Technology News

Amazon Great Freedom Festival Sale 2022 Dates Announced: Deals and Offers Teased Amazon Great Freedom Festival 2022 sale kicks off from August 6 and will continue until August 10. Amazon has started teasing upcoming offers on popular smartphones, laptops, Amazon devices, and other electronics.

PayPal Access in Indonesia Temporarily Restored After Blocking Over Licensing Rules Sparks Backlash Indonesia has temporarily opened access to PayPal to allow users to access their money, after a block on online services triggered a backlash in the country. The government blocked PayPal, Yahoo, and several gaming services for failing to meet a deadline under the country’s licencing rules, introduced in 2020. Users in Indonesia will have access to PayPal for five d...

Swiggy Allows Permanent Work-From-Anywhere for Most Teams, to Report in Office Once Every Quarter  Swiggy has announced to roll out permanent work-from-anywhere for a majority of its employees. Corporate, central business functions and technology teams will work remotely with office reporting once every quarter, while jobs with partner-facing roles will need employees to work from office.  

Sony Sees Profit Rise on Music, Films; Says People Playing Less Games as COVID-19 Restrictions Decrease Sony reported a 3 percent increase in profit for the second quarter, as the company continues to deal with challenges posed by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and a waning interest in video games. Sales for the last quarter rose 2 percent to JPY 2.31 trillion (roughly Rs. 37,45,00,000 crore) aided by strong demand for Sony’s music and movie operations, according t...

Privacy Tracker Retracts Paytm Mall Leak Claim, Believes Leak Was ‘Fabricated’ Have I Been Pwned, the privacy tracker that helps users check if their data has been compromised by data breaches, has retracted its claim that Paytm Mall was hacked in 2020. HIBP creator Troy Hunt tweeted on Friday stating that the what was claimed was personal data of 3.4 million users, allegedly sourced from the two-year-old data breach, appeared to be 'fabricated'...

India Tops List of Countries Looking to Block Tweets of Journalists, News Outlets, Twitter Says India topped the list of countries making legal demands to remove content, posted between July to December 2021, to Twitter by verified journalists and news organisations, the microblogging platform said. The latest transparency report also states that the country was only behind the US in seeking Twitter account information, and was among the top five countries to is...

Twitter Reports Huge Spike in Governments' Requests to Remove Content, Snoop Users' Details Twitter has warned that governments around the globe are asking to remove content or snoop on private details of user accounts at an alarming rate. While US made up for 20 percent requests, India is close behind.

SpaceX's Starlink Satellite Internet Service May Soon by Accessible by Phones, US FCC Filing Hints SpaceX has sought permission from the US FCC to add a modular payload to Starlink satellite constellation in order to provide high-speed internet to mobiles phones in near future.

Facebook, Instagram Expected to Push More Recommended Content by 2023 End: Mark Zuckerberg Instagram has been recently receiving flak from its users for trying to be more like TikTok. Now, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook has announced that it is expecting to push more recommended content to users by the end of 2023. According to Meta, a Facebook user’s feed currently shows about 15 percent content from accounts they don’t follow, and for In...

Microsoft Detects, Patches Zero-Day Exploit Used to Target European, Central American Users Microsoft has detected and patched zero-day exploits in Windows and Adobe that were used to attack customers in Europe and Central America. A private-sector offensive actor (PSOA), dubbed by Microsoft as Knotweed, carried out attacks by using Subzero malware.

Courts Are Increasingly Citing Wikipedia Articles In Orders, Finds MIT Study MIT researchers created 150 new Wikipedia articles on Irish Supreme Court decisions and noticed a spike in citations by court officials.

Good Luck Jerry Release Date and Time, Cast, Trailer, Review, and More Good Luck Jerry release date and time is July 29 at 12:00am IST on Disney+ Hotstar. Jahnvi Kapoor, Deepak Dobriyal, Mita Vashisht, Sushant Singh, and Sahil Mehta are part of Good Luck Jerry cast.

Mappls RealView by MapmyIndia Launched as Google Street View Competitor in India Mappls RealView was launched by MapmyIndia in India on Wednesday as a competitor of Google Street View service. It shows a 360-degree panoramic street view and interactive 3D models of landmarks.

Shopify Lays Off 10 Percent Staff as Shopping Boom Fades Post COVID Pandemic Shopify has decided to lay off 10 percent employees, as the shopping boom that started in COVID pandemic has started to fade gradually. Shopify has also become one among the US tech firms, including Amazon and Facebook, that are experiencing paused hirings or staff cut.

5G Spectrum Auction Undergoes Fifth Round of Bidding, Services to Roll Out Next Month 5G spectrum auction in currently undergoing the fifth round of bidding as firms run by tycoons Mukesh Ambani, Sunil Bharti Mittal and Gautam Adani as well as Vodafone Idea have invested huge sums. According to telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the response on the first day exceeded all expectations.

Instagram Head Responds to Criticism Over TikTok-Style Video Layout as Meta Heads for First-Ever Revenue Drop In response to criticism over the platform’s decision to switch to a TikTok-style feed for videos, Instagram head Adam Mosseri said that the layout was not very good and the company would have to work on the feature before shipping it to all users on the platform. Mosseri was responding to growing criticism of the redesigned feed, especially have two of Instagram’...

Elon Musk Asks Judge to Schedule Twitter Trial Starting October 17, Direct Firm to Produce ‘Core Documents’ Elon Musk has written to the chief judge on Delaware's Court of Chancery, asking for the Twitter takeover trial to begin on October 17, instead of a week earlier as requested by Twitter. The letter to the judge also asked that Twitter be ordered to immediately produce what it called "core documents," along with all raw data by August 1, and to require the company to p...

