BATTERYFORPC BLOG
Elon Musk becomes Twitter's biggest shareholder
Elon Musk has taken a 9.2% stake in Twitter, according to a US securities filing. The announcement sent Twitter shares soaring by more than 27% in New York trading on Monday. Tesla's chief executive owned 73,486,938 shares in the social media platform as of 14 March, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The stake is worth $2.89bn (£2.2bn), based on Twitter's closing price on Fri ... Read more
2022-04-05 20:11:35
Facebook users angry after accounts locked for no reason
Facebook users around the world have been waking up to find themselves locked out of their accounts for no apparent reason. The message many received reads: "Your Facebook account was disabled because it did not follow our Community Standards. This decision can't be reversed." One user told the BBC there was no warning or explanation given. Parent firm Meta said it was investigating. ... Read more
2022-04-01 19:56:23
China's WeChat suspends some accounts linked to NFTs
China's popular WeChat messaging app has suspended some accounts linked to non-fungible tokens (NFTs), to prevent speculation in the digital assets. The platform says it has "rectified" accounts which it found to be promoting NFT market speculation, that can help to drive up prices. There are no regulations against NFTs in China, although the trading of cryptocurrencies was banned last ... Read more
2022-04-01 19:56:02
Lapsus$: Two UK teenagers charged with hacking for gang
Two teenagers from the UK have appeared in court charged with hacking for a major cyber-crime gang. A 16- and 17-year-old appeared at Highbury Corner youth court, in London, on Friday charged with a number of cyber-offences. The two boys have been released on bail, subject to certain conditions. They were arrested as part of an international police investigation into the Lapsus$ gang, which has ... Read more
2022-04-01 19:55:38
Are tech companies removing evidence of war crimes?
In just three months, last year, TikTok removed 80 million uploaded videos that in some way broke its rules. Powerful artificial intelligence combined with human moderators had removed them at lightning speed, 94.2% before anyone had seen them, it said. Systems that searched for "violative content" had removed 17 million of the videos removed automatically. And other social-media comp ... Read more
2022-03-31 20:23:25
Facebook in 'bare-knuckle' fight with TikTok
The chief executive of a political consulting firm has responded to a report alleging Meta paid his company to "undermine" TikTok. Internal emails, apparently seen by the Washington Post, allegedly suggested Targeted Victory's campaign aimed to show TikTok "as a danger to American children". Zac Moffatt tweeted that the Post's report mischaracterised their work and "key ... Read more
2022-03-31 20:22:41
Dyson headphones come with air vacuum for mouth
Dyson has taken its first step into wearable technology, with an eye-catching pair of over-ear headphones that come with an air-purifying mouth visor. Best known for vacuum cleaners, Dyson has diversified in recent years with products such as fans and a hairdryer. The headphones - dubbed Dyson Zone - are designed to tackle the growing issue of air pollution. One reviewer said they would definit ... Read more
2022-03-30 23:45:58
Ronin Network: What a $600m hack says about the state of crypto
Thousands, if not millions, of people could have lost money in the second largest crypto hack in history. Ronin Network, a key platform powering the popular mobile game Axie Infinity, has had $615m (£467m) stolen. A 20-year-old from Wiltshire, Dan Rean, is one of those affected. He told the BBC: "I have lost 0.15 Ethereum, about $500. It's bad but I have friends in a worse position." ... Read more
2022-03-30 23:45:30
Facebook drives sceptics towards climate denial
Facebook pushes climate sceptics towards increasingly extreme disinformation and conspiracy groups, a human-rights body's research suggests. A report released Wednesday by Global Witness found Facebook's algorithm amplified doubts rather than nudging people towards reliable information. Facebook says its systems are "designed to reduce misinformation". Researchers created two users - ... Read more
2022-03-30 02:25:21
China gains a foothold in Australia's backyard
Late last week, a proposed security treaty between China and a tiny chain of islands in the Pacific sent shock waves across the ocean. The leaked draft signalled that China could deploy troops to the Solomon Islands - and potentially establish a naval base there. Nowhere was more alarmed than the Solomons' neighbour to the south, Australia - the bedrock regional partner of the Aukus alliance, a ... Read more
2022-03-29 20:15:33