The internet is toxic because humans are toxic

When in doubt, blame the robots. As Facebook has fallen from grace and struggled to reconcile its role in spreading propaganda and stoking political anger, the company has proposed a familiar solution: If the algorithm has failed, let’s just build a better algorithm. дальше »

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Full moon patents: Facebook’s facial recognition and Amazon’s 3D internet

Ugh, the Gregorian calendar is so boring. That’s why we’re disrupting monthly series with a lunar cycle-based series about the best patents of the last synodic month, picked by the PatentYogi team. дальше »

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WhatsApp could be getting its own cryptocurrency

Kik might not be the only messaging app to support cryptocurrency payments if Facebook’s latest dream comes true. According to people close with the matter, the social media behemoth is looking to develop a cryptocurrency that enables WhatsApp users to transfer money to each other, reports Bloomberg. дальше »

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The best new social media features of 2018

Social media sites and apps are constantly changing and evolving to match the needs of their user base — for good, and for ill. Whether it’s Facebook Watch‘s new shows actually making it worth using, or Snapchat’s reviled redesign, social media changes can be a polarizing topic for the millions of people who use the sites every day. дальше »

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Facebook’s latest privacy stumble gave big tech access to your messages

Last night, we got word of yet another Facebook privacy scandal. What is that, Number 427 for the year? In this case, a report from The New York Times revealed the social media company gave an extreme amount of access to certain partner companies, over and above what users might have expected. дальше »

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Redditors work out player counts to over 100 PS4 games

Leave it to Reddit to parse the tiniest details of a minor feature for PS4 players and turn it into a wealth of data about games. In this case, the feature is the “My PS4 Life” videos Sony recently began offering to players. дальше »

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Hong Kong: Bitcoin ‘millionaire’ throws money from rooftop, gets arrested

A supposed Chinese cryptocurrency millionaire has been arrested after throwing stacks of HK $100 ($12) bills from the rooftop of a building in one of Hong Kong’s poorest districts. Self-styled Bitcoin millionaire Wong Ching-Kit announced the bizarre stunt via Facebook. дальше »

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How to delete Facebook without losing your friends and photos

Casey Neistat wrote an article back in 2014 how he ‘fixed’ his Facebook by unfriending people who shared too much. I tried this in 2017… and it absolutely didn’t work! People still share way too much and every time I go on Facebook it feels like like a whole plague of negativity that’s trying to give me cancer. дальше »

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How social media dilutes scientific discoveries into clickbait

When news breaks – whether the story of a disease outbreak, a terrorist attack, or a natural disaster – people increasingly turn to the internet and social media. Individuals use Twitter and Facebook as primary sources for news and information. дальше »

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How numb are we to Facebook’s fuck-ups at this point?

Facebook apparently couldn’t get to the end of its awful 2018 without exposing even more user data —  photos, in this case. But at this point, we’re so inoculated to Facebook’s colossal leaks and data breaches that I challenge anyone to summon up a more impassioned response than a slight shrug. дальше »

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Op Ed: Bitcoin Is a Declaration of Our Monetary Independence

Nick Spanos is an early adopter and innovator in the blockchain space. He is best known for launching Bitcoin Center NYC, the world’s first live cryptocurrency exchange, in 2013, right next to the New York Stock Exchange — as immortalized in the Netflix documentary “Banking on Bitcoin. дальше »

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‘They clearly don’t care’: Fact-checkers on the state of misinformation at Facebook

After a deluge of fake news began to overwhelm Facebook, it got proactive. The social media platform tapped bi-partisan organizations, such as Snopes, to fact-check content on the platform and use their expertise to combat the spread of misinformation. дальше »

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Facebook HQ buildings evacuated due to a bomb scare (Updated)

Update: Facebook said in an updated statement that everyone has been cleared to return to their buildings. “Late this afternoon, we received a bomb threat and took swift action to evacuate several buildings at our Menlo Park campus. дальше »

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Watch: Google CEO Pichai explains to Congress that Google doesn’t make iPhones

Google‘s chief executive Sundar Pichai today appeared on Capitol Hill to answer questions about a number of issues. Most pressing were issues with the collection of data, plans for a heavily censored Chinese search engine, and how to best combat misinformation, including what role, if any, Google should play in stopping it. дальше »

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Facebook is hiring engineers and researchers for its blockchain team

It seems Facebook is looking to step up its “decentralization” efforts. The social media giant is currently recruiting blockchain engineers and researchers. Facebook wants to add a data scientist, a data engineer, and a couple of software engineers to its growing blockchain team, according to its careers page (via SludgeFeed). дальше »

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Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg spit fire in new Epic Rap Battles of History

Epic Rap Battles of History just came back triumphant after almost two years of silence, and the opponents in the latest battle are none other than the most infamous CEOs of the year: Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg versus Tesla’s Elon Musk. дальше »