Twitter Shareholders to Vote on Elon Musk’s $44 Billion Takeover Offer in September: Details Twitter has announced it will hold a shareholder meeting on September 13 to vote on the $44 billion (roughly Rs. 3,51,450 crore) takeover offer from Elon Musk. The microblogging platform’s board has unanimously recommended that shareholders vote, in person or online, in favour of Musk buying the company for $54.20 (roughly Rs. 4,300) per share under the terms of a...

Google Search Sales Grow 14 Percent in Q2 2022, Driven by Travel and Retail Advertising Google parent Alphabet beat second quarter earnings targets on Tuesday, reporting revenue of $69.69 billion (roughly Rs. 5,56,700 crore), according to the company. The search giant has weathered storms better than social media companies. Travel and retail advertisers drove an increase of nearly 14 percent in search ad sales for Google during the second quarter.

Microsoft Q2 Earnings Fall Short of Expectations Amid China Production Holdups, Strong Dollar Hits Sales Microsoft’s second quarter earnings fell shy of expectations, the tech giant announced on Tuesday. The announcement comes on the back of production holdups in China in May, and weakening demand for PCs among users. The company also said that the earnings dive was due to foreign exchange rates and shutdowns of PC factories in China. However, Microsoft’s cloud and c...

Google Faces $34 Million Fine in Russia Over Breach of Competition Rules: Details Off page: Russia’s competition watchdog has fined Google RUB 2 billion (roughly Rs. 260 crore) on Tuesday for breaching competition rules, the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) said in a statement. The search giant is the latest foreign tech firm to be fined as part of Russia’s assertive campaign against foreign tech firms. The company said it would study the tex...

YouTube Music Selects Noor Chahal, Kayan for Foundry Class of 2022: All Details YouTube Music has announced its Foundry Class of 2022 list and it includes two independent Indian artists. Foundry was created in 2015 as YouTube’s incubator for independent artists, according to the company. It helps artist at various stages of their careers. Under the programme, the two Indian artists will receive funding.

Kerala to Work Towards Achieving Complete Digital Literacy, Educate Children on Cyberspace Threats, CM Says Kerala’s state government is moving ahead with steps to achieve complete literacy, CM Pinarayi Vijayan said on Tuesday. The CM said the government is working towards making people, especially children, aware of traps and threats in cyberspace. With the increase in use of smartphones during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the CM stated that children could not be kept ...

China Vows Privacy, Information Protection in Using Digital Yuan China will fully respect privacy and protect personal information in using the digital yuan, state media quoted a senior central bank official as saying on Sunday, as Beijing encourages greater adoption of e-CNY.

CISCE Board ISC Result 2022 (Class 12) Announced: How to Check Online CISCE , or the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination, announced the results of the second semester of the ISC Class 12 exams on Sunday. Students who want to check their results online can do so using the board’s official website, via SMS, or by using DigiLocker. Here’s how you can check your ISC results online.

Zomato Stock Price Plunges to a Record Low as Share Lock-In Period Ends Shares of Indian food delivery company Zomato fell more than 14 percent to a record low on Monday, as a one-year share lock-in period for promoters, employees and other investors expired following the 2021 listing.

San Diego Comic-Con 2022 Trailers: Black Panther Wakanda Forever, John Wick 4, The Lord of the Rings, and More Comic-Con unveiled a slew of new trailers and announcements this year, at their first-in-a-long-time in-person event in San Diego, California. Both Marvel and DC Comics had huge showings including Black Panther: Wakanda, She-Hulk, Shazam! Fury of the Gods, and Black Adam. We were also treated to trailers for the new Lord of the Rings series, John Wick: Chapter 4, and ...

South Korea to Imitate US Policy to Counter China Influence, Seeks to Prevent Tech Leaks: Report South Korea is looking to counter the growing assertiveness of China in the Indo-Pacific region and prevent tech leaks, according to a report. The country Indo-Pacific strategy will reportedly 'imitate' the US to counter China's regional influence, and it is expected to join a proposed US-led chip alliance known as the Chip 4 initiative, which also includes Japan and ...

Elon Musk Denies Having Affair With Sergey Brin’s Wife, Claims He Is Still Friends With Google Co-Founder Elon Musk has claimed that a report alleging he had an affair with Nicole Shanahan, the wife of Sergey Brin is untrue. The Tesla CEO took to Twitter to state that a report by the Wall Street Journal was not true and that he was still friends with the Google co-founder. According to the report, Brin had instructed his advisers to sell his personal investments in Musk...

YouTube Music for Android Could Soon Get a Sleep Timer Feature: Report Google is planning to bring a sleep timer feature on YouTube Music, according to a report. Moreover, this feature is also said to be a much-awaited one, for YouTube Music users.

Zoom Will Soon Expand End-to-End Encryption Feature to Phone, Breakout Rooms: All Details Zoom has announced that it will soon expand the E2EE feature to Zoom Phone and Breakout Rooms to ensure safety and privacy over the video conferencing platform. Zoom Phone calls will soon have the option to enable the feature. The company has also highlighted a few prerequisites for enabling the E2EE feature.

Domino’s India Said to Consider Shifting Business Away From Zomato, Swiggy Over Rising Commissions Domino’s Pizza India is said to be considering shifting some of its business away from food delivery services Zomato and Swiggy. Run by India’s largest food services company, Jubiliant FoodWorks, the popular pizza franchise could move some business away from both apps if their commissions rise further. Both Zomato and Swiggy are facing a probe from the Competition...

