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TECH

Douyin, Chinese Version of TikTok, Limits Kids to 40 Minutes a Day

Minors in China are now only allowed to use Douyin — the original, mainland Chinese version of video site TikTok — between the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 p.m.
Chinese tech firms like TikTok, Huawei, and Tencent have increased their lobbying budgets.

UK Vaccine Passport App Sends Biometric Facial Recognition Data to Private Company, Shares With Law Enforcement

The vaccine passport app used by the United Kingdom’s public health system is using a private company to collect and process biometric facial recognition data, and the National Health Service
Theatre goers queue to scan their contact tracing app on July 21, 2021 in London, England. The NHS App vaccine passport uses iProov, a private company, to collect biometric facial recognition data for account verification. The NHS provides iProov with government identification data to complete the match. This information can also be queried by law enforcement.
In Unprecedented Clampdown, 7 Chinese Power Users Banned From Wikipedia as Information War Rages
Instagram Use Is Harming the Mental Health of Young Girls, and Facebook Knows It: Report
Teenagers take photos for their Instagram account on September 28, 2020 in Kershon, Ukraine. An expose by the Wall Street Journal revealed parent company Facebook is well aware of the harm the app inflicts on a large portion of its 22 million daily teenage users from its own internal surveys and focus groups.
In Historic First SpaceX to Launch Four Civilians Into Space
Chinese Botnet Tried to Mobilize Social Media Users to Protest Anti-Asian Hate: Report
People participate in an anti-Asian violence protest on April 4, 2021 in New York City. Security operations group FireEye found a Chinese Communist Party-sponsored botnet had not only expanded its influence operations into other languages and fringe social media and websites, but attempted to mobilize real world users to attend an April 24 anti-Asian hate protest in New York City.
China Opens Its First Plant That Turns Nuclear Waste Into Glass
Biden Allows Sale of American Auto Chips to Blacklisted Huawei
Washington approved the sale of auto chips to Huawei due to pressure from U.S. companies, says Global Times.
In this photo illustration, a mobile phone can be seen displaying the logos for Chinese apps WeChat and TikTok in front of a monitor showing the flags of the United States and China on an internet page, on September 22, 2020 in Beijing, China. A recent investigation by Wall Street Journal found TikTok’s algorithm can learn its users' desires in as little as 40 minutes and will quickly bury the account in a rabbit hole of related content.
TikTok Learns User Desires in 40 Minutes, Curates Rabbitholed Content
Chinese Communist Party controlled video-based social influencing app TikTok learns a user’s desires and attachments in as little as 40 minutes before beginning the process of bombarding the client with curated content designed to keep...
A woman checks the website of Israel-made Pegasus spyware at an office in the Cypriot capital Nicosia on July 21, 2021. The Pegasus Project scandal revealed world leaders, human rights defenders, journalists, and lawyers have been surveilled without their knowledge or consent by government actors for years.
Israeli Pegasus Spyware Spied on Macron, Dalai Lama, Telegram Founder
An investigation by a Paris-based non-profit and Amnesty International uncovered military-grade spyware licensed by an Israeli tech firm that was used to tap cell phones of journalists, human rights defenders, national leaders, and even kings...
Russia recently tested its Zircon hypersonic missile successfully once again.
Russia Tests Nuclear-Capable Hypersonic Missile
Russia has successfully tested its Zircon hypersonic cruise missile once again. The Defense Ministry revealed that the missile was fired from its Admiral Gorshkov warship. It traveled at seven times the speed of sound and...
Blue Origin’s New Shepard crew—(L-R) Oliver Daemen, Jeff Bezos, Wally Funk, and Mark Bezos—pose for a picture in Van Horn, Texas near the booster after flying into space in the Blue Origin New Shepard rocket on July 20, 2021. Mr. Bezos and the crew were the first human spaceflight for the company.
World’s Richest Man Jeff Bezos Reaches Space With Youngest and Oldest Crew Members
On July 20, Jeff Bezos, the richest person in the world and founder of Amazon, successfully completed his space journey on New Shepard, a rocket ship designed and built by his space company Blue Origin....
(L-R) Professor of public interest law at George Washington University Law School Jonathan Turley, Corporate Vice President of Customer Security & Trust at Microsoft Tom Burt, and Of Counsel Lynn Oberlander at Ballard Spahr LLP testify during a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee at Rayburn House Office Building June 30, 2021 in Washington, DC. The committee held a hearing to examine "Secrecy Orders and Prosecuting Leaks: Potential Legislative Responses to Deter Prosecutorial Abuse of Power."
US Government Spied on Microsoft Users, Vice President Asks for Stronger Privacy Laws
On June 30th, the Corporate Vice President of Microsoft, Tom Burt, testified before the House Committee on the Judiciary, revealing that the U.S. government has been spying on Microsoft users. Burt pushed for stronger privacy...
tibet-rail-high-speed-rail
China Opens First High Speed Rail Line in Tibet
On June 25, Tibet’s first bullet train became operational, with the 438-kilometer (270 miles) long Nyingchi–Lhasa rail line entering service. The project began in December 2014 and construction was completed last December. Almost 90 percent...
Newport Wafer Fab is the UK's largest wafer fab, which produces 20nm processes that are mainly used as automotive wafers.
China Buys UK’s Largest Semiconductor Firm, Raising National Security Concerns
With Beijing facing a chip shortage under U.S.-led global technology sanctions, Chinese companies have been aggressively acquiring global semiconductor plants since the coronavirus pandemic began last year. Its latest purchase was Newport Wafer Fab (NWF),...
The US Military Is Finding It Harder and Harder to Buy Semiconductors
Shortages, supply chains, and security weigh heavily in which chips can and can’t be used Semiconductors enable nearly every modern industrial and commercial device, from smartphones to aircraft, vehicles, weapons systems, the internet and the...
Facebook censored the hashtag #revolution on July 4th, citing violations of Community Standards.
Facebook Blocks #Revolution Hashtag on American Independence Day
Back in 1776, 13 American colonies declared that they were no longer subject to the rule of the British monarch. Freedom was gained through the sacrifices of tens of thousands of men and women who...