Pi in the sky: Google Cloud sets new Pi record with 31 trillion digits March 14, 2019 A Google employee has set a new record by calculating the value of the number Pi to more than 31 trillion digits. Emma Haruka Iwao, a developer advocate at the tech firm, beat the previous record of 22 trillion, set in 2016. Read more: IBM's Watson supercomputer launches tie-up with Volkswagen's SEAT The calculation, which [...]
Google removed 2.3bn ‘bad ads’ last year in fight against fake news and fraud March 14, 2019 Google removed 2.3bn ads last year for violating its policies on fraud and misinformation, the company said today. The total number of ads removed, which equates to roughly 75 ads per second, is almost 1bn lower than last year. Read more: Google paid $105m to executives accused of sexual harassment But Google said it had [...]
Facebook hit with US criminal investigation over data-sharing deals March 14, 2019 US prosecutors have launched a criminal investigation into Facebook over a number of data deals it struck with other major tech firms. A grand jury in New York has ordered two smartphone manufacturers to hand over records, the New York Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Read more: Facebook to encrypt more messages [...]
The World Wide Web is 30 years old – what will be the future of the internet? March 14, 2019 The World Wide Web turned 30 years old this week: on 12 March 1989, Sir Tim Berners-Lee submitted a proposal to the world’s largest physics laboratory, Cern, that outlined a new way to link, share, and manage information over the internet. As the main way that the vast majority of us access the online world, the [...]
Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp emerge from worst outage in tech giant’s history March 14, 2019 Facebook showed signs of recovery this morning after suffering a partial outage that affected users across the world for more than 14 hours. The outage, believed to be the longest in the social media site’s history, began yesterday afternoon and also affected Instagram, Messenger and Whatsapp. Read more: Global outages cripple Facebook, Whatsapp and Instagram The [...]
Businesses fear political threats and cyber attacks in uncertain risk environment March 14, 2019 More than three quarters of general counsels and board members view the risk landscape as having become significantly more complex in the last three years, with political risk cited as the number one risk facing businesses and technological risk a close second. A survey by law firm Clyde & Co and professional network organisation Winmark [...]
Global outages cripple Facebook, Whatsapp and Instagram March 13, 2019 Several of Facebook’s most popular social media platforms are suffering partial outages around the world, largely affecting users across the Americas and Europe. Service continues to be disrupted on Facebook’s main app, Messsenger, Instagram and Whatsapp. Users began reporting issues at around 4pm GMT, with full access to the platforms still ongoing. Third-party outage tracker Down Detector said [...]
Hammond calls for competition probe into digital advertising market March 13, 2019 The government will call on the competition regulator to launch an inquiry into the digital advertising sector amid concerns about the dominance of tech giants. Presenting his Spring Statement this afternoon, Chancellor Philip Hammond said he will ask the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to review the market and ensure Google and Facebook “pay their [...]
Get Your Guide to achieve unicorn status thanks to $50m Temasek backing March 13, 2019 Online travel firm Get Your Guide is set to achieve coveted unicorn status thanks to a $300m (£228m) cash injection from a group of investors, Sky News reported. The Berlin-based travel company is said to be in advanced talks with Singaporean sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings over a $50m investment that will be announced in [...]
Spotify reports Apple to EU commission over rules which ‘disadvantage’ app developers March 13, 2019 Spotify fired a broadside at Apple today as it reported its rival to the EU competition authorities over the way that the tech giant's App Store works. Chief executive Daniel Ek blasted what he called an "Apple tax" which forces his company to pay a 30 per cent commission for sales made via Apple's payment system. [...]