Twitter Revenue Falls in Weakening Digital Ad Market Amid Legal Battle With Elon Musk Twitter’s quarterly revenue has taken a plunge as the social media company is dealing with a legal battle over Elon Musk’s withdrawal from the previously announced $44 billion (roughly Rs. 3,37,465 crore) buyout deal.

Google Access Blocked in Eastern Ukraine by Russia-Backed Separatists Google access was blocked in eastern Ukraine by the Russia-backed separatists, accusing the search engine of spreading calls "disinformation". In a message posted on his Telegram channel, head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) accused Google of promoting "violence against all Russians".

Facing Unfair Competition From Big Tech, Indian Firms Said to Inform Parliamentary Panel Domestic tech firms like Paytm, Ola, Make My Trip, Zomato, Swiggy, Flipkart and Oyo attended a meeting with a parliamentary panel on Thursday. Top executives from these firms deposed that they were facing unfair competition from big tech firms. Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Ola CFO Arun Kumar, Make My Trip Chairman and Chief Mentor Deep Kalra, Zomato CEO Deepind...

CBSE Class 12 Board Exam Results 2022 Announced: How to Check Online via DigiLocker, Websites, SMS CBSE Class 12 board exam results 2022 have been announced. The results are available live via CBSE and government websites. Students can also check their results via the DIgiLocker platform. Checking results on the internet is a more convenient, hassle-free, and a safer process, considering the Covid-19 cases in India have again started rising. Class 10 results are ex...

Spider-Man Remastered PC System Requirements and Features Announced Spider-Man Remastered has revealed the minimum, recommended, and ultra PC system requirements, alongside special features to be included in the PC version. The Spider-Man game, exclusive to PS4 and PS5 earlier and launching August 12 on PC, comes with uncapped framerates and support for ultra-wide monitors.

WhatsApp Chat Migration From Android to iOS and Vice Versa Now Live: All Details WhatsApp has officially announced the roll out of the feature that lets users transfer their chat history from an Android phone to an iPhone and vice-versa. It was first unveiled during the Galaxy Unpacked event in August 2021. WhatsApp has also highlighted how to transfer the data as an FAQ on its official website.

Amazon Prime Day 2022 Sale: Grab These Freebies Before the Sale Begins Amazon's Prime Day 2022 sale with discounts on a range of smartphones and accessories will begin on July 23 in India. The sale will be exclusive to Prime members. The e-commerce giant is offering coupons and freebies on account of the Prime Day sale.

Even if TikTok and Other Apps Are Collecting Your Data, What Are the Actual Consequences? TikTok collects vast amounts of personal data from its users, like other social media companies, in order to serve them ads. However, unlike other apps, TikTok’s corporate roots extend to authoritarian China, which carries implications for users of the app. From censorship to privacy issues, here are the risks of apps like TikTok collecting your personal information...

FIFA 23 Announced: Trailer, Release Date, Price, Pre-Order, PC System Requirements, Cross-Play, and Women's Leagues FIFA 23 — set to release on September 30 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X — has revealed its first official trailer. The latest addition to the annual footballing franchise will include Women’s leagues, two FIFA World Cup modes, and support for cross-play across PC, Xbox, and PlayStation systems. FIFA 23 pre-orders now live on Steam, Epic Games, an...

Thailand Admits to Using Phone Spyware Citing National Security, Amid Allegations of Pegasus Usage Thailand on Tuesday admitted to the use of surveillance software to monitor individuals, in cases involving national security or drugs. Minister of Digital Economy and Society, Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn confirmed the use of spyware, but did not specify what programme was used, which government agency had access to the software, or which individuals were targeted with th...

Amazon Prime Day Is Here: How to Get Prime Subscription for Free Amazon Prime Day 2022 sale kicks off from July 23 in India. To access hundreds of deals during the two-day sale event, you'll need access to Prime. In this guide, we tell you how you can get an Amazon Prime subscription for free.

Meta Faces Trademark Lawsuit by New York-Based VR Company MetaX Meta, formerly known as Facebook, was hit with a trademark lawsuit on Tuesday by MetaX, a virtual reality company. The firm has claimed that it was crushed by Facebook's rebrand last year and said its ability to operate as Meta has been eviscerated. Facebook rebranded itself as Meta in October 2021, as part of the company’s bet on the metaverse succeeding mobile int...

Microsoft Cloud for Sovereignty for Governments Launched; Aims to Compete With Amazon, Google Microsoft Cloud for sovereignty was announced by the company on Tuesday as the company’s public cloud for government customers. The ‘sovereign’ cloud service will offer customers greater control over their data, and is expected to help the company better compete with rivals such as Amazon Web Services and Alphabet's Google.

Google to Face $1 Billion Class-Action Lawsuit in the UK Over Play Store Pricing Google is set to face a $1 billion (roughly Rs. 8,000 crore) trial in the UK in a class action lawsuit that alleges the company overcharged 19.5 million customers for in-app purchases via Google Play. A court authorised the lawsuit on Monday, over the commission charged on popular apps including Roblox, Candy Crush Saga and Tinder since October 2015.

Apple Faces Fine in Russia for Violating Antitrust Laws Over App Store Apple will be fined by Russia's competition authority for violating the country’s antitrust laws by violating its dominant position in the app store market, according to the regulator. The Cupertino company will face a turnover-based fine after an administrative investigation, the federal anti-monopoly service said.