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The week’s best Android games to play while weaning yourself off Facebook

Welcome to our weekly column, in which YouTuber NimbleThor brings you a short list of the best new mobile games for your Android device.  Whether you’re into casual time wasters or hardcore shooters, you’ll find something in here to exercise your thumbs with. дальше »

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Internal docs show Facebook absolutely loves your data

Unless you’re waking up from a decade-long deep slumber, you know that Facebook doesn’t give two hoots about your privacy, and about how it gets your data. If that wasn’t clear, you should have a look at the 250-page document that contains the company’s internal emails, just released by the UK parliament. дальше »

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France will tax tech giants in 2019 if EU doesn’t step up

Plans for EU-wide digital services tax to prevent tax evasion were struck down this week as the proposal didn’t receive unanimous support from all 28 member states. This happened despite Germany and France‘s attempt to reach a consensus by proposing a bill full of concessions, which would specifically target behemoths like Google and Facebook. дальше »

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How Hive is raising a massive army to build AI-training datasets

The thing people forget about artificial intelligence is that it’s exactly that — artificial. Behind Facebook’s flesh-spotting algorithms and Mobileye’s pedestrian-avoiding machines are vast, complicated datasets, which are built and labeled by a vast human workforce. дальше »

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250-page document dump is another nail in Facebook’s coffin

As part of its investigation of Facebook in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, the British government seized a huge cache of the company‘s internal documents. Despite Facebook‘s best efforts, those documents are now online. дальше »

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South African man hands thugs $60K in Bitcoin after heinous torturing

It seems cryptocurrency scammers aren’t afraid of using more old school tactics in order to extort Bitcoin from their victims. A man from South Africa was purportedly attacked for his Bitcoin by someone he met on Facebook, according to local news outlet, the Soweto Urban. дальше »

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WhatsApp’s first ever TV commercial warns against fake news in India

WhatsApp has faced a lot of criticism for the way it’s handled fake news in India. In its latest move to battle misinformation, the company has launched three TV commercials in India to spread awareness about the issue amongst its users in the country. дальше »

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Facebook’s new local news section could be a boon to social activists and researchers

One of the biggest challenges faced by social activists is finding and connecting with people affected by issues they’re concerned about. Now, thanks to Facebook’s new local news section, they may find it easier to organize information on such cases, and unite people better to solve them. дальше »

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ACLU demands FBI explain request to wiretap Facebook Messenger

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) today filed a motion with a Federal court requesting documents pertaining to an FBI attempt to force Facebook to hack its own Messenger service be unsealed. дальше »

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Scammers target Facebook users with sponsored ads for fake cryptocurrencies

It appears Twitter has become so saturated with cryptocurrency scams that attackers are finally starting to target other platforms too – like Facebook. Unlike the standard Bitcoin giveaway scams on Twitter, the Facebook scam (as noticed by Hard Fork) is designed to trick users into giving up sensitive data, like their credit card information. дальше »

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Facebook might soon let you mute comments with selected words

Let’s face it: Facebook is not the most positive place on earth. Some comments on your Facebook posts can be more than unpleasant. But researcher Jane Manchun Wong’s new finding in the app could bring us some hope for a better experience. дальше »

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Facebook Messenger bug resurfaces chats from years ago (Update: it’s fixed)

Update (10:08 AM, 27 November 2018): A Facebook spokesperson told TNW it’s fixed the bug: Earlier today, some people may have experienced Facebook resending older messages. The issue, caused by software updates, has been fully resolved. дальше »

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Here’s how we take back control over our digital identities

The data reckoning has arrived. We’re already too familiar with the breach headlines: Equifax, Under Armour, Target. But in 2018, social media brands came under the spotlight as well: half a million accounts’ data were inadvertently exposed in Google+, and another 29 million users’ data in the Facebook breach this fall. дальше »

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Hate speech is still too easy to find on social media

Shortly after the synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, I noticed that the word “Jews” was trending on Twitter. As a social media researcher and educator, I became concerned that the violence would spread online, as it has in the past. дальше »

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Facebook launches a dashboard for tracking the time you spend in its app

We first heard in June that Facebook was working on a feature to help you track and manage the amount of time you spent in its mobile app. Following a delay after the company announced its rollout in August, it’s finally here. дальше »

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LinkedIn tests Snapchat Stories-esque feature called ‘Student Voices’

Well, it’s finally happened. LinkedIn finally ripped off Snapchat’s Stories, meaning it joins the illustrious company of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google, WhatsApp, and just about everyone else. дальше »

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Facebook hack proves we need new user authentication methods

Just when you thought Facebook has put the worst of its troubles behind, the social media giant revealed on Friday that it had experienced a new security incident that possibly affected 90 million users. дальше »

