 22 Apr'20
Traditional banks need to do more than gloss over back-end systems with fintech paint

Banks need to work with fintechs if they are to prosper in the new world, but first they must update their back-end systems
April 20, 2020 20 Apr'20
NCSC launches coronavirus cyber security campaign

The National Cyber Security Centre has launched a reporting service for scam emails as part of a campaign to help people protect themselves from cyber criminals exploiting the pandemic
April 20, 2020 20 Apr'20
Zoom and WebEx users targeted by credential stealing attempts

Videoconferencing apps such as Zoom and Cisco’s WebEx are being targeted by cyber criminals trying to steal users’ personal data
April 17, 2020 17 Apr'20
Coronavirus: How Nominet fights back against malicious domains

Domain name registry has thwarted hundreds of attempts to register malicious .uk domain names during the coronavirus pandemic
April 15, 2020 15 Apr'20
Government urged to delay digital services tax amid coronavirus outbreak

Delaying liabilities for a year could help technology companies already stretched thin by the outbreak of the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, according to TechUK
April 15, 2020 15 Apr'20
Coronavirus: Standard Chartered bans employees from Zoom

Standard Chartered is the first bank to have instructed its staff to refrain from using Zoom
April 15, 2020 15 Apr'20
Coronavirus: Lloyds Bank to give thousands of tablet devices to over-70s

Banking group is giving away tablets and basic digital training to help vulnerable customers stay connected during the UK’s Covid-19 lockdown
April 15, 2020 15 Apr'20
Coronavirus: Researcher finds security vulnerability in Slack

Some common assumptions about the security of cloud-based messaging platform Slack may not be entirely accurate, says an Alien Labs researcher
April 14, 2020 14 Apr'20
Apple and Netflix most imitated brands in phishing attacks

A new report highlights the brands which are being most frequently spoofed by cyber criminals in phishing attacks
April 14, 2020 14 Apr'20
Coronavirus: Zoom user credentials for sale on dark web

IntSight researchers say they have found a database containing thousands of Zoom usernames and passwords being sold on the dark web
April 10, 2020 10 Apr'20
Coronavirus: Warning over surge in Zoom security incidents

Check Point researchers have observed a surge in suspicious Zoom domains as cyber criminals target popular remote working and collaboration tools
April 09, 2020 09 Apr'20
Coronavirus: Zoom restricted or banned at multiple organisations

Use of videoconferencing tool has been banned at Google and in parts of the German and US governments
April 07, 2020 07 Apr'20
Coronavirus: Criminals using Zoom installer to spread cryptominer

Videoconferencing application targeted to deliver cryptomining malware to unsuspecting victims
April 07, 2020 07 Apr'20
Coronavirus: Microsoft Azure suffers datacentre capacity shortages in Europe

Microsoft is working to “expedite” additional datacentre capacity after reports of users struggling to access resources due to coronavirus demand surge. But how easy will that be amid a global pandemic?
April 06, 2020 06 Apr'20
Coronavirus: Nordic tech startups face job cuts amid falling sales and a lack of funding

Tech startups based in the Nordic region face difficult decisions as the Covid-19 pandemic leads to falling sales and investment
April 05, 2020 05 Apr'20
Google data shows high interest in security and remote working

An analysis of the most Googled technology terms during the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the scale of the cyber security challenge presented by the crisis
April 02, 2020 02 Apr'20
Coronavirus: Is Zoom safe and should security teams ban it?

Zoom’s rapid rise to prominence has highlighted a score of security problems with the service. Should CISOs try to steer their organisations away from it, or ban it outright?
April 01, 2020 01 Apr'20
Coronavirus: Use of fintech apps in Europe accelerates

Fintech apps are being increasingly used by consumers as restrictions on their movements are put in place
April 01, 2020 01 Apr'20
Coronavirus: WHO, Rakuten collaborate on anti-disinformation chatbot

The World Health Organisation and Rakuten Viber have built an interactive, multi-language chatbot to try to get on top of the growing problem of disinformation during the coronavirus pandemic