Trump’s Social Media Merger Deal Said to Have Leaked Months Ahead of Announcement: Report Information about a pending merger deal between Donald Trump’s social media company and a blank-check entity were leaked to employees at an investment firm long before it was announced, according to The New York Times. The employees at the Miami-based Rocket One Capital firm had discussed ways to profit off the transaction, which had not yet been announced, accordin...

Stray Game Review: Nails Feline Experience, as Cat Jumps and Slinkers Through a Dystopian World Stray review: cat game, from Annapurna and BlueTwelve Studio, nails the feline experience and balances a variety of genres, though it’s left wanting with frustrating bugs. Stray is released July 19 on PC, PS4, and PS5. Stray game price is Rs. 749 on Steam, Rs. 1,999 on PS4 and PS5, and free with PS Plus Extra/Deluxe.

Amazon Sues Administrators of More Than 10,000 Facebook Groups Over Fake Reviews Amazon announced on Monday that it has sued over 10,000 Facebook group administrators for attempting to orchestrate fake reviews on the e-commerce platform. The groups were incentivising the creation of fake and misleading reviews on the company’s website, in the US, the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and Japan. In a press release the company said fraudulent rev...

Slack to Hike Pricing for Pro Subscription Users From September: All Details Slack has announced it will hike pricing for its Pro subscription for users starting from September. Monthly Pro subscriptions will increase to $8.75 (roughly Rs. 700) from $8 (roughly Rs. 640) and annual Pro subscriptions will increase to $7.25 (roughly Rs. 580) per month from $6.67 (roughly Rs. 530) The workspace collaboration application has hiked pricing for the f...

US Chip Bill Gains Momentum as Republican Support Grows Ahead of Senate Vote The US chip bill, the upcoming legislation to provide $52 billion (roughly Rs. XXX crore) in financial incentives and research, plus another $1.5 billion (roughly Rs. XX crore) for a fund that would encourage competition, could be passed by the Senate in the coming days. While the chip bill appeared to be in trouble three weeks ago, Republicans have now warmed up to t...

Facebook Owner Meta-Giphy Deal Block Quashed by UK Tribunal, Asks Regulator to Reconsider Filing Britain's competition regulator said on Monday it would carry out another review of Facebook owner Meta's acquisition of Giphy after a tribunal quashed its original decision to block it. Recently, the US tech giant partially won an appeal against the regulator.

Digi Yatra Check-in Facility Using Facial Features to Begin at Bengaluru, Varanasi Airport From August 15 Digi Yatra project's Phase-1 will begin at Bengaluru, Varanasi airport from August 15, Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Monday. The project allows passengers to check-in at the airport using facial recognition technology. DYF has been set up as a joint venture company in 2019 under Section 8 of the Companies Act, 2013.

Microsoft President Brad Smith Sees Labour Force Decline Amid Pressure on High Salaries Microsoft President Brad Smith says the US companies are facing a "new era", when there are fewer people entering the workforce, but the pressure to pay higher salaries may become permanent. He states major markets overseas have seen outright labour force declines.

Amazon Prime Day 2022 Sale Kicks Off This Week: How to Safely Buy Electronics Amazon Prime Day sale 2022 kicks off in India from July 23. The two-day sale event will be accessible to Prime subscribers only. We've prepared a simple guide to help you safely buy expensive electronics during the sale.

RaHDIt Hacker Group Leaks Personal Information of Russian Citizens Working With Ukrainian Intelligence: Report The RaHDIt hacking group, based in Russia, has leaked personal information of Russian citizens who have collaborated with Ukrainian military intelligence, according to a report by Sputnik. The hackers leaked details of thousands of Ukrainian officers, their relatives and people living with them. The data on the alleged spies include representatives of diplomatic missi...

Pegasus Used to Target Thai Pro-Democracy Activists, Cybersecurity Researchers Claim Thai activists involved in pro-democracy protests in the country had their smartphones or other devices infected with NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware, according to investigators at cybersecurity research groups Citizen Lab and iLaw. At least 30 people, including activists, scholars and people working with civil society groups, were targeted with the spyware, as per the ...

Albania Shuts Down Public Services, Government Systems After External Cyber Attack The government of Albania shut all online public services and government websites on Sunday after a synchronised cyberattack from outside the country, according to the Albanian National Agency for the Information Society (AKSHI). The agency shut down the website of the Prime Minister's Office and the country's Parliament. Meanwhile, the government portal e-Albania, wh...

Why Is Tech Giant Apple Trying to Teach Our Teachers? Apple is training educators with its free professional learning program for school teachers, Apple Teacher. Launched in 2016, the service has over 100 lessons and tutorials that can be accessed on the Apple Teacher Learning Centre. These include “skill-building tutorials, lesson ideas and inspiration to deepen student learning”. The move could help position Apple ...

Hey Siri: Virtual Assistants Are Listening to Children and Using the Data With no legal requirement to erase this data, the data accumulates over children’s lifetimes, potentially lasting forever.

World Emoji Day 2022: These Are the Most Commonly Used Emojis These expressions of emotion allow people to add context to otherwise dry text messages and can help as shorthand reactions in many situations.

Amazon Pauses Construction of 6 Offices to Make It Suitable for Hybrid Work Amazon is pausing the construction of six new office buildings in Bellevue and Nashville to re-evaluate the designs to suit hybrid work. However, the delay will not affect Amazon’s hiring plans to create 25,000 jobs in Bellevue and another 5,000 in Nashville. It was earlier reported that Facebook parent Meta Platforms has also pulled back on its office expansion pla...

Twitter's Lawsuit Against Elon Musk to Get First Hearing on July 19 at Delaware Chancery Court Twitter's lawsuit against Elon Musk will be heard first by a judge on Tuesday, July 19, after Twitter's request to expedite the September trial. Kathaleen McCormick, the chancellor of Delaware's Court of Chancery, set a 90-minute hearing beginning at 11am ET (8.30pm IST) in Wilmington.

Google Maps Working on Offering Fuel-Efficient Routes for EVs, Hybrids: Report Google Maps could soon show users the most fuel-efficient routes to their destination according to the engine inside their car, as per a report. The app currently shows the same fuel-efficient routes for ICE vehicles, EVs, and hybrids. Recently, Google had announced that Google Maps will now give users a toll price estimate as well.

Instagram Adds Subscription Features to Let Creators Share Posts, Interact With Subscribers: Details Instagram has added four new subscription features to the social media platform. According to the company CEO, this move is aimed towards making Instagram “the best online space for creators to make a living.” The list of new additions include, subscriber chats, subscriber Reels, subscriber posts, and subscriber home. Earlier, the company only had subscriber stori...

Secret Headquarters Trailer: Owen Wilson Sports Iron Man-like Armour in Spy Kids-esque Superhero Movie Secret Headquarters trailer features Owen Wilson as an Iron Man-like superhero, who tries to hide his identity from his son. It is a goofy affair. Secret Headquarters release date is August 12 on Paramount+.

CBSE Class 10, 12 Board Exam Results 2022: How to Check Online via DigiLocker, Websites, SMS CBSE Class 10 and 12 board exam results 2022 are expected to be declared soon. The results will made available live via CBSE and government websites. Students can also check their results via the DIgiLocker platform. Checking results on the internet is a more convenient, hassle-free, and a safer process, considering the Covid-19 cases in India have again started risin...

Wordle: The Party Game Set to Release as Multiplayer Board Game on October 1 Wordle: The Party Game, the multiplayer board game version of Wordle is set to launch in October. The upcoming board game will turn the popular online word guessing game which used to be played solo into a group activity. The New York Times has partnered with Hasbro to create the game, which will be released in North America on October 1.

ICSE Class 10 Result 2022 to Be Announced Soon: How to Check Online ICSE Class 10 board exam results will be declared soon. The results will be made available online so that students can check them without hassle. However, the site may face slowdowns due to increased traffic post the announcement. Students can also get their results via SMS on their mobile phones.

TSMC Quarterly Profit Surges 76 Percent, Beats Market Estimates on Strong iPhone 13 Demand Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) reported a 76.4 percent jump in second-quarter profit on Thursday and beat market estimates on strong demand for the iPhone 13 despite record global inflation levels. The chipmaker also benefitted from solid sales of high-performance computing (HPC) chips used in 5G networks and artificial intelligence.

TikTok Maker Launches Kesong App in China in Bid to Compete With Market Leader TikTok’s Chinese owner ByteDance has entered the lifestyle sector of social media with a new app, Kesong. After a string of hits from news aggregator Toutiao to short video app Douyin and its overseas equivalent TikTok, the Kesong app offers users shopping and lifestyle recommendations similar to Xiaohongshu, the current market leader.

Foxconn Needs Government Approval for China Chip Firm Investment, Taiwan Says Foxconn would need permission from the government of Taiwan if the world’s largest contract electronics manufacturer were to invest in Chinese chip conglomerate Tsinghua Unigroup, according to a government official. According to reports, the Taiwan-based firm plans to spend CNY 9.8 billion (roughly Rs. 11,600 crore) for a stake in Unigroup.

Google Faces Probe From Italian Competition Watchdog Over Data Portability Google is facing a probe from Italy's competition authority AGCM as part of an investigation into the Alphabet-owned firm over an alleged abuse of dominant position in data portability. According to the AGCM, the company allegedly hindered interoperability with other services, including Italian operator’s application Weople. Inspections were carried out on Wednesday...

"Lonely" Chinese Woman Wrote Fake Russian History On Wikipedia For Years: Report The woman posed as a scholar and wrote alternative accounts of medieval Russian history, adding imaginary states and battles.

Elon Musk-Twitter Legal Fight: What Happens if the Billionaire Doesn't Comply With Court Orders Twitter has sued Elon Musk to force him to go through with the $44 billion (roughly Rs. 3,50,300 crore) acquisition of the social media company. If Musk continued to ignore a judgment, the court could order Tesla and other Delaware-incorporated companies in which Musk owns a stake to freeze his assets or turn over shares.

Staring at Yourself During Virtual Chats Can Worsen Your Mood, Study Reveals A recent study found out that when people look at themselves while doing a virtual chat with their partner, their mood degrades more over the course of the conversation. Researchers discovered that the use of alcohol appears to worsen the issue more.

Twitter Shares Rise After Hindenburg Takes Long Position Amid Legal Battle Against Elon Musk Twitter's shares rose about 6 percent to $35.90 (nearly Rs. 2,900) after Hindenburg Research took a long position in Twitter shares, a day after the company sued Elon Musk for violating his $44 billion deal (roughly Rs. 3,50,290 crore) and asked a Delaware court to order him to complete the merger at the agreed $54.20 (roughly Rs. 4,300) per Twitter share.

Jaadugar on Netflix: Release Date and Time, Cast, Trailer, Review, and More Jaadugar release date and time is July 15 at 12:30pm IST on Netflix. Jitendra Kumar and Arushi Sharma lead the Jaadugar cast. The sports dramedy is directed by Sameer Saxena.