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Some Google Pixel 3 owners can’t use the camera due to a critical bug

Issues with the Google Pixel 3 are piling up after customers got hands on it nearly a month ago.  Now, some device owners find they can’t use the camera due to a disastrous bug. Many users have reported this bug on Reddit and Google product forums. дальше »

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If Facebook’s new auto-comment feature isn’t rock bottom, it has to be close

It’s been two tumultuous years. Still, it’s highly unlikely we’ve witnessed the moment Facebook hit bottom. A new feature, spotted by some users this morning, though, may offer a clue as to what that moment could look like. дальше »

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Student discovers copycat stalker imitating her Instagram account

A Scottish college student apparently discovered a classmate had been imitating her pictures on Instagram, to an eerie degree. According to a now-deleted Facebook post, a woman named Chloe Cowan and her sister spotted the copycat, allegedly a fellow student named Honey Basra. дальше »

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Facebook’s former PR firm seeded fake stories about bias at Apple News

Facebook‘s recently-fired PR firm allegedly floated a story to journalists that Apple News was biased against Republicans. The company, Definers Public Affairs, made headlines this week after a bombshell New York Times report revealed that it was employed by Facebook to dig up dirt on critics and competitors. дальше »

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Facebook removed 1.5 billion fake accounts between April and September

Facebook released its community standards report today, in which it detailed how it dealt with fake news, spam, hate speech, and terrorist propaganda on its platform. The company noted that, between April and September 2018, it removed a whopping 1. дальше »

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Mark Zuckerberg really wants you to know he reads the New York Times

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg today held a press call to talk about the company’s 2nd Community Standards Enforcement report. It was supposed to last 45 minutes, but it ended up nearly 2 hours long thanks to an extended – and very entertaining – interactive session with the national news media. дальше »

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Instagram’s new dashboard tells you how much time you waste in the app

Like we anticipated in August, Instagram has rolled out a dashboard that lets you set daily time limits for using the app, and an option to temporarily mute push notifications. This is in line with the ongoing attempts by Instagram’s parent company, Facebook, to introduce new features in its apps to to help users fight social media addiction. дальше »

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Facebook Messenger now lets you unsend messages

Back in April, we reported that Facebook was planning to implement a feature in Messenger to let you unsend messages. After multiple trials, the feature has now been rolled out to users in a few countries. дальше »

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Facebook bug allowed websites to grab unsuspecting users’ personal data

Security firm Imperva found a bug in May that allowed websites to read Facebook users and their friends’ private information.  The troubling vulnerability let a site access users’ likes and interests through a manipulated Facebook Graph query. дальше »

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Digital rights groups demand Facebook let you appeal removed posts

A group of 88 civil liberties groups have penned an open letter to Facebook requesting the company allow users to appeal whenever their posts are removed — an option they currently do not have. дальше »

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Facebook and Airbnb revise sexual harassment policies after Google protests

Earlier this month, thousands of Google employees walked out of their offices, in part to protest company policies regarding sexual harassment, transparency, and the handling thereof. CEO Sundar Pichai acknowledged the protesters’ concerns and implied management was working on fixing the policies that had led to them. дальше »

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Turn any photo into a WhatsApp sticker with this free Android app

WhatsApp finally introduced stickers on its platform only last month, and offered a bunch of sticker packs that were previously available on Facebook Messenger. But if you’re on Android, you can easily create your own stickers right on your phone. дальше »

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This tool is like Buffer for Instagram stories

Stories are short, ephemeral blobs of content — videos and pictures, mostly — which Snapchat popularized in 2013, followed by Instagram, Facebook, and… er… Skype. But for all their popularity, there aren’t that many good ways to create and manage them at scale. дальше »

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Latin America joins EU in considering a new digital tax

Mexico and Chile are among a host of countries that may follow the European Union’s lead in playing hardball on taxes with big tech companies like Facebook, Alphabet, AirBnB, and Uber. In March, the EU proposed a “digital tax” that would affect the revenue of major digital companies like Facebook and Google. дальше »

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Facebook removes 115 suspicious accounts ahead of US midterm elections

Just before the US midterm elections, Facebook removed a total of 115 accounts it thought that ‘engaged in coordinated inauthentic behavior’. The company said US Law enforcement contacted it on Sunday to report suspicious online activity, which they believed was possibly linked to foreign entities. дальше »

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Facebook’s AI knows how likely you are to evacuate during a hurricane

Facebook AI Research (FAIR) recently conducted a big data study to determine whether social media ties play a role in people’s decision whether to evacuate affected areas during a hurricane. And, according to the research, those with the most “social capital” were more likely to heed official warnings and flee. дальше »

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Brands pour billions of dollars into Facebook advertising, but the social media giant isn’t going to last forever. So, where will those dollars go in the future? The only viable choice is creativity. дальше »

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