James Farrell
Latest from James Farrell
Privacy concerns arise after more governments start using tracking data to fight coronavirus
Governments around the world are increasingly using location data and other digital technologies to monitor the movements of their citizens. In the European Union, privacy must be respected in line with the General Data Protection Regulation. That means mobile operators have been sharing location data with the authorities, although that data must be anonymous and ...
Facebook explains why legitimate coronavirus posts have been taken down
Over the last few days people all over the world have been complaining that their links containing real information about the coronavirus on Facebook have been taken down, and they’ve been criticizing the company of censorship. The people who posted those links were told the they had violated Facebook Inc.’s Community Standards, in this case ...
Facebook pledges $100 million to small businesses during COVID-19 pandemic
Facebook Inc. announced Tuesday that will pledge $100 million in cash grants and ad credits to help 30,000 small businesses in more than 30 countries where its employees live and work. The company didn’t add many more details as to where the money from the Facebook Small Business Grants Program” will go. “Small businesses are ...
HashiCorp raises $175 million in late-stage round for $5.1B valuation
San Francisco-based cloud computing firm HashiCorp Inc. today said it has raised $175 million in a Series E round of funding, giving the company a valuation of $5.1 billion. The Series E financing came from Franklin Templeton Investments. Only in late 2018, the HashiCorp was valued at $1.9 billion. The company, which provides multicloud infrastructure automation, is ...
Facebook and Twitter clamp down on Russian troll farms operating from Africa
Facebook Inc. and Twitter Inc. said Thursday that Russian troll farms attempting to interfere with the U.S. public opinion have been found operating in Ghana and Nigeria. In a blog post, Facebook said it had removed 49 Facebook accounts, 69 Pages and 85 Instagram accounts coordinating inauthentic behavior and working for a “foreign actor.” That ...
EU plans a ‘right to repair’ rule for electronic devices
The European Union today said the days of “take, make, use, discard” when it comes to electronic devices should be a thing of the past, promising to pass a “right to repair” law. If the legislation goes through in 2021, it will mean manufacturers will have a responsibility to make their products last longer so ...
Amazon tells staff in New York and New Jersey to work from home during coronavirus crisis
Amazon.com Inc. has told its staff in New York and New Jersey that because of coronavirus concerns, they should work at home for the month of March. That amounts to a lot of staff since Newark, New Jersey, is home to the headquarters of Amazon’s audiobook company, Audible. In New York City Amazon employs thousands ...
After barrage of criticism, Facebook takes down confusing Trump ad
Facebook Inc. today did an about-face and removed ads from the Donald Trump presidential campaign because they were misleading. The ad was part of the “Official 2020 Congressional District Census.” At first sight, it didn’t seem to break Facebook’s recent policy on Census misinformation, but it wasn’t actually related to the census. U.S. citizens will ...
To fight coronavirus misinformation, Facebook gives World Health Organization free ads
As dubious information pertaining to the coronavirus floods social media, Facebook Inc. says the World Health Organization is welcome to publish as many ads as it wants for free. Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a post Tuesday that the company has been working on trying to get “credible and accurate information” out there about the disease, ...
Big tech benefiting from forced labor in China, according to report
A report published Monday by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute claims that a large number of global companies are benefiting from the forced labor of Uyghurs and other minorities. A total of 83 companies are listed in the report, and some of those names are Microsoft Corp., Apple Inc., Amazon.com Inc., Google LLC, Huawei Technologies ...