Oppo India Issued Notice for Evading Customs Duties Worth Rs. 4390 Crore, Government Says Oppo India evaded customs duty worth 4,390 crore, according to an investigation by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, according to the government. The Chinese smartphone manufacturer wrongfully used duty exemptions for items imported for use in mobile phone production, according to evidence uncovered by investigators. Oppo also allegedly made royalty payments no...

Vivo India Bank Account Freeze Lifted by Delhi High Court, Directed to Furnish Guarantee Worth Rs. 950 Crore The Delhi High Court on Wednesday permitted Vivo India to use its bank accounts previously frozen by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering investigation into the Chinese smartphone manufacturer, while asking the firm to furnish a bank guarantee worth Rs. 950 crore by the court.

Stranger Things 4 Was Set to Kill Off Max Mayfield, Here’s Why She Escaped a Definite Fate Stranger Things 4 was to kill off Sadie Sink’s Max Mayfield. The Duffer Brothers, however, left the door open on her fate as they wanted to set the stage for Stranger Things 5.

Elon Musk and Twitter Brace for Legal Fight: All You Need to Know Elon Musk and Twitter are preparing for a legal tussle, and the microblogging service has vowed to challenge the Tesla CEO in court to uphold his agreement to acquire Twitter for $44 billion (roughly Rs. 3,37,465 crore). While shares of Twitter slid more than 11 percent on Monday, after Musk announced he was abandoning his bid for the company, here’s a look at what ...

Taiwan ‘Happy’ to See Chip Firms Invest in EU, Seeks Deeper Ties Amid Global Chip Shortage Taiwan said it was “happy” to see its chip firms invest in the European Union, as part of a push to build better ties with the bloc. Taipei has been courted by the EU under the European Chips Act that was unveiled in February, as part of efforts to deal with the ongoing global chip shortage. Taiwan Deputy Economy Minister Chen Chern-chyi called the US and Europe ...

Amazon Prime Day 2022 Sale Starts July 23: Here's How You Can Get the Best Deals Amazon Prime Day 2022 sale event kicks off in India on July 23. We've prepared a simple guide to help you navigate through the massive two-day Prime-exclusive sale event in India.

Indian Matchmaking Season 2 Release Date Set as August 12 on Netflix, Here's Your First Look Indian Matchmaking season 2 release date is set as August 12 on Netflix. The arranged marriage reality show will have eight episodes. Indian Matchmaking season 2 is led by Sima Taparia.

Twitter Fires Back in Letter to Elon Musk, Claims No Deal Obligations Breached Twitter has accused Tesla CEO Elon Musk of "knowingly" breaching an agreement to buy the social media firm. The microblogging platform in a letter filed with regulators on Monday said it had not breached its obligations under the merger agreement as claimed by Musk last week. The world's richest person has sought to back out of the $44 billion deal, claiming Twitter f...

Veetla Vishesham OTT Release Date: RJ Balaji’s Remake of Badhaai Ho to Release July 15 on Zee5 Veetla Vishesham movie OTT release date set for July 15 on Zee5 on June 26, nearly a month after it debuted in cinemas. RJ Balaji leads the Veetla Vishesham movie cast.

Twitter Shares Slide About 6 Percent as Elon Musk’s Suspended Deal Reaches Legal Tussle  Twitter shares fell about 6 percent on Monday as a legal tussle between Elon Musk and the social media company is expected to take place soon. Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, walked away from the $44 billion (roughly Rs. 3,49,400 crore) deal on Friday. Twitter is said to be planning to sue Musk by this week and force him to complete the acquisition.  

Byju’s Struggles to Close $800 Million Funding Round, as Global Technology Rout Affects Valuations Byju’s on Monday said it was struggling to close a funding round of $800 million (roughly Rs. 6,360 crore), after investors including Sumeru Ventures and Oxshott are yet to transfer about $250 million (roughly Rs. 2,000 crore) of the targeted amount. A spokesperson for Byju’s said the delay in receiving funds from the investors was due to macroeconomic reasons, wh...

The Boys Season 3 Will Crossover With Spin-off Series the Boys Presents: Varsity The Boys season 3 will have crossover with its upcoming spin-off series The Boys Presents: Varsity. The second spin-off The Boys will also lay the groundwork for The Boys season 4.

Elon Musk Takes Swipe at Twitter’s Lawsuit Threat, Suggests Bot Information Will Be Disclosed in Court Elon Musk has reacted to Twitter’s threat to sue to the Tesla and SpaceX CEO over the attempt to terminate the $44 billion (roughly Rs. 3,49,400 crore) deal. On Sunday, Musk shared a collage of four images of him with different expressions, followed by four comments about his deal to acquire the microblogging service. Musk said that while Twitter had said it would n...

Uber Relied on Bare-Knuckle Tactics for Frenetic Global Expansion, Joint Media Investigation Alleges Uber engaged in ethically dubious and potentially illegal tactics used to fuel its frenetic global expansion beginning nearly a decade ago, a joint media investigation alleged on Sunday. The investigation that relied on 1,24,000 documents from 2013-2017, has been dubbed the “Uber Files”, with unvarnished text and email exchanges between executives including co-fou...

Shinzo Abe’s Shooter Reportedly Checked YouTube While Making Firearms Shinzo Abe, Japan’s former Prime Minister who was assassinated last week, was shot by a gunman Tetsuya Yamagami who reportedly viewed YouTube when making the firearm used in the attack. The gunman has reportedly stated that he tested a homemade gun at a facility connected to a religious group. The police is said to havefound items that are believed to be explosives ...

Adani Group to Compete With Rival Mukesh Ambani’s Jio in 5G Spectrum Auction, Aims to Set Up Private Network Adani Group announced on Saturday that it would participate in the July 26 5G spectrum auction, in order to set up a private network to help digitise its businesses from airports to energy to data centres. This means that the company will not enter the consumer mobile telephony space, where Ambani's Reliance Jio is the largest player, alongside Sunil Bharti Mittal's B...

PUBG Maker Krafton, Other Startups Eager to Invest in India, South Korean Ambassador Says PUBG Maker Krafton, along with other startups, would be keen to invest in India and cooperate with Indian companies, Ambassador of South Korea to India Chang Jae-bok said on Thursday. Karnataka already has 40 Korean companies operating in the state, according to the Embassy of the Republic of Korea, while larger firms Samsung, LG and Kia have already established their...

IT Services Sector Revenue Growth to Slide Sharply in FY23, Maintain Double Digit Growth: Crisil The IT Services sector in India will see a sharp fall in revenue in FY23, according to a Crisil report. Revenue growth in FY22 was higher on a lower base of 6 percent in the COVID-hit FY21, while the current depreciation in the rupee, strong demand for new age technologies like artificial intelligence, cloud computing and Internet of Things will help the over $220-bil...

Airbnb Obliged to Provide Details to Tax Authorities, Says EU Court Adviser Airbnb is obliged to provide information in rental contracts to tax authorities, said adviser to an EU court. The statement can come as a potential legal setback for Airbnb in Europe. The company challenged a law requiring short-term rental sites to forward information from their rental contracts and withhold 21 percent from the rental income and pay it to tax authori...

Starlink Launches Internet for Yachts, Will Cost $5,000 a Month The Federal Communications Commission of the United States recently gave Starlink the permission to provide internet service to moving vehicles.

Pegasus Spyware Used to Target Former Polish Officials, Rights Watchdog Claims Former officials in Poland were victims of attempted phone hacking with Israeli firm NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware, according to Amnesty International. The rights watchdog worked with Poland's Gazeta Wyborcza daily to identify the alleged victims — former deputy treasury ministers Pawel Tamborski and Rafal Baniak, as well as some advisers in the previous liberal gov...

Japan Makes Cyberbullying, Online Insults Punishable by 1 Year in Jail According to Japan Times, the revised Penal Code raised the fine for online insults to up to JPY 300,000 ($2,200). This is a significant increase from the previous punishments of detention for fewer than 30 days and a fine of up to JPY 10,000 ($75).

Internet Shutdowns Cost Global Economy $10 Billion: Report The biggest portion of $10.6 billion was reported from Russia, where internet shutdowns cost $8.7 billion.

Walmart Expands Its Direct-To-Fridge Delivery Service, Will Be Available in More US Cities Walmart announced on Wednesday that its InHome grocery delivery service in the United States is now available as an optional add-on to its Walmart+ subscription, the retailer's low-cost alternative to Amazon Prime that offers free shipping with no minimum orders.

Thor: Love and Thunder Leaked on Torrent Sites, Piracy Networks as Marvel Movie Releases in Cinemas Thor: Love and Thunder full movie leaked on torrents and available for download via piracy networks. Thor: Love and Thunder released July 7 in India and the UK. Thor: Love and Thunder available in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada in India.

Google Announces Startup School India Initiative; Aims to Target 10,000 Startups in Smaller Cities Google announced an initiative called Startup School India on Wednesday, as part of the search giant’s efforts to help 10,000 startups in Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities in India. The programme will be conducted virtually over nine weeks and feature instructional modules on topics like shaping an effective product strategy, deep dives on product user value, building apps f...

Instagram Back Up After Brief Outage That Prevented Users From Logging In, Accessing Messages Instagram, the image and video sharing platform owned by Meta, was inaccessible for several users who reported the service was down late on Tuesday through early Wednesday. Downtime service tracking website Downdetector showed a peak in reports at 11PM on Tuesday, when 1200 users reported they were unable to access Instagram. However, unlike previous outages, some use...

Amazon Faces Probe Over Marketplace Practices From UK Competition Watchdog Amazon is facing an investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the UK’s competition watchdog, on whether the e-commerce giant is hurting competition on its platform by giving its own sellers an advantage over third party sellers. The probe follows a current European Commission probe looking at similar concerns, but which does not cover issues affe...

Microsoft Finds 'Raspberry Robin' Worm In Windows Networks: All You Need To Know The group responsible for releasing the malware is currently unknown and Microsoft is actively monitoring the networks. Researchers said that "Raspberry Robin" spreads through infected ISB drive.

Modern Love Hyderabad Release Date and Time, Cast, Episodes, Director, Trailer, and More Modern Love Hyderabad release date and time is July 8 on Amazon Prime Video at 12am. Revathy, Nithya Menen, and Aadhi Pinisetty among others lead the Modern Love Hyderabad cast.

Russian Lawmakers Approve Harsher Rules for Foreign Tech Firms Without Offices, Personal Data Transfer Russian lawmakers have approved a bill with stricter penalties for foreign internet companies that fail to open an office in Russia. Fines could be as high as 10 percent of a company's turnover in Russia from the previous year, rising to up to 20 percent for repeat violations.

Former TikTok Gaming Head to Launch Blockchain Games Startup as Big Players Keep Away Former TikTok's gaming head, Jason Fung, is launching a blockchain gaming startup Meta0 as one of two co-founders. Fung said he left TikTok after seeing an opportunity to offer a solution to the current segregated nature of infrastructure options available to developers looking to build blockchain games.

Digital Markets Act, Digital Services Act Passed as EU Moves to Rein in Big Tech; Enforcement Concerns Remain EU lawmakers have approved landmark rules on Tuesday, the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and Digital Services Act (DSA), both aimed at reining in Big Tech firms like Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Microsoft. However, concerns remain over the ability of the EU to enforce these rules, due to limited resources available to regulators. The DMA will force changes in compan...

TikTok Accused by Rights Activists of Breaching EU Laws for Targeted Advertising Policy TikTok has been accused by rights activists of breaching EU laws after the social media firm announced a change in policy to collect data from users over 18 in Europe whether or not they had consented. The video-sharing platform has claimed the move is allowed under Europe's data protection law, also known as GDPR, relying on a principle called "legitimate interest", ...

Twitter India Said to Pursue Judicial Review of Content Takedown Orders, Alleging Abuse of Power Twitter is said to be looking to overturn orders by the government to take down content from the IT ministry, according to sources. The US social media firm is looking to get a judicial review as part of a growing confrontation with the government over-regulation of content on its platform. Twitter has been warned of criminal action for not implementing government dir...

Hacker Puts 23TB Database Claimed to Contain Personal Data of Millions of Chinese Citizens for Sale A hacker who has claimed to have stolen the data of a billion Chinese citizens has begun selling the data online. The alleged 23TB database was advertised on a forum late last month and picked up by cybersecurity experts this week. A sample of 7,50,000 entries shows citizens' names, mobile phone numbers, national ID numbers, addresses, birthdays and police reports fil...

Apple Maps to Reportedly Bring Optimised Routes for E-Bikes Apple Maps will reportedly bring optimised routes for electronic bikes. The American tech giant has lately been introducing a set of new features on Apple Maps. Apple launched its more detailed, three-dimensional city maps feature that was released with iOS 15 in Canada a few months ago.

Aarya Season 3: Disney+ Hotstar Renews Sushmita Sen Crime Thriller Series Aarya renewed for season 3. Disney+ Hotstar announced Monday that it had officially greenlit a third season of the Sushmita Sen-led Hotstar Specials crime thriller, with creator, director and producer Ram Madhvani.

Android ‘Toll Fraud’ Malware Detected, Subscribes Users to Premium Services Without Consent Researchers at the Microsoft 365 Defender Team have discovered that “toll fraud” malware has begun growing in popularity, affecting android users. The malware executes a series of steps after infecting a user’s device, subscribing them to premium services from their telecom operator and works by exploiting the WAP (wireless application protocol) used by cellular...

Masaba Masaba Season 2 Release Date Set as July 29 on Netflix Masaba Masaba season 2 release date is set as July 29 on Netflix. The date announcement teaser features Neena Gupa and Masaba Gupta. There’s no word on the number of episodes.

Electricity Bill Scams Ongoing in India, Fraudsters Looting Lakhs of Rupees By Preying on Consumers Electricity scams are at a peak in India as scammers are targeting consumers in various states to trick them into transferring money for continuing their power connection.

Byju’s Lays Off 500 Workers at WhiteHat Jr, Toppr; Sacked Employees Claim Number Higher Byju’s announced on Thursday that it has laid off less than 500 workers at WhiteHat Jr and Toppr, as part of efforts to recalibrate its business priorities and accelerate long-term growth. Meanwhile, sacked employees have claimed that 1,100 staff had been retrenched at Toppr alone. The employees also claimed that they got a call from the company on Monday and were a...

Google Faces Complaints From EU Consumer Groups Over Privacy Concern, Might Get Panellised if Found Guilty Google has been targeted by a French consumer group and its peers in complaints to privacy watchdogs over its vast trove of users' personal data harvested via their Google accounts, said European consumer organisation BEUC. "The language Google uses at every step of the registration process is unclear, incomplete, and misleading," the group said.

Delhi Launches MCD Website Upgraded With Added Details on Sanitation Workers, Gardeners Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena launched an upgraded MCD website having info system that will enable people to directly contact sanitation workers and gardeners allotted to specific streets and parks. The website will be under trail for sometime.

Government to Finalise GST Rates on Online Gaming in August: FM Nirmala Sitharaman Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman mentioned that the GST rates on online gaming, horse racing and casinos will be finalised in the 48th GST Council Meeting which will be held in August in Madurai. She also added that the compensation can be continued at least for a few years.

Government Approves Computerisation of Primary Agriculture Credit Societies for Transparency, Accountability The Government on Wednesday approved the computerisation of all functional 63,000 Primary Agriculture Credit Societies (PACS) over the next five years. For the reform, the government has set up at a budget outlay of nearly Rs. 2,510 crore in order to improve efficiency, transparency and accountability in PACS' operations.

Delhi Government to Engage With E-Commerce, Food Delivery Firms Over SUP Ban Implementation The Delhi government plans to engage with various e-commerce firms and food delivery platforms, including Zomato, Swiggy, Amazon and Flipkart, for effective implementation of the ban on single-use plastic (SUP) items in the capital, officials said on Saturday.

Dutch University Gets Cyber Ransom Money Back, With Interest The Netherlands' Maastricht University fell victim to a massive ransomware attack in 2019, and has now partly received back its stolen money... which in the meantime more than doubled in value, a news report said on Saturday.

California Department of Justice Lacked Basic Safeguards for Gun Owner Info, Experts Say Cybersecurity experts say the California Department of Justice apparently failed to follow basic security procedures on its website, exposing the personal information of potentially hundreds of thousands of gun